A few years ago, games with wild symbols on the first two reels were a popular feature. Land the wilds, and you could collect credits on the remaining reels.
Sometimes, you need a specific bonus symbol on reel 5, or you need a Collect symbol to collect prizes.
Notice a pattern? In all instances, the presence of a specific symbol sets off the reward. This is known in the industry as a catalyst, and like one of the traditional definitions of the term, it is exactly what it means – something that that precipitates an event.
Without the catalyst, the event, in this case, triggering a bonus or collecting prizes, wouldn’t occur. On those online games where fishermen collect the fish prizes, you don’t collect the prizes on the fish without the presence of that fisherman.
Catalysts aren’t found on every slot, but they tend to have a pretty important role when they’re featured. For the Wild Wild series, getting too wilds not only guarantees a line hit, but sets you up for the opportunity to collect credits if they line up on successive reels. Miss even one of the wilds, and you don’t win the credits and have a lesser chance at a line hit.
On the Konami slot A’Coins Matey, a Collect symbol on reel 5 was what you were looking for to collect prizes and rack up big wins. But when that Collect refused to come out, it could be a challenging game.
Of course, all those three pot games have catalysts too, as without the symbols that can pop the various pots, you won’t win them either. Which also underscores that a catalyst doesn’t guarantee a win either – wild wild can be followed by no credits, and a Collect symbol can appear without any credit prizes. Coins can fly up to the pots and not pop the pots.
But that’s the general concept of a catalyst, and now you know what to look for the next time you play!
