Buffalo King Megaways is Pragmatic Play's 2021 Megaways revamp of its original 2020 Buffalo King slot, taking the North American wildlife theme — buffalo, wolves, cougars, moose, and eagles — and stretching it across a 6-reel, up to 200,704-ways-to-win grid. With a 96.52% RTP, high volatility, tumbling reels, and wild multipliers that compound during free spins toward a 5,000x max win, it's a proven combination for players who like their Megaways slots dressed in fur and feathers rather than fruit and gems. South African players will recognise the appeal instantly: it's the same trusted Pragmatic mechanics that power Gates of Olympus and Sweet Bonanza, just repackaged with a plains-and-prairie backdrop.
How to Play Buffalo King Megaways
Buffalo King Megaways runs on a 6-reel grid where each reel displays between 2 and 7 symbols on any given spin, creating a variable number of ways to win that ranges from a few thousand up to a maximum of 200,704. This is the licensed Megaways mechanic — the same engine behind The Dog House Megaways and Bonanza Megaways — so if you've played either of those, the grid dynamics here will feel immediately familiar.
The theme sticks closely to the original Buffalo King: a sweeping North American plains backdrop populated by buffalo (the top symbol), wolves, cougars, moose, and eagles, with card-suit royals filling out the lower paytable. It's a warm, earthy palette — sunset oranges, dusty browns, deep golds — that suits the "wide open prairie" mood Pragmatic was going for. Wins pay left to right across adjacent reels wherever matching symbols line up, and the reels use a tumble mechanic, meaning winning symbols vanish and new ones cascade down to potentially chain further wins from a single spin.
Symbols & Payouts
| Symbol | 6-of-a-Kind Payout (R10 spin) |
|---|---|
| Wild (Bison Multiplier) | Substitutes — no direct payout |
| Buffalo (highest) | ~R1,400 |
| Wolf | ~R900 |
| Cougar | ~R600 |
| Moose | ~R450 |
| Eagle | ~R300 |
| Playing Card A–K | ~R70–R180 |
| Playing Card Q–J | ~R35–R90 |
Because Megaways payout values scale with both the number of matching symbols and the ways-to-win count generated on that particular spin, the table above is an approximate guide at a standard configuration — a spin with more ways in play will naturally pay more for the same symbol combination.
Big wins tend to form through a combination of long tumble chains and wild multipliers landing mid-sequence, rather than from a single static payline hit — more on that in the feature breakdown below.
Bet Range in Rands
Minimum bet: R1.00 per spin. Maximum bet: R2,500 per spin.
Feature Breakdown
Megaways Grid & Tumble Mechanic
Every spin reshuffles the number of symbols visible per reel, so the ways-to-win count changes constantly — from a modest few thousand up to the 200,704 ceiling. When a win lands, the winning symbols disappear and new symbols tumble down from above to fill the gaps, giving you a chance to chain additional wins from the same initial spin without wagering again. This cascading structure is what lets Buffalo King Megaways generate large multi-hit sequences even in the base game.
Wild Multipliers — The Signature Feature
The bison wild symbol lands only on the middle reels and carries a random multiplier value each time it appears — typically 2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x. When one or more wilds contribute to a winning combination, their multiplier values are added together and applied to that specific win. Two wilds worth 3x and 4x combine for a 7x boost on any win they're part of; three wilds landing across a single tumble sequence can push a modest base combination into a genuinely large payout.
Because tumbles can bring in fresh wilds on each cascade within a single spin, it's possible to stack multiplier value across consecutive tumbles in the base game — though the mechanic really shows its teeth once free spins are triggered.
Free Spins — Scatter Trigger
Landing 4, 5, or 6 scatter symbols anywhere on the grid triggers the free spins round, with the exact spin count scaling with the number of scatters landed (more scatters means more spins). During free spins, the wild multiplier mechanic remains active and the compounding effect is more pronounced — with tumbles chaining more freely and wilds appearing more frequently, the additive multiplier stacking described above is where Buffalo King Megaways' 5,000x ceiling comes from. Free spins can be retriggered by landing additional scatters during the feature, adding more spins to your remaining count.
Ante Bet
Buffalo King Megaways offers an Ante Bet option: increase your total stake by 25% in exchange for double the scatter symbol frequency, meaningfully improving your odds of triggering free spins. It's an optional toggle available before every spin, not a separate bonus buy — you're still triggering the feature organically, just with better odds of it happening sooner. For players managing a tight bankroll, it's worth doing the maths first: a 25% higher stake per spin needs to be weighed against how much sooner you expect the feature to land.
RTP & Volatility
RTP: 96.52% Volatility: High Max Win: 5,000x stake
RTP Variant Table
| Version | RTP |
|---|---|
| Provider Default | 96.52% |
| Low RTP Variant | 95.5% (some SA casinos) |
High volatility here sits a notch below the "very high" tier occupied by titles like Gates of Olympus or The Dog House Megaways. In practice, that means base game wins land somewhat more frequently than in the most extreme Megaways titles, but you're still building toward the free spins round for your best win potential rather than expecting the 5,000x ceiling from base game tumbles alone. It's a fair middle ground for players who want Megaways variance without the punishing dry spells of the very-high-volatility end of the market.
Bets & Max Win in Rands
| Setting | Amount |
|---|---|
| Minimum Bet | R1.00 per spin |
| Maximum Bet | R2,500 per spin |
| Max Win | 5,000x stake |
| Max Win at R10/spin | R50,000 |
| Max Win at R25/spin | R125,000 |
| Max Win at R50/spin | R187,500 |
The 5,000x cap puts Buffalo King Megaways in the same bracket as Gates of Olympus and Madame Destiny Megaways — solid but not chart-topping compared to the 12,305x of The Dog House Megaways or the 10,000x of the original Bonanza Megaways. What it trades away in ceiling height, it makes up for with slightly friendlier high volatility rather than very-high volatility.
Myth-Busting
"The Ante Bet guarantees free spins faster." It doesn't guarantee anything — it simply doubles the statistical frequency of scatter symbols appearing, which improves your odds over a large sample of spins. Any individual session, with or without Ante Bet active, can still run dry.
"Wild multipliers always appear during a big win sequence." Wild placement and multiplier value are both independently RNG-determined on every tumble. A wild can land with a 5x value on a spin that produces no other matching symbols at all, in which case the multiplier never gets applied to anything.
"The 200,704 maximum ways happen most spins." That figure requires every reel to display the maximum 7 symbols simultaneously — it's the theoretical ceiling, not the average. Most spins land somewhere well below it.
"Buffalo King Megaways is just a reskin of The Dog House Megaways." They share the same licensed Megaways engine and tumble structure, but the wild multiplier mechanic (additive stacking on bison wilds) is mechanically distinct from The Dog House's sticky wild multiplier system. Different math models, different feel in practice.
"Betting at maximum stake improves your RTP." RTP is fixed at every bet level for a given game configuration. Stake size changes the rand value of your wins, not your theoretical return percentage.
Strategy & Tips
Buffalo King Megaways is a high-volatility Megaways title, so treat it with the same bankroll discipline you'd apply to any Pragmatic Play slot in this tier — plan for extended dry spells between meaningful hits.
Bankroll Sizing
| Bankroll | Recommended Bet | Expected Spins |
|---|---|---|
| R400 | R2.00 | ~200 spins |
| R1,000 | R5.00 | ~200 spins |
| R2,000 | R10.00 | ~200 spins |
| R5,000 | R25.00 | ~200 spins |
Deciding on Ante Bet
If your bankroll can absorb a 25% higher per-spin stake without cutting your total spin count too aggressively, the Ante Bet is a reasonable way to shorten the wait for free spins. If you're playing a smaller bankroll and need to stretch your spin count as far as possible, skip it — the base RTP already accounts for the standard scatter frequency, and Ante Bet mode burns through your bankroll roughly 25% faster per spin.
Watching the Wild Multiplier Stack
During free spins, keep an eye on how many wilds land within a single tumble chain rather than focusing on the paytable symbol alone. Two or three wilds landing across consecutive tumbles, each carrying a mid-to-high multiplier value, is where Buffalo King Megaways produces its most memorable wins — far more reliably than chasing the maximum ways count.
Stop-Loss
40% of session bankroll is a sensible ceiling for a high-volatility Megaways title like this one — enough room to survive a normal dry spell without letting a bad session spiral into a much larger loss than planned.
Mobile Experience
Buffalo King Megaways is built on HTML5 and performs solidly across current Android and iOS devices.
Android: Loads quickly and handles the variable-height Megaways grid smoothly, even on mid-range phones. The wild multiplier display is clear and doesn't get lost in the tumble animation.
iOS: Clean, consistent performance on Safari, with no noticeable lag during longer tumble chains.
Orientation: Landscape mode is strongly recommended — the 6-reel Megaways grid is cramped in portrait and the symbol detail (particularly telling wolves and cougars apart at a glance) is easier in the wider view.
Data usage: Moderate. Heavier than a simple fixed-reel slot due to the tumble animations, but lighter than the most graphically demanding modern Pragmatic titles.
Graphics & Sound
Buffalo King Megaways keeps the warm, earthy visual identity of the original 2020 title while giving it a Megaways-appropriate upgrade.
Visuals: A sun-baked plains backdrop with detailed animal symbols — buffalo, wolves, cougars, moose, and eagles rendered with a decent amount of texture and shading. The expanding and contracting Megaways columns add motion between spins that the original fixed-grid version never had. Wild multiplier values are displayed clearly over the bison symbol as it lands.
Sound: An orchestral, slightly cinematic score that leans into the "wide open frontier" mood rather than anything upbeat or cartoonish. Tumble chains build audio tension nicely, and the free spins trigger has a satisfying payoff sting.
Overall production quality: 7.5/10. Solid, workmanlike Pragmatic Play production — not the studio's flashiest release, but well put together and thematically coherent.
Who Should Play / Who Should Skip
Play Buffalo King Megaways If You:
- Enjoy the Megaways mechanic and tumbling reels but want high (rather than very high) volatility
- Like wildlife/nature themes over fruit, gems, or fantasy aesthetics
- Want the option to speed up scatter frequency via Ante Bet
- Appreciate an additive wild multiplier system that's easy to understand
- Have a bankroll suited to high-volatility sessions with occasional dry spells
Skip Buffalo King Megaways If You:
- Want the highest possible max win ceilings (12,305x+ titles exist elsewhere)
- Prefer fixed paylines over the variable Megaways ways-to-win structure
- Find tumble/cascade mechanics visually busy or hard to follow
- Are on a very tight bankroll unsuited to high volatility
- Want a Hold & Spin or Money Collect style feature instead
FAQ
What is the RTP of Buffalo King Megaways? The default RTP is 96.52%. Some SA casinos may run a lower-RTP variant around 95.5%, so check the game info panel before you start playing.
How do the wild multipliers work in Buffalo King Megaways? The bison wild symbol lands on the middle reels carrying a random multiplier of 2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x. When one or more wilds are part of a winning combination, their values are added together and applied to that win.
What is the maximum win on Buffalo King Megaways? 5,000x your stake. At R10 per spin that's R50,000. At R25 per spin it's R125,000.
How do I trigger free spins in Buffalo King Megaways? Land 4, 5, or 6 scatter symbols anywhere on the 6-reel Megaways grid. More scatters award more free spins.
What does the Ante Bet do in Buffalo King Megaways? It increases your stake by 25% in exchange for doubling the frequency of scatter symbols appearing, improving your odds of triggering free spins sooner.
How many ways to win does Buffalo King Megaways have? Up to 200,704 ways, generated by each of the 6 reels showing between 2 and 7 symbols on any given spin. The exact number changes on every spin.
Is Buffalo King Megaways different from the original Buffalo King? Yes. The original 2020 Buffalo King uses a fixed-reel structure, while this 2021 Megaways version uses the licensed variable ways-to-win mechanic across 6 reels, with a different math model and a higher maximum ways count.
Can I play Buffalo King Megaways on mobile in South Africa? Yes. It's HTML5-based and plays directly in-browser on Android and iOS with no app download required. Landscape orientation is recommended.
Conclusion
Buffalo King Megaways takes a familiar Pragmatic Play wildlife theme and gives it the full Megaways treatment — a 200,704-ways grid, tumbling reels, and an additive wild multiplier system that rewards patience through the free spins round. At 96.52% RTP and a 5,000x max win, it sits comfortably in the mid-to-upper tier of Pragmatic's Megaways catalogue: not the highest ceiling on the market, but a well-balanced high-volatility option for players who want the mechanic without the most extreme swings.
For South African players who enjoy the Megaways format but want something a shade friendlier than very-high-volatility titles, Buffalo King Megaways is a sensible addition to the rotation. Budget for at least 200 spins at your chosen bet size, decide up front whether the Ante Bet suits your bankroll, and let the tumbles do the rest.
More Pragmatic Play slot reviews and bankroll guides at NocturneBets game guides.