WINSHARK88 · PROVIDER GUIDES
Big Red pays on 5 lines and Buffalo on 1,024 ways, and that difference shapes a spin more than any theme. This winshark88 guide sorts nine Aristocrat online pokies by how they pay, then explains the free-games feature in each.
Every Aristocrat pokie at winshark88 pays in one of two ways. A pay-line game draws fixed paths across the reels, and a win only counts when matching symbols sit on one of those paths. A ways game drops the paths: matching symbols on neighbouring reels pay wherever they land in each column. The number in the game's description, such as 5 lines, 50 lines or 1,024 ways, tells you which kind you are opening.
On a 5-line game you can follow every winning path by eye. On a 1,024-ways game small wins turn up in odd shapes, a symbol on the top row of one reel joining one on the bottom row of the next. Neither style pays more over time because of its count; the difference is rhythm.
Aristocrat is an ASX-listed company (ASX:ALL) with more than 7,400 people. Its businesses are Aristocrat Gaming, Aristocrat Interactive, which runs a platform for the regulated online real-money industry, and Product Madness, and its products range from land-based casino games and hardware to online real-money games, iLottery and free-to-play social casino games. All nine games on this page are on the Aristocrat Gaming game list. At winshark88 you will find its titles among 3,000+ casino games, and the provider filter in the lobby shows them on their own.
The table gives the pay structure, volatility, RTP and main feature for each game. A figure appears only where published sources agree on it; where a cell says "Shown in game info", open the game's info panel for the exact number. Aristocrat does not publish a top win for any of these nine, so that column points you to the paytable too.
| Game | How it pays | Volatility | Max win | RTP | Main feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Queen of the Nile | 5×3 reels with fixed pay lines | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | 94.88% | Scatter wins award free games with wild multipliers |
 Buffalo | 1,024 ways to win on 5 reels | High | Shown in game info | 94.85% | Sunset wilds; scatters award 8 to 20 free games, where wilds add 2x or 3x multipliers |
 Big Red | 5 pay lines on 5×3 reels | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | 97.04% | Kangaroo wild; free spins; gamble feature |
 Where's the Gold | 25 pay lines on 5 reels | Medium | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | Three or more dynamite scatters trigger free spins |
 5 Dragons | 243 ways to win on 5×3 reels | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | 95.17% | Choose your free games: more spins with lower multipliers or fewer spins with higher ones |
 50 Lions | 50 pay lines on 5 reels | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | 94.71% | Free games feature |
 Choy Sun Doa | 243 ways to win on 5 reels | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | Gold ingot scatters open a pick of five free-games options |
 Dragon Emperor | 243 ways to win on 5×3 reels | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | 95.19% | Free spins feature |
 Geisha | 5 reels with fixed pay lines | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | Shown in game info | Three or more scatters award 15 free spins with wins tripled; gamble feature |
Game details: Aristocrat Gaming game list ↗
Five of the nine games pay on fixed lines, which suits players who like to see exactly why a spin paid.
Big Red has the fewest lines in this list: five, across a 5×3 set of reels. With so few paths, the kangaroo wild matters a great deal because it can complete a line that would otherwise miss. Big Red also has free spins and a gamble feature that lets you risk a win for a bigger one. It carries the highest agreed RTP here, at 97.04%.
Where's the Gold steps up to 25 lines on five reels, so more of the screen counts on each spin. Three or more dynamite scatters start the free spins, so keep an eye on them even on a spin where no line pays. Published sources agree on medium volatility.
50 Lions doubles that again, to 50 lines across five reels. With twice the paths of Where's the Gold, one spin can produce several small line wins at once. Its free games feature is the main event. The agreed RTP is 94.71%, the lowest of the six games with a published figure.
Queen of the Nile and Geisha both use fixed pay lines on five reels, but published sources do not agree on the exact count, so open each game's paytable to see the line patterns. In Queen of the Nile, scatter wins award free games, and wilds in that round carry multipliers. Geisha awards 15 free spins with every win tripled when three or more scatters land, and it has a gamble feature like Big Red's. Queen of the Nile's agreed RTP is 94.88%; Geisha's is in its info panel.
The other four games drop lines altogether. A ways count is the number of rows multiplied across the reels: three rows on five reels gives 3×3×3×3×3, or 243 ways, and four rows gives 4×4×4×4×4, or 1,024 ways. On most ways games a win needs matching symbols on reels next to each other, starting from the left, and the game's paytable confirms the rule for each title.
All three run on five reels of three rows, so the base game feels similar; the free games are where they differ. 5 Dragons asks you to choose your free games: more spins with lower multipliers, or fewer spins with higher ones. Choy Sun Doa also lets you choose, from a pick of five free-games options opened by gold ingot scatters. Dragon Emperor keeps it plain with a free spins feature and no choice to make. 5 Dragons and Dragon Emperor sit almost level on agreed RTP, at 95.17% and 95.19%; Choy Sun Doa's figure is in its info panel.
Buffalo is the only 1,024-ways game here, which makes it the widest in the list. Sunset wilds fill gaps in a combination, and scatters award 8 to 20 free games in which wilds add 2x or 3x multipliers. Published sources agree it is high volatility, so expect quieter stretches between wins, with the free games doing most of the heavy lifting. Its agreed RTP is 94.85%.
Four rows on five reels give Buffalo its 1,024 ways. Watch for the sunset wild, which can link symbols across reels in a shape no pay line would draw. In the 8 to 20 free games, a wild in a winning combination adds a 2x or 3x multiplier, so one round can change a session.
The most lines of any pay-line game here. With 50 paths over five reels, a single symbol can sit on several lines at once, so you often see more than one line win light up on a spin.
A middle ground at 25 lines with medium volatility. Line wins come along at a steady pace, while the dynamite scatters are your route to free spins: three or more start them.
No. A bigger count gives a spin more chances to pay something, but the game's maths spreads its return across those chances, so wins on a ways game can be smaller and more frequent. RTP is the figure that describes the long-run return, and here the 5-line Big Red has the highest agreed figure in the list at 97.04%, ahead of the 243-ways games at around 95% and the 1,024-ways Buffalo at 94.85%. It is a long-run average, not a promise for one session.
Volatility describes how wins are spread out. Published sources agree on it for only two of these games: Buffalo is high and Where's the Gold is medium. For the rest, the info panel gives the studio's own description.
A studio supplies many of its games at more than one RTP setting, and each casino chooses which setting to run. That is why the same Aristocrat title can show a different figure at another site. winshark88 runs each game at its default setting, the highest one Aristocrat supplies, and the info panel in the game always shows the number that applies to your spins.
winshark88 supports demo play, so you can learn a game's pay structure with practice credits first. Try a short demo run on Big Red and then on Buffalo: on the first, every win follows one of five clear paths; on the second, wins appear in shapes that jump between rows. Demo credits have no cash value, and a lucky practice run says nothing about what happens when you play for real money.
The minimum deposit at winshark88 is AU$10 by PayID, and it lands instantly. eZeeWallet, Apple Pay and Google Pay also work for deposits. When you cash out, PayID, Skrill, Neteller and Payz withdrawals arrive within 5 minutes, from a minimum of AU$30. The winshark88 banking guide compares every method, and the PayID guide covers PayID in more detail.
New players can pick up the AU$38 registration bonus and the 40% welcome bonus. Regular players get a 20% daily first-deposit bonus, and VIP members can look out for the AU$888 upgrade VIP bonus. The welcome bonus page explains how to claim it, and every current offer is on the promotions page.
winshark88 runs in your phone's browser, so these games open on iPhone and Android with the same account and balance you use on a computer. Buffalo's four rows are easier to read with the phone turned sideways.
To see a different take on lines and ways, try JILI slots, where some games pay on a single line and others on thousands of ways, or Novomatic for more classic line games. Every studio is listed in the winshark88 provider guide, and the free pokies page covers demo play across the site.
Neither pays more just because of its count. A 5-line game like Big Red gives you a few clear paths to follow, while a 1,024-ways game like Buffalo pays more combinations in smaller pieces. Choose by the rhythm you enjoy and check the RTP in the game's info panel.
The nine in this guide: Queen of the Nile, Buffalo, Big Red, Where's the Gold, 5 Dragons, 50 Lions, Choy Sun Doa, Dragon Emperor and Geisha. Choose Aristocrat in the lobby's provider filter to see them together.
Big Red, at 97.04%, the highest agreed figure in this list. Dragon Emperor follows at 95.19% and 5 Dragons at 95.17%. For Where's the Gold, Choy Sun Doa and Geisha, the game's info panel shows the RTP.
It means the game has five reels of three rows and pays matching symbols on neighbouring reels in any row, rather than along set lines. Three rows multiplied across five reels gives 243 combinations. 5 Dragons, Choy Sun Doa and Dragon Emperor all work this way.
Queen of the Nile uses fixed pay lines on 5×3 reels. Published sources do not agree on the count, so open the paytable in the game to see each line pattern before you play.
Yes. winshark88 supports demo play, so you can spin with practice credits that have no cash value. It is a good way to see how a lines game and a ways game feel before you deposit.
PayID, Skrill, Neteller and Payz withdrawals at winshark88 land within 5 minutes. The minimum withdrawal is AU$30.
Yes. winshark88 runs in your phone's browser on iPhone and Android, with the same account and balance as on a computer. Turn the phone sideways for Buffalo's taller reels.