Guide
How to Play Gates of Olympus: Rules Step by Step
Gates of Olympus has no paylines, no Wild and no skill element. Every spin is random, and the rules fit on a few screens. This guide walks through them in the order you'll meet them: the bet, how wins are counted, tumbles, multipliers, the free spins and the optional extras.
On this page
The Gates of Olympus screen
The middle of the screen is a grid of 6 reels and 5 rows: 30 symbols per spin. Zeus stands on the right; he throws the multiplier orbs. On the left are the bonus buy button, the Ante Bet panel ("Double chance to win feature") and a box that lists each win in the current spin.
At the bottom: your credit and bet, the spin button with minus and plus around it, Autoplay, a speed button, sound, the settings menu (☰) and the "i" button that opens the full rules. Clicking the credit or bet label switches between money and coins.
Set your bet
Use the minus and plus buttons to open the bet menu. The minimum is $0.20 per spin; the maximum depends on the casino and your country. $100 is common, the version we checked allowed €300, and in the UK the limit is £5, or £2 for players aged 18 to 24.
There are no lines to pick: every bet covers the whole grid. All wins in the paytable scale with your bet, so the rules show them in money at your current stake.
Choose the bet from your budget, not from the max win. With free spins arriving about once in 448 spins, a budget of 100 bets often ends without a bonus.
Divide the amount you're prepared to lose by 200 to 300 for your bet. $100 gives about $0.40 per spin: enough spins to give the game a fair chance, though no guarantee of a bonus.
How wins are counted: pay anywhere
The game counts how many of each symbol are on the screen at the end of a spin. If a symbol appears 8 or more times anywhere, it pays. Position doesn't matter: no lines, no neighbors.
The paytable has three tiers: 8–9, 10–11 and 12 or more. At a $1 bet, 12 crowns pay $50 and 8 blue gems pay $0.25. Several symbols can pay on the same spin, and their wins add up. The Zeus scatter pays separately: 3x, 5x or 100x for 4, 5 or 6 anywhere.
Full list in multiples of the bet: our Gates of Olympus paytable.
Tumbles: one spin, several wins
When a spin wins, the winning symbols are paid and disappear. The symbols above fall down, new ones drop in from the top, and if that creates a new win, it's paid too. This repeats until no new win forms; the rules put no limit on it. Your balance is updated once, after the last tumble.
Spin
Nine red gems land. They pay 1x your bet.
Tumble
The red gems vanish, new symbols fall in, and ten blue gems now pay 0.75x.
Stop
The next tumble makes no win. The spin's total is 1.75x, before any multipliers.
Multiplier orbs: added, not multiplied
Multiplier orbs can land on any reel, in any spin or tumble, in the base game and the free spins. Each takes a random value: 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 8x, 10x, 12x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 50x, 100x, 250x or 500x.
When the tumbling ends, the values of all orbs on the screen are added together, and the spin's total win is multiplied by the sum. A 5x and an 8x make 13x, not 40x. If the spin didn't win anything, the orbs pay nothing.
Continuing the example. The spin above made 1.75x. If a 5x and an 8x orb landed during it, the total is 13x, and the spin pays 22.75x: $22.75 at a $1 bet.
Free spins and the total multiplier
Four or more scatters trigger 15 free spins after the scatter win is paid. Inside the round, orbs work differently: each orb that lands on a winning spin is added to a running total multiplier, which then multiplies every later winning spin that brings a new orb. The total never resets during the round. Three or more scatters add 5 spins.
The round is where most of the game's big wins come from, and also where results vary most. A full explanation, with what a round typically pays, is in our free spins guide.
Ante Bet, bonus buy and settings
Ante Bet
Switching on the "Double chance to win feature" changes the bet multiplier from 20x to 25x: your spin costs 25% more, more scatters are placed on the reels, and the chance of free spins doubles. Wins are still based on your base bet, and the RTP stays at 96.50%. The bonus buy is locked while it's on.
Bonus buy
Where it's allowed, the "Buy Free Spins" button starts the round straight away for 100x your bet, after a confirmation window. It's not available in the UK or the Netherlands. A bought round pays like a natural one, so many cost more than they return.
Settings, speed and autoplay
The speed button cycles through normal, quick and turbo spin, and Autoplay runs a set number of spins with stop conditions. Both are switched off in the UK and other regulated markets. The settings menu holds sound options, a battery saver and Game History, which lists your past rounds.
Common misunderstandings
- Myth
"There are 20 paylines."
FactThere are none. The "20" is the bet multiplier in the rules, not lines. Symbols pay anywhere.
- Myth
"Zeus is a Wild."
FactZeus on the reels is the scatter. The game has no Wild symbol at all.
- Myth
"Multipliers only appear in the free spins."
FactThey land in the base game too. Only the running total is exclusive to the free spins.
There's also no strategy that beats the game: each spin is decided by a certified random number generator. Our tips and myths guide covers what you can control: your bet, your budget and when to stop.
Frequently asked questions
How does Gates of Olympus work?
Any 8 or more matching symbols anywhere on the 6x5 grid pay. Winning symbols tumble away for new ones, multiplier orbs from 2x to 500x multiply wins, and 4 scatters trigger 15 free spins with a running total multiplier.
How many symbols do you need to win?
Eight or more of the same symbol anywhere on the screen. The pay rises at 10 and again at 12.
Do the multipliers multiply each other?
No. All orbs on the screen are added together, and the spin's total win is multiplied by that sum.
Is there a strategy for Gates of Olympus?
No strategy changes the odds. You can choose your bet, whether to use the Ante Bet, and your budget. The rest is random.
Play responsibly
Every spin is random, and the free spins can take hundreds of spins to arrive. Set a budget before you start, use your casino's deposit and time limits, and never chase losses.
GamCare (UK, 0808 8020 133) · 1-800-MY-RESET (US) · ConnexOntario (1-866-531-2600) · Gambling Therapy (worldwide). More on our responsible gambling page. 18+.