Mega Moolah is a progressive slot from Microgaming. Released in late 2006, the African-themed game quickly garnered attention for its enormous pay-outs. Due to its popularity, numerous variants have been launched since including Mega Moolah 5 Reel Drive, Mega Moolah Summertime and Mega Moolah ISIS. However, for the purposes of this article we’ll be focusing on the original game and assessing some of its biggest jackpots. First though, here’s a reminder of what progressive slot games entail.
Progressive Slot Games
Progressive slot games feature ever-increasing jackpots that are fed by tiny percentages of all player deposits. These jackpots continue to grow until somebody lands a winning combination. Online progressives, like those from Microgaming, are by far the most lucrative versions and can be played at thousands of casino sites around the world. And because they’re linked to the same prize pool, the jackpots are often life-changing. Some of the largest prizes are as follows.
John Heywood – £13 million
It’s often suggested that playing the maximum bet increases your chances of winning a progressive jackpot. In 2015, cheeky non-conformist John Heywood ignored this helpful advice by staking his money in 25p increments. By the time he’d finished spinning the reels and negotiating the bonus game, he’d won the largest ever Mega Moolah jackpot.
Marcus Goodwin – £9 Million
The aptly-named Marcus Goodwin also bagged a substantial Mega Moolah jackpot. Playing at Yako Casino, he walked away with a cool $11,633,898 which roughly equates to £9 million. After being contacted by Yako, Goodwin gleefully announced his intentions to buy a big house and take his family on a first class trip to Africa.
Rawiri Pou – £8 Million
New Zealander, Rawiri Pou was another huge winner on Mega Moolah, via Casino Land. But in stark contrast to the cautious Mr Heywood, Pou began with by placing a $250 bet which almost immediately generated a $1500 win. And in keeping with the ‘greed is good’ mantra, Pou staked this as well and won $10,143,123. Despite governmental hand-wringing following the massive win, it seems that Pou managed to hold on to his prize.
John Orchard – £5.8 Million
In 2012, the UK’s very own John Orchard joined the ranks of those whose lives have been irrevocably changed by Mega Moolah. He managed to win a sum of £5.8 million after paying a visit to Butlers Bingo.
Georgios M – £5.6 Million
In 2009, a Greek national by the name of Mr Georgios M got his hands on €6.3 million (£5.6 million) after trying his luck on Mega Moolah at River Belle Casino. His bonanza pay-out was triggered by a mere £5 stake.
Klaus K – £4.5 Million
Klaus K is an old-school jackpot winner if ever there was one. He received a casino install disc (remember those?) in the mail from Blackjack Ballroom and, on a whim, set the casino up on his PC. Playing Mega Moolah with 0.50 bets, he somehow ended up with a £4.5 million prize. Before confirming the win by checking his player account, Klaus initially thought the seven-figure sum flashing on his computer screen was a US telephone number.
Canadian Anon – £4.5 Million
This shy and retiring type was the second big winner of 2018, receiving his bounty about six weeks after his fellow countryman also hit the Mega Moolah jackpot. Intriguingly, this particular payout was the sixth in a row to be triggered by a mobile device.
Canadian Anon – £2.2 Million
Two weeks into 2018, an anonymous player received a healthy windfall of $3,688,145 at Zodiac Casino. He was the second Canadian to win a Mega Moolah jackpot in the space of a month. Oh Canada!
Radoslaw M – £1 Million
Way back in 2009, Radoslaw M from Poland was the recipient of a puny £1 million on Microgaming’s blockbuster progressive slot game. Mr M confessed that he’d been afraid to touch his computer keys after learning of his big win in case it somehow invalidated the jackpot.
South African Anon – £244,000
Very little is known about Mega Moolah’s first ever jackpot, save from his/her nationality and the amount won: R4 308,741.01 – a fairly innocuous amount by today’s standards but you’ve got to start somewhere right?
