Split symbols in slots
Split symbols are single reel positions that show two or more copies of the same symbol and count as that many matching symbols when the game evaluates wins. A double cherry in one cell is read as two cherries. The idea goes back to the High 5 Games mechanic that IGT released as its Split Symbols line, where some character symbols appear twice in one space. Today the term covers any slot where one position can count more than once.
How split symbols change the count
The counting rule depends on how the slot pays, and the paytable is where the player meets it first.
On a payline game, a double on reel two adds an extra symbol to the line, so single, double and single across three reels reads as four of a kind. Land a double on each of five reels and the game registers 10 of a kind, which is why paytables on these titles list pays beyond five.
On a ways-to-win game, a split multiplies the paths through its reel. One queen on reel one, a double queen on reel two and one queen on reel three gives two ways instead of one, and two doubles on different reels give four times the ways for that symbol. Some studios create splits after the reels stop, through a modifier that divides symbols on a reel, rather than printing doubles on the reel strip. How often splits appear, and which symbols can carry them, varies from game to game and is set in each title’s own rules.
Split symbols versus stacked symbols
Readers often confuse split symbols with stacked symbols, but the two work differently. A stacked symbol fills several cells on a reel, while a split symbol sits in one cell and counts as more than one.
A split only pays when it forms part of a winning combination.
A double landing on a reel with no matching symbols beside it adds ways or length to nothing, so the spin pays the same. Splits also do not change the game’s RTP during play; that figure is fixed by the maths model the studio certified, and the doubles are already priced into it.
