Anyone who has even a passing acquaintance with the world of Canadian online gaming will no doubt have come across progressive jackpot slots – you might have seen them being promoted, read about a huge jackpot win, or had fun playing them yourself. But for those who don’t know about progressive jackpot games, you might be wondering what all the hype is about.

Progressive jackpot slots play just like regular slots games (for a fast and fun introduction to playing slots, watch this video), but with one significant difference – you’re not playing simply for the payouts from that particular game in that particular online casino. Instead, you’re playing for a pooled, cumulative jackpot prize that grows every time someone plays that game anywhere in the world.

This means that the jackpots grow very quickly and there is no limit to how huge they can become, with recent big wins being worth tens of millions of dollars. Land-based casinos, both in Canada and Las Vegas, have progressive jackpot networks but these can’t compete with the rapid growth and size of the prize pools found on online networks, where players all around the world are growing the size of the prize 24/7. Most progressive jackpot slots can also be played on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, which significantly increases their reach.

However, while the huge jackpot prizes are of course why most people play progressive jackpot slots, the games are engaging and entertaining enough to be enjoyed in their own right. The theme and style of the games vary (see this link to read a lot more reviews) but as progressive jackpot slots are produced by the biggest and best game producers around, you can always be assured of a high quality gaming experience.

For fans of superheroes and comic books, for instance, there is the enthralling slot The Dark Knight (by Microgaming) which faithfully reproduces the gritty, gothic atmosphere of the 2008 film and combines interactive gameplay with the chance to win huge prizes. Playtech, one of the industry’s leading slots and casino game developers, also has an entire network of progressive jackpot slots based on superheroes and comic book legends – the Marvel Multi-Level Mystery Progressive Jackpot Network, where titles include X-Men, Wolverine, Iron Man (1 & 2), Spiderman and Captain America, to name but a few (you can read about plenty more games at slot-machines.ca).

However, there is one game that dominates progressive jackpot slots in terms of its fame and the size of its payouts. Microgaming’s Mega Moolah has an incredible record when it comes to huge payouts and the game’s popularity and participation increases all the time (click here for a full review). With four different progressive jackpots (the largest of which starts at $1 million) Mega Moolah attracts millions of players from around the world and this is why the jackpot prizes grow so quickly and reach such huge proportions. In October 2015, for instance, a player in the UK won an amazing USD$19.2 million and the average jackpot prize is close to $3 million.

With huge payouts like this, combined with the engaging gameplay and fun themes, it’s not hard to see why progressive jackpot slots are the games that everyone is playing at Canadian online casinos.