The Dog House Megaways — Review, Rules, Registration, and How to Play

The Dog House Megaways was released in August 2020 as a revamped version of the original The Dog House. Pragmatic Play retained the recognizable theme, the Wild doghouses, and the multipliers, but adapted the game to a six-reel Megaways grid.

The main change is the variable number of symbols on the reels. There may be fewer in one spin and more in another, so the number of ways to form a winning combination is constantly changing. The maximum is 117,649 Megaways.

The slot does not use cascades: after a winning combination pays out, the next spin begins as usual. The main features involve Wild multipliers and a bonus game, where you can choose one of two free spins options—Sticky Wilds or Raining Wilds.

The RTP of 96.55% applies to the game’s default configuration. Some operators may use versions with different values, so it’s best to check the exact figure in the help section within the game client itself.

How Megaways Works

The number of symbols on each of the six reels is reset before every spin. For example, the first reel might display four positions, the second seven, the third three, and so on.
The number of active ways to win depends on this configuration.
At the minimum height, there are 64 Megaways; at the maximum, there are 117,649.
There are no fixed paylines here. For a standard winning combination, you need to land at least three matching symbols on adjacent reels, starting with the first reel. It doesn’t matter exactly where they appear vertically.
If the same symbol appears on the first three reels, the combination pays out. If it continues onto the fourth, fifth, and sixth reels, the payout increases.
It’s important not to confuse Megaways with the cascading mechanic. In The Dog House Megaways, winning symbols do not disappear after a payout, and new symbols do not fall into their place.

Symbols and Payouts

The highest-paying regular symbols are the four dogs.
The Rottweiler pays the most, followed by the Shih Tzu, the Pug, and the Dachshund. Below them are collars, bones, and the card symbols 10, J, Q, K, and A.
On their own, the standard symbols do not provide the game with any special features. Most of the interesting combinations occur when Wild symbols are involved.

Wild Multipliers

The Wild is depicted as a doghouse and appears only on reels 2–5.
It does not appear on the first or sixth reels.
Each Wild carries a multiplier of x2 or x3 and substitutes for regular paying symbols.
If a doghouse is part of a winning combination, the payout is multiplied by its multiplier. If there are multiple Wilds in a single combination, all applicable multipliers are applied.
Therefore, a good spin isn’t determined solely by the number of Megaways. What matters much more is which symbols land on the first reels and whether you can connect them with a Wild in the center of the grid.

Bonus Game

Free spins are triggered when three to six Scatter symbols featuring a paw print appear.
Once activated, you’ll be presented with a choice:
Sticky Wilds or Raining Wilds.
The mechanics of these modes differ significantly, so the number of free spins they offer also varies.

Sticky Wilds

In Sticky Wilds, any doghouses that land lock into place and remain there until the end of the bonus round.
The number of spins depends on the Scatter:

Scatter	Freespins
3	7
4	12
5	15
6	20

The height of the reels continues to change during the bonus round. The size of the locked Wilds may also change accordingly.
This mode depends heavily on how early the first Wilds appear. If several Wilds lock in place at the beginning, they remain active for all subsequent spins and can contribute to winning combinations multiple times.
If, on the other hand, the first few spins occur with almost no Wilds, there is less time left to fill the grid.
Therefore, 7 or 12 spins here cannot be directly compared to the number of free spins in Raining Wilds: Sticky uses a cumulative system.

Raining Wilds

There are no sticky Wilds in Raining Wilds.
Instead, on every spin, the game can add up to six random Wilds to the reels.
The number of free spins is listed above:

Scatter	Freespins
3	15
4	18
5	25
6	30

Wilds are active only during the current spin. Their positions are reset on the next spin.
Therefore, Raining Wilds do not build up gradually like Sticky Wilds. Each spin is a separate attempt to land a favorable grid with additional wilds.
This makes the two bonus features truly different.
In Sticky Wilds, it’s important to have the sticky multipliers placed strategically at the beginning or middle of the bonus round. In Raining Wilds, the previous spin has virtually no effect on the next one.
At the same time, free spins do not restart. Additional Scatters during the bonus round do not add new spins.

Sticky or Raining

It’s not right to compare these modes based solely on the number of free spins.
Sticky has fewer free spins, but a single well-placed symbol can trigger multiple spins in a row.
Raining offers more spins, but each Wild disappears after the current result.
Therefore, Sticky depends more on how the grid develops throughout the bonus round, while Raining depends on individual lucky spins.
It’s impossible to predict in advance which one will yield better results in a specific bonus round.

Bonus Buy

In versions of The Dog House Megaways where the Bonus Buy feature is active, free spins can be triggered for 100x the current bet.
At a bet of €0.50, the purchase costs €50; at €1, it costs €100; and at €2, it costs €200.
After making the purchase, you’ll still be prompted to choose between Sticky Wilds and Raining Wilds.
There is no separate enhanced or upgraded bonus for the 100x bet—the feature simply skips the wait for a Scatter to land naturally.
The availability of Bonus Buy depends on the operator and jurisdiction.

RTP, Volatility, and Maximum Win

The standard version of The Dog House Megaways has an RTP of 96.55% and high volatility.
In practice, this works well with the game’s mechanics. Most of the exciting outcomes come from situations involving Wild multipliers and bonus spins, while the regular base game can often be limited to small winning combinations for extended periods.
Because of this, individual bonus rounds can vary greatly. Sticky Wilds sometimes quickly line up several useful doghouses, while at other times they pass by with virtually no grid expansion. The same applies to Raining Wilds: a large number of spins alone does not guarantee favorable Wild placements.
The maximum payout is x12,305 the bet.
This is the game’s upper limit, not a typical bonus round outcome.

What Does 117,649 Megaways Mean?

The maximum of 117,649 ways to win does not appear on every spin.
For this to happen, all reels must reach their maximum height.
A larger grid increases the number of possible combinations, but it doesn’t guarantee anything on its own. If a matching symbol doesn’t start on the first reel or the combination ends abruptly, a high number of Megaways won’t help.
Therefore, focusing solely on the number of ways isn’t particularly useful. The combination of grid size, high-paying symbols, and Wild multipliers is much more important.

Graphics and Interface

The design almost entirely follows the style of the first *The Dog House*.
The action takes place in a backyard; the reels are surrounded by toys and dog accessories, and the highest-paying symbols are depicted as cartoon pets.
Visually, it’s a lighthearted, colorful slot that doesn’t try to take itself too seriously.
Megaways makes the screen more dynamic than the original: the reels constantly change height, so the grid size varies from spin to spin.
The interface is typical of Pragmatic Play. The bet, autoplay, and settings are located at the bottom of the screen, while the main space is taken up by the playing field.
This layout is convenient on a mobile device: even with the maximum grid, the symbols remain large enough, and no additional complex panels appear during the bonus round.

How Megaways Differs from the Original The Dog House

The original The Dog House uses a fixed 5×3 grid and 20 paylines.
The Megaways version features six reels with variable heights and a maximum of 117,649 ways to win.
The series’ core elements—dogs, Wild doghouses, and multipliers—remain, but the bonus round has been expanded.
Sticky Wilds remain, and Raining Wilds have been added alongside them. Therefore, once the bonus round is activated, the player chooses between accumulating Sticky Wilds and a large number of spins with random doghouses.
It is the bonus round that sets the Megaways version apart more than the grid expansion itself.

What You Should Know About the Game

The Dog House Megaways is a slot with a fairly simple structure.
The base game has no cascades or additional random features. Most of the time, it consists of standard Megaways spins with Wilds on the central reels.
Therefore, with bonuses occurring only rarely, the base game can feel repetitive.
However, both free spins modes use Wilds differently and truly change the nature of the bonus. Sticky can gradually build a strong grid, while Raining focuses on a greater number of independent attempts.
The high volatility is also worth keeping in mind here: the vibrant design doesn’t mean the game has a laid-back mathematical model.