Gates of Olympus
Gates of Olympus carries the highest listed return on this page at 96.5%, with high volatility and a maximum win of 5,000x.
- RTP
- 96.5%
- Volatility
- High
- Max win
- 5,000x
- Greek Mythology
- Pragmatic Play
Pokie guide · Australia
Online pokies app: where it works and where it does not
An online pokies app can put the reels in your hand, but it cannot change what the reels do. This page looks at where an app genuinely helps and where it does not, and what the published figures on the games themselves actually say.
- 5pokies compared
- 96.5%best published return
- A$5max bet on a bonus
In order, with the reasons
The five pokies below are the ones already listed on this page, ranked on their published return figures, from the highest listed return down.
Checked on 19 October 2026
The figures together
Sort by whichever figure decides it for you.
| 1Gates of Olympus | 96.5% | High | 5,000x | Pragmatic Play |
| 2Sweet Bonanza | 96.48% | Medium-High | 21,100x | Pragmatic Play |
| 3Floating Dragon | 96.35% | High | 5,000x | Pragmatic Play |
| 4Big Bamboo | 96.13% | High | — | Push Gaming |
| 5Starburst | 96.08% | — | 800x | NetEnt |
Select a column heading to sort.
Sweet Bonanza
Sweet Bonanza sits just behind at 96.48% with medium-high volatility and the largest published maximum win here at 21,100x.
- RTP
- 96.48%
- Volatility
- Medium-High
- Max win
- 21,100x
- Candy
- Pragmatic Play
Floating Dragon
Floating Dragon is listed at 96.35% with high volatility, 10 lines and a maximum win of 5,000x.
- RTP
- 96.35%
- Volatility
- High
- Max win
- 5,000x
- Lines
- 10
- Asian
- Pragmatic Play
What the app can and cannot do
An online pokies app handles the practical side. It lets you open a game, set a stake, spin, and see your balance without a browser. That is a real convenience, and for many players it is the whole reason to install one. What an app cannot do is change the mathematics inside the game. The return figure printed for a pokie is a long-run average built into the software, and the same pokie returns the same way whether it loads in an app or on a desktop page.
This is where the gap between venue and online returns shows up most clearly. A venue machine and an online version of a similar game can carry different published return figures, and the app is not the reason. The app is a delivery method. If a game is listed at 96.5%, installing an app does not move it to 97%, and no amount of tapping faster or holding the screen changes the outcome. A session is a short sample; the return figure describes a very long run. Those two things are not the same, and treating them as the same is where players get into trouble.
Where the app format gets in the way
Small screens make some pokies harder to read, not easier. Games with fifty lines or dense paytable information can bury the details under a zoomed layout, and a player who cannot see the line structure is playing something they do not fully understand. Big Bamboo lists 50 lines and Floating Dragon 10; the difference in visual complexity is real, and an app screen compresses it further. Reading a paytable on a phone is not the same as reading it on a monitor, and the paytable is the part that tells you what you are actually risking per spin.
There is also the matter of session length. An app sits on a device that is with you all day, which makes it easier to keep playing past the point you intended. The pokie itself does not care. Volatility is the property that determines how the results are distributed, and it is set by the game, not the platform. A high-volatility pokie stays high-volatility in an app; a medium-high one stays medium-high. The app removes friction from starting a session, and friction is sometimes the only thing that was limiting it.
Reading the listed figures correctly
The figures on the shortlist below are the vendor-published ones, and they are worth reading as specifications rather than promises. Gates of Olympus is listed at 96.5% with high volatility and a maximum win of 5,000x. Sweet Bonanza is listed at 96.48% with medium-high volatility and a maximum win of 21,100x. Floating Dragon is listed at 96.35%, high volatility, a maximum win of 5,000x and 10 lines. Starburst is listed at 96.08% with a maximum win of 800x and 10 lines.
Two things follow from those numbers. First, the returns are close together, which is typical of commercial pokies, and the differences do not tell you which game you will do better on in a given evening. Second, maximum win figures are not targets. They describe the top of the paytable, an outcome that sits at the extreme end of the distribution, and most sessions will not come near it. The published return is a long-run average across an enormous number of spins; any single session can finish well above or well below it, and there is no way to know in advance which one you are in.
Asked and answered
Does an online pokies app pay out better than a venue machine?
No. The app is a way of delivering the game, not a version of it with different mathematics. The published return figure is attached to the game, and the same game returns the same way in an app, a browser or a venue cabinet.
Are the listed RTP figures guaranteed for my session?
No. A return figure is a long-run average across a very large number of spins. Any individual session can land above or below it, and the figure does not predict what will happen in the next hour.
What is the difference between volatility and return?
Return describes the long-run average share returned to players, while volatility describes how spread out the results are around that average. A high-volatility pokie can produce long quiet stretches and larger swings, but its listed return is unchanged.
Can I use a bonus on these games in an app?
That depends on the operator and the game, and you should read the terms before depositing. The partner's published terms include a 600% cash bonus on a first deposit and 10% daily cashback on losses, with a maximum bet of A$5 while a bonus is active.