How Prosperity Link's Lock & Respin Bonus Actually Works

Land six or more golden orb symbols anywhere on the reels and Prosperity Link's Lock & Respin feature kicks in immediately — freezing every orb in place and awarding three fresh respins. That's the entire trigger in a sentence. How you build from there determines whether you leave with a Minor prize or the Grand progressive jackpot.

What Exactly Is the Lock & Respin Mechanic?

Lock & Respin — sometimes called Hold & Spin — is the signature bonus in every IGT Prosperity Link title. When the feature activates, all triggering orbs lock to their positions. You receive three respins. Land another orb on any respin and it locks down too, resetting the counter back to three. Miss entirely and the counter ticks down by one.

The loop continues until you run out of respins or fill all 15 reel positions with golden orbs. Filling every position is the only path to the Grand progressive jackpot. For a full breakdown of what each tier pays, see the page on all four Prosperity Link jackpot tiers — Mini, Minor, Major, and Grand.

How Do the Jackpot Prizes Appear During the Feature?

Each golden orb carries a cash value or a jackpot label — Mini, Minor, Major, or Grand. The cash values are determined when the orb lands. Jackpot labels are awarded based on how many positions you've filled; the Grand only appears when all 15 slots are covered.

Mini pays up to 10× your wager. Minor pays up to 25×. Major pays up to 100×. The Grand is a linked progressive that grows with every bet placed across the network — its value is never fixed. I've watched the counter climb during long sessions on BetMGM without triggering the feature at all, which is the medium-to-high volatility reality of Wan Shi Ru Yi in practice.

How Many Orbs Do You Need to Trigger It?

The minimum trigger is six golden orbs landing simultaneously on a single spin in the base game. Fewer than six and nothing activates — they simply pay according to the standard paytable if applicable, or disappear. Six or more and the feature starts immediately, no extra action required.

Because the trigger requires six symbols across a five-reel, three-row grid (15 positions total), it won't show up every few minutes. That's worth knowing before your first session — check the full Prosperity Link mechanics and reels guide for context on base-game symbol frequency.

Does the Feature Work the Same in Every Theme?

The core Lock & Respin structure is consistent across all six IGT Prosperity Link themes. The visual presentation, audio, and certain base-game modifiers — like the Wild multipliers of up to 5× during Free Spins in Wan Shi Ru Yi — differ by variant. For theme-by-theme differences, the prosperity link slot machine themes page has the full comparison.

Can Strategy Improve My Results During the Feature?

No. All outcomes — including which orbs land, where, and what values they carry — are determined by an RNG (Random Number Generator). The respin counter resets mechanically when a new orb appears, but you have no input over where orbs fall. Any guide claiming otherwise is wrong. What you can control is bet size, which affects the cash values attached to each orb proportionally, and your session length relative to your bankroll.

Want to see the feature in action before wagering real money? The prosperity link slot online free play guide points to browser-based demos where you can watch the Lock & Respin trigger at no cost.

Must be 21+ to play for real money in MI, NJ, PA, WV, and CT. If gambling is affecting you, contact the National Council on Problem Gambling or call 1-800-GAMBLER.