Crash games in 4 lines
- A multiplier climbs from 1.00x until it "crashes" at a random point set before the round starts.
- Cash out before the crash and you win your stake times the multiplier. Wait too long and you lose the stake.
- Your only choice is when to cash out. Pragmatic Play's own rules say Spaceman "is NOT a game of skill".
- Whatever you aim for, the house keeps its edge: about £3 to £4.50 per £100 staked on the Pragmatic Play games here, and up to £8 on King Kong Crash Climber.
How a round works
- Bet. Place your stake during the countdown. Every player in the round shares the same flight.
- Climb. The multiplier starts at 1.00x and rises. The crash point was decided at random before the round began, so watching the climb tells you nothing about when it ends.
- Cash out or crash. Cash out and you're paid your stake times the multiplier at that moment. If the crash comes first, the stake is lost.
You can set an auto cash out before the round, which pays out automatically when the multiplier reaches your chosen value, from 1.01x upwards. Spaceman and Big Bass Crash also offer a 50% cash out: half your stake is paid at a lower multiplier, and the other half rides on to a higher one.
The crash games here
| Game | Return to player | Top multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| Spaceman | 95.50% | 5,000x |
| Big Bass Crash | 95.50% | 5,000x |
| High Flyer | 97.00% | 1,000,000x |
| King Kong Crash Climber | 92% or 94.5% | 1,000x |
The first three are from Pragmatic Play, with return to player as stated in each game's rules. For High Flyer and Big Bass Crash the rules call it the "optimal" figure, the best any way of playing can achieve. A casino can run some games at a different setting, so the help screen inside the game has the figure that applies to you. Spaceman and Big Bass Crash also cap any single payout at €500,000 or the equivalent.
The most often you can reach each multiplier
The rules don't say how crash points are spread, but one thing follows whatever the design. If you always cash out at a target, you win that multiple only on rounds that reach it, so your return is the chance of reaching it times the target. That can't be more than the game's optimal return to player. So the chance of reaching any target is at most the optimal return to player divided by the target. Here it is for the two games whose rules state an optimal figure:
- Big Bass Crash, cashing out at 2x: reached on at most 47.75% of rounds, stake lost on at least 52.25%.
- High Flyer, cashing out at 2x: reached on at most 48.50% of rounds, stake lost on at least 51.50%.
| Cash out at | Big Bass Crash | High Flyer |
|---|---|---|
| 1.01x | at most 94.55% | at most 96.03% |
| 1.5x | at most 63.66% | at most 64.66% |
| 2x | at most 47.75% | at most 48.50% |
| 5x | at most 19.10% | at most 19.40% |
| 10x | at most 9.55% | at most 9.70% |
| 100x | at most 0.95% | at most 0.97% |
| 1,000x | at most 0.09% | at most 0.09% |
Read it from the losing side too. Even cashing out at 1.01x, the earliest auto cash out allows, you lose your stake on at least 3.97% of High Flyer rounds and at least 5.45% of Big Bass Crash rounds. Aim for 10x and you'll reach it on at most 1 round in 10.
Is there a cash out strategy?
Choosing when to cash out decides how your results arrive: small, frequent wins at a low target, or rare, large ones at a high target. It can't lift your return above the game's return to player, so the house edge applies whatever you choose.
The 50% cash out works the same way. It splits your stake into two bets with two targets, and each half still carries the house edge. It smooths the ride without changing the cost.
Staking systems, such as doubling up after a crash, don't change the edge either: every bet inside the system carries it.
King Kong Crash Climber
King Kong Crash Climber, from Inspired Gaming, works differently. King Kong climbs a building in levels. After each successful grab you choose to collect the prize so far, or climb and risk it for the next level. A failed climb ends the round with nothing. You can pick from five levels for the next climb, trading the chance of success against the size of the prize, up to 1,000x your stake at the rooftop.
Inspired Gaming offers the game at 92% or 94.5% return to player, and the casino chooses which. At 92%, that's £8 lost per £100 staked over time, nearly three times High Flyer's £3.
Speed, streaks and chasing
Rounds are short and follow one another quickly, which makes it easy to stake far more in a session than you meant to. Recent crash points are shown on screen, and each new round's crash point is set at random, unconnected to the last. A run of early crashes doesn't make a big one due.
Set a budget and a time limit before you start. If you notice yourself raising your stake to win back losses, that's the moment to stop.
Before you play
Open the game's help screen: it gives the return to player for that casino's version, the bet limits, the top multiplier and how the cash out options work.
Crash game questions
Is there a strategy for crash games?
Your only choice is when to cash out, and it can't lift your return above the game's RTP. Cashing out early gives small, frequent wins; aiming high gives rare, large ones. Pragmatic Play's own rules for Spaceman say it is not a game of skill, and staking systems leave the house edge where it is.
What is the RTP of Spaceman?
Pragmatic Play gives Spaceman a return to player of 95.50%, so about £4.50 lost per £100 staked over time. High Flyer's rules give 97.00% and Big Bass Crash's 95.50%. A casino can run some games at a different setting, so the game's help screen shows the figure that applies to you.
How often does a crash game reach 2x?
At most 48.50% of rounds on High Flyer and 47.75% on Big Bass Crash. That ceiling follows from the RTP: cashing out at 2x every time returns twice your chance of reaching it, and no bet can return more than the game's optimal RTP. The real chance can be lower.
What is the 50% cash out?
Spaceman and Big Bass Crash let you take half your stake out at a lower multiplier while the other half rides on to a higher one. It turns one bet into two bets with two targets. Each half still carries the house edge, so it smooths your results without changing what the game costs.
Can you predict when a crash game will crash?
No. Each round's crash point is set at random before the round starts, with no link to the last one, so watching the climb or the list of recent crash points tells you nothing about when this round ends. A run of early crashes doesn't make a big multiplier due.
Sources and checks
- Pragmatic Play, Spaceman
- Pragmatic Play, High Flyer
- Pragmatic Play, Big Bass Crash
- Pragmatic Play game help for Spaceman (v1.7, July 2024), High Flyer and Big Bass Crash (2024): RTP, top multiplier and cash out rules. Open each from the help button inside the game.
- Inspired Entertainment, King Kong Crash Climber: the 92% and 94.5% RTP versions
The rules, payouts and quoted figures were last checked against these sources on . Every other number on this page is worked out from those rules, as how we check the numbers explains. If you spot a mistake, our corrections page says how to report it.