Where, among these terms, does a casino's authority actually begin?

One, judging from what is here: the wagering requirement, something an operator writes into its bonus terms itself. Only the studio can alter what remains, and a casino that merely lists the game never gets that access.

Why do RTP figures differ between sites?

Because certain studios publish none, with the figures in circulation for their titles being third-party estimates that clash. Conflicting numbers for a single game from two comparison sites usually mean that both are working without sources.

Are these definitions specific to the Philippines?

No. Wherever you play, slot mechanics stay the same, because they are properties of the games. Just the payment and licensing context is Philippine-specific, which is why the payment and provider sections exist.

Does RTP mean the same as volatility?

A game's RTP is its long-run return to players. Volatility concerns the way the return is shaped. Both games may return 96%, yet one trickles out small payouts without pause while the other gives almost nothing until a single enormous one, and playing them feels completely different.

Does having a high maximum win bode well?

What it gives is a top limit with a tiny chance of being reached; it forecasts nothing. A 100,000x maximum sitting next to a medium volatility label in one game tells you the ceiling is an accounting figure, not something to plan around.

Where do these definitions come from?

The source is the working of the mechanics, and any game's info screen is where you can see for yourself. Claims about operators play no part in any of them, nor does any quote a number for a given title.

PHMAPALAD Glossary — How Was This List Built?

None of the terms here get much of an explanation on casino pages, though every one shows up there repeatedly. Because most of these terms get misunderstood in one specific, predictable manner instead of just being new to the reader, each entry pairs the definition with the usual misreading and a worked example that shows the arithmetic. There are 8 pages below.

Everything in this section

Term	In one line	Fixed by
Turnover	A running total of stakes across a period of play, where each wager counts rather than each deposit.	Created by the act of playing, with the record kept by the operator’s platform
Wild symbol	It replaces other symbols to finish a winning combination.	The game studio, in the paytable
Hit frequency	How often spins return any win at all, however small, whatever the total returned over time.	Handled by the studio that builds the game, through its paytable and reel maths
Bet unit	The sum put on one spin or hand, set as a fraction of a bankroll and not picked as a standalone number.	The player sets it, ideally relative to the bankroll and the volatility of the chosen game
Free spins	In a feature round, spins are granted without any additional stake.	For a game feature, whoever made the game; for a promotion, whoever runs the site
Ways to win	Instead of paylines, adjacent matching symbols pay irrespective of where they are positioned.	The game studio’s alternative to fixed paylines
Wagering requirement	Before any of a bonus can be withdrawn, this is the multiple of it that has to be wagered.	The operator, through its bonus terms, not the studio
Maximum cashout	The most that can be cashed out from winnings produced by a bonus, regardless of the balance reached.	The operator, in its bonus terms

8 pages, each given over to a single entry, with no page summarising several. A field above marked “not published” has an explanation on the entry’s own page, naming who would have had to publish it.

Each entry in a paragraph

You get a short summary of each, sufficient to pick the right page to open.

Glossary	In short
Turnover	Short for also called handle. A running total of stakes across a period of play, where each wager counts rather than each deposit. Fixed by: Created by the act of playing, with the record kept by the operator’s platform. Where you meet it: The terms of a bonus, the history of account activity and responsible-gambling statements. The misreading: Deposit total and current balance are both commonly confused with turnover.
Wild symbol	It replaces other symbols to finish a winning combination. Decided by: The game studio, within the paytable. Its natural home is a game’s paytable and feature list. The misreading: A common assumption is that wilds stand in for every symbol.
Hit frequency	Short for also called hit rate. How often spins return any win at all, however small, whatever the total returned over time. Fixed by: Handled by the studio that builds the game, through its paytable and reel maths. Where you meet it: Spec sheets and studio info panels, which publish this less often than RTP. The misreading: A high hit frequency tends to be read as proof that a game pays more or is ‘looser’.
Bet unit	Short for also called stake size. The sum put on one spin or hand, set as a fraction of a bankroll and not picked as a standalone number. Fixed by: The player sets it, ideally relative to the bankroll and the volatility of the chosen game. Where you meet it: Selectors for stake on a game’s betting panel. The misreading: People often assume that a small-looking bet unit is safe automatically.
Free spins	In a feature round, spins are granted without any additional stake. Fixed by: For a game feature, whoever made the game; for a promotion, whoever runs the site. Where you meet it: Both in game feature lists and, in a different form, in bonus terms. The misreading: Despite the shared name, free spins given as a promotion by an operator differ from a free-spin round inside a game.
Ways to win	Short for including Megaways. Instead of paylines, adjacent matching symbols pay irrespective of where they are positioned. Fixed by: The game studio’s alternative to fixed paylines. Where you meet it: Specification tables for slots that pay by cluster or by scatter. The misreading: A big way-count tends to be taken for a big advantage.
Wagering requirement	Short for also called playthrough or turnover. Before any of a bonus can be withdrawn, this is the multiple of it that has to be wagered. Fixed by: The operator, through its bonus terms, not the studio. It turns up under: Bonus terms and conditions. The misreading: Wagering is commonly taken to mean ‘deposit this much’.
Maximum cashout	Short for also called a win cap. The most that can be cashed out from winnings produced by a bonus, regardless of the balance reached. Decided by: The operator, through its bonus terms. Where you meet it: The bonus terms and conditions, normally close to the clause on the wagering requirement. The misreading: It is commonly assumed that the whole balance left after wagering is cleared can be withdrawn.

Check glossary details in the game itself

No definition here relies on the authority of this site. Every item can be tested on the game itself:

Open any slot’s own information screen. Each mechanical term that is defined here has its primary source in the feature rules, the paytable and the way-count, all of which are there.
Compare a way-count against the grid. The 1,024 ways on a 5x4 grid come from 4 to the power of 5, so the number tells you about grid geometry and nothing about generosity.
Read the operator’s own conditions, not a summary of them, for any bonus term. The answer to a wagering requirement shifts by a factor of two depending on what it multiplies: the bonus only, or the bonus plus deposit.
When there is no studio-published RTP, compare two sources that quote one and see if they agree. They can sit two points apart on JILI titles, and that answers whether either one is authoritative.

The thing most often got wrong here

Across these terms, the number one mistake is to think the casino sets them. Mostly it does not, because RTP, volatility, paylines, wilds and scatters are set by the studio during development and the site that offers the game is unable to change them.

A wagering requirement is the one exception, set by the operator in its own bonus terms. Which of the two an entry is gets stated each time; the difference determines where a complaint belongs, and a misdirected complaint leads nowhere.

Putting these glossary to work at PHMAPALAD

In a game at PHMAPALAD, find the info or help screen.
Take the RTP, volatility and maximum win it gives and read each against the definitions above.
A small balance goes further on lower volatility, so pick the volatility level your budget can carry.
Stop as soon as you reach your loss limit, which you should set before the first spin.

PHMAPALAD Glossary — Casino Terms, Explained Plainly