Hockey Bonanza

Hockey Bonanza is an exciting new online slot from Pragmatic Play that aims to capture the fast-paced action and excitement of the popular ice hockey sport. Hockey Bonanza is played out on a 6×5 reel configuration, providing players with 30 symbol positions per spin. The game utilizes vivid graphics and upbeat music to fully immerse players in the competitive spirit of a professional hockey match.

The reels are set against the icy surface of a hockey rink, with crowds of eager spectators visible in the background. Game symbols include classic hockey items like pucks, helmets, skates, and gloves. The higher value symbols depict these items in silver and gold versions.

When wins are triggered, the crowd cheers enthusiastically, complementing the energetic rock soundtrack that mimics an arena game atmosphere. Hockey Bonanza succeeds in putting players right in the middle of the action through its diverse array of well-designed visual and audio elements.

Gameplay and Mechanics

Hockey Bonanza utilizes a tumbling pays mechanic in which winning symbol combinations disappear from the reels after payouts, with new symbols cascading down to replace them. This opens up the potential for multiple consecutive wins from just a single spin. Payouts are awarded whenever eight or more matching symbols land anywhere on the reels. There are no fixed paylines in Hockey Bonanza.

The game incorporates several modifiers and special features to add layers of excitement and reward potential to the standard tumbling reels gameplay flow. Multiplier values of up to 500x can hit on any spin, while the main bonus round provides free spins with accumulating multipliers. An ante bet and direct bonus buy option are also available.

Ante Bet Feature

Hockey Bonanza incorporates an adjustable ante bet multiplier. Setting the bet multiplier to 25x doubles the likelihood of hitting the free spins bonus round. The ante bet also increases the number of scatter symbols appearing during base game spins. However, selecting the 25x multiplier disables the direct buy bonus option.

The default 20x bet multiplier enables the bonus buy feature while keeping base game volatility and scatter symbol frequency at standard levels. This provides flexibility for players to customize volatility based on their preferences and style of play.

Scatter Symbols and Free Spins Bonus

The scatter symbol in Hockey Bonanza is represented by the image of a hockey player. Scatter symbols can land on any reel position and do not need to follow standard payline patterns to pay out.

When four or more scatter symbols land anywhere on the reels, the free spins round is activated. Players initially receive 15 free spins. During free spins, all multiplier values that contribute to a winning combination are added to an accumulating multiplier value that gets applied to the total payouts at the end of each spin.

Three more scatter symbols hitting at any point during free spins will award five additional spins, allowing players to further capitalize on the lucrative accumulating multipliers.

Buy Free Spins
In jurisdictions where permitted, Hockey Bonanza offers players the ability to purchase instant access to the free spins bonus round. By paying a fee equal to 100x their current bet amount, players can skip the base game entirely and jump right into the potentially rewarding accumulating multipliers of the free spins feature.

This provides an accelerated path into Hockey Bonanza’s most valuable game phase. While costly, it allows players to access the game’s core rewards without waiting for scatter symbols to hit organically during base game spins.

Tumbling Reels
The tumbling reels mechanic is central to Hockey Bonanza’s gameplay. Any winning symbol combinations cause those symbols to disappear from the reels, with cascading symbols dropping down to fill the vacant positions. This allows new wins to form from a single spin. Tumbling continues until no more winning combinations remain.

Multiplier Symbols
Random multiplier symbols valued from 2x to 500x can land on reels 2 through 6 during any base game spin or free spin. At the conclusion of a tumbling sequence, the values of all multipliers that landed are tallied and applied to the total payout for that spin and tumble sequence.

Hit Frequency and Volatility
Hockey Bonanza exhibits high volatility, providing fewer frequent payouts but larger potential reward outcomes. The hit frequency for both base game wins and bonus features is lower. But when wins do hit, they can be quite substantial due to factors like the 500x multiplier symbols and accumulating multipliers in free spins.

This volatile math model means that Hockey Bonanza is geared primarily towards players who enjoy chasing big wins despite longer dry spells in between. Conservative or low-stakes players may want to approach this game carefully due to its high variance payout structure.

Maximum Payout
The maximum possible payout listed for Hockey Bonanza stands at 5,000x the player’s stake. However, with factors like 500x multipliers and the accumulating free spins multipliers, it is technically possible to exceed the stated maximum payout under the right circumstances. But the upper limit helps keep player expectations reasonable for this high-variance slot.

Responsible Gaming
Hockey Bonanza includes autonomy tools such as bet limits, loss limits, and session timers to encourage responsible play. Players can configure these options to enforce customized restrictions on play time and wager amounts. Features like the direct bonus buy also allow players to access key rewards without relying solely on random outcomes.