Santa’s Big Bash Megaways

Santa’s Big Bash Megaways Overview

It's been another challenging year at Santa's workshop, and everyone is looking forward to letting off a little steam at the big Christmas party. All the likely characters will be there -Jack Frost, the Gingerbread Man, plenty of elves and of course the big bearded man himself- Santa, even Scrooge said he'd drop in for a mulled wine.

From a mechanical point of view, this slot is on a Megways board, meaning that the number of symbols per reel will change with every spin. There is a reasonable average RTP of 96.04% and an exciting top payout of 25,000x the stake on offer when it comes to winning potential.

Feature content-wise, there are quite a few available bonuses. These start with the tumbling reels feature, which destroys winning symbols and replaces them with a new set, giving players multiple chances to score wins from one spin. Next is the Rudie the Reindeer feature is triggered at random during any base game spin, delivering one of three modifiers, including extra wilds and a re-spin. Finally, the free spins round is activated by lighting up at least eight baubles on the Christmas tree. You can light these up by scoring consecutive tumble wins. All features will be explained in more detail later on in the review.

Theme and Symbols

The theme for this game is Santa's Christmas party. We don't often think of Santa hosting a Christmas party, but I'm sure after the enormous effort that his elves, Mrs Clause and himself go through each year, they are surely the ones in need of a party more than anyone else. And from the looks of this game, Santa and his company like to get very merry indeed. Lots of fun, some drinking and singing are all on the agenda this year, as Santa puts on a bash which, from the looks of it, is in his own log cabin – who knew you could fit a factory full of elves into a little cabin?

The background for this slot is incredibly rich in detail and tells a story in terms of how the party went. Indeed, from the looks of it, this is a post-party tableau. With champagne, beer and numerous other bottles strewn about the floor and shelves, Santa's guests clearly didn't drive their Sleighs home after this one. Somehow (maybe as a result of some riotous dancing), the Christmas tree has ended up on its side. Some of the decorations have even been pulled off the wall. By this evidence, when Santa's crew party, they really let go.

The board for this game is a simple blue interior framed in fairy lights. Some rows also get borders of candy cane as you move through the spins.

The symbols for this game are split into low-value, high-value and special symbols. The low-value symbols are the 10, J, Q, K and A in playing card royals, decorated in flashing light bulbs. On the other hand, the higher value symbols are the Elf, the Gingerbread Man, Scrooge, Jack Frost, and Drunk Santa. Drunk Santa is the most valuable of the higher value symbols, paying out at 25x the stake for the top combination. The special symbols finally comprise the Christmas Present Wild, the Magic Baubles and Rudie the Reindeer. Each of these latter symbols is relevant to a special feature, which will be explained further in the review.

Game Play

Santa's Big Bash, Megaways is played on a 6-reel Megaways engine, meaning that the number of symbols that appear in each row changes with every spin. There is a maximum of 117,649 pay lines available in this game.
To win combinations, players must land three or more matching symbols on pay lines moving from left to right, starting from the leftmost reel.

The betting range for Santa's Big Bash, Megaways is 20p to £20 per spin.
To adjust their bet levels, players can toggle their stake up and down using the tool located at the bottom left-hand side of the screen.

Further information, including a short tutorial and a display of the paytable, can be found via the menu button in the right-hand corner of the screen. The spin and auto spin buttons are located in the centre of the screen.
Volatility for this slot is rated in the very high range. The return to player percentage for Santa's Big Bash, Megaways, is 96.04%, which is above average. The biggest payout that players can win on one spin is 25,000x your stake.

Features

The first feature included in this slot game is a tumbling reels bonus. When you land a winning combination, the winning symbols will be jettisoned from the reels and replaced by a new set, falling into their vacated positions. The consecutive tumbles allow players to score multiple wins from the same spin. The mechanic won't stop until the new set of symbols does not form a win.
The next feature is called the Rudie the Reindeer feature. This feature could trigger any random point during the base game, introducing one of three modifiers to the game. These are as follows:

- Two to four wilds may be randomly added to the board.
- Three positions on the Christmas tree meter are instantly filled.
- You are granted a single re-spin without losing a position on the Christmas tree.

The final feature is the free spins feature, triggered when players fill the Christmas tree meter up to a threshold of at least eight magic baubles, which is achieved by landing consecutive wins. The more unbroken wins, the better the reward offered to you.

These are as follows:

8 Baubles 8 free spins
9 Baubles 9 free spins
10 Baubles 10 free spins with 2x starting multiplier
11 Baubles 11 free spins with 2x starting multiplier
12 Baubles 12 free spins with 3x starting multiplier
13 Baubles 12 free spins with 3x starting multiplier + more Rudie the Reindeers appearing

When the bonus round starts, reels with seven symbols lock for the duration of the spins. Rudie the Reindeer's modifiers can also be triggered in this game. Landing four or more successful spins grants you more spins to play. You will be given another spin if you lock any reels on your final spin.

Finally, there is a bonus buy feature, but it is not available in the UK.

Conclusion

Hopefully, players can enjoy themselves just as much as Santa has at his big party. There is no reason they can't as features are fun and lucrative, the RTP is strong, and the top prize is definitely worth sticking around for. That being said, the volatility rating for this game is very high, so wins and triggers are incredibly unpredictable. This is a great slot to enjoy over the festive period and one that could make your own Christmas much cheaper.