Holy Diver Slot Machine
Do headbanging and slot playing go well together? Yes, especially so on Holy Diver from Big Time Gaming.
The hit song from heavy metal band Dio has made it to the six reels of a video slot that features a novel pay mechanic called Reel Adventure, symbol collection for three levels of free spins, insane win multipliers of up to 343x, and a game window that can expand up to a huge 586,971 ways to win in the bonus round.
Did we forget to mention, a massive win potential of up to 23,306 times your bet?
Heavy Metal Slot Reels or Not?
Expecting a dark heavy metal-themed game that does justice to the song from the legendary band? Well, the design of Holy Diver slot is rather surprisingly serene. It is maybe best described as a mediaeval adventure with elements from video games and level progressions.
The game window is the well-known 6-reel set which is placed on a stone structure. At the bottom sits the Reel Adventure display, where a knight in full armor is walking or running along a path to award reel modifiers and collect free spins symbols.
On the left is the Shield Of Fortune collector, with four gems that need to be accumulated from the Reel Adventure mechanic to trigger the free spins. A generic but suspenseful soundtrack with reel and win count noises changes dramatically in the free spins when rock fans can start headbanging to the hit track from Dio.
BTG fans will find a familiar set of pay symbols on Holy Diver as the game studio stuck once again to its standard set of symbols and color palette. At the low end you will see the card royals 9 to A, followed by green, blue, red, and purple gems.
Wild symbols only appear on the reels via the Reel Adventure modifiers. The game has no scatters, as the free spins are triggered by collecting minimum four gems.
Holy Numbers and Stats for Massive Wins
Holy Diver is a video slot with 6 reels and up to 117,649 ways to win in standard play, using BTG’s patented Megaways engine. On every spin, the game is choosing randomly two to seven symbols for each reel, creating a minimum of 64 ways to win up to the maximum of 117K. This can increase in the free spins to a jaw-dropping 586,789 ways to win.
Pays are awarded for adjacent symbols and range from 0.5 to 15 times your stake for a single six of a kind.
Stake sizes range from a low 0.10 coins up to a still modest 20 coins. The game is somewhat less volatile than other BTG creations and has an RTP between 96.39 and 96.54%, depending what level of free spins a player is choosing to collect.
Thanks to the HTML5 format, the game can be played on any desktop or mobile device across all OS platforms.
The Reel Adventure Mechanic
At the bottom of the game window sits an animated display called Reel Adventure, showing a knight progressing on a path dotted with treasure chests.
To get to the next chest will take one to five spins. In the base game, the knight will give the chests a good kick that will open them up to reveal one of four reel modifiers, which will be applied to reels two to five only. The reel block is highlighted when the modifier is triggered.
The first modifier is the Standard Symbol Bonus, where one of the low-value card royals will be selected and all landing in view on the middle reels will turn into a wild symbol.
The second option is the Sword Bonus, where up to three reels can turn into a wild sword marked with a multiplier from x1 to x7, providing the potential for a maximum multiplier of x343 when all three wilds reveal a x7 multiplier.
The third modifier is the Fireball Bonus, where up to four standard wilds are added with maximum one per reel. They can explode to turn adjacent positions also into wilds.
The fourth option is the Gem Symbol Bonus, where a gem appears from the chest. Any matching gem symbols on the middle reels will turn into a wild symbol with a multiplier ranging from x1 to x3, based on the current game level. The revealed gems will be added to the Shield Of Fortune Collector.
The Shield Of Fortune Collector
Thinking of hitting scatters to trigger the free spins? Think again, as the mechanic works differently on Holy Diver.
The Shield Of Fortune on the left of the game window is a collector with the four differently colored gem pay symbols. You will need to collect one of each to get to the Level 1 Free Spins. At this point, you can choose to play the 10 free spins on level 1 or carry on collecting a further four gems to reach the Level 2 Free Spins.
The same can be repeated to progress to the Level 3 Free Spins. The collector is bet size sensitive in such that you must progress through the levels for each bet size.
During the free spins, all gem symbols landing on reels two to five will turn into a wild symbol. On level one they are a simple wild, while on level two and three they become a x2 and x3 multiplier wild. The levels reset at the end of a free spins round that is played.
In clear words, you can choose your own volatility for your gaming session. Take the free spins on level one all the time to give you more bonus rounds with smaller wins, or progress to the higher levels and have fewer bonus rounds but with bigger win potential.
The Holy Diver Free Spins
Ready for the headbanging? Starting the free spins will be your mark has Holy Diver will blare from your speakers for the entire round. The free spins can be played upon reaching any of the first two levels. They will automatically play when level three is reached. The game awards initially 10 free spins with the chance to collect more during the feature, or re-trigger it entirely.
Additionally, to the gems turning wild on reels two to five, you can count on the knight to have some extra surprises for you. Instead of kicking chests to award reel modifiers, he is seen running along in a castle and battling a mystical hooded figure standing in his way to randomly reward you with a shiny diamond.
The first four diamonds will award +1 spin each, and the fifth re-triggers the bonus feature with 8 extra free spins.
And this is the moment for the extra kicker on this slot. With every re-trigger, the ways to win are gradually increased from 117,649 up to a maximum 586,971 ways. With unlimited retriggers, this is the point where the headbanging could turn into a big win celebration. The gem collector is reset to level 1 once the free spins conclude.
Other Reels With Modifiers and Insane Win Potential
No doubt, the Megaways engine has been a fresh breeze, or better said an electrifying storm in the slot playing community. The concept of variable ways to win coupled with novel pay mechanics have taken our gaming to new levels. For more interesting modifiers and big win potential you could try Primal Megaways from Blueprint Gaming or Laser Fruit from Red Tiger Gaming.
A Holy Verdict
Yeah, most of us did some headbanging in our youth as the years in the late 20th century were marked by heavy metal and hard rock. We might just start doing it again now after scoring a big win on Holy Diver or just as a remembrance of times gone by.
Either way, our review experts think Holy Diver online slot is yet another superb creation from Big Time Gaming, who have proven again why they are the shooting star in the industry. Ready for your headbanging session?
