Xmas Party Slot Machine
Most gamblers love a Christmas-themed slot or two. If players are having a spin during December, it puts them in the mood for the festive period. And if there's a juicy jackpot on the other side, it makes for a very nice Christmas indeed.
A lot of the big online casino software developers have at least one Christmas-themed game in their seasonal arsenal. Some are good, like Microgaming's Deck the Halls online slot and NetEnt's Secrets of Christmas, and some not so good. The trick is to try out a few and see which one works for you.
So where does Xmas Party, the new festive slot from Mr Slotty, fit in? The Lithuanian developers have been as busy as Santa's elves in recent months, churning out a broad range of titles. Will Xmas Party put you in the mood for mince pies and mulled wine? Let's don our red hat to find out.
Simple HTML5 Gameplay for All Players
Lithuanian slots designers Mr Slotty might not win many awards in the Best Company Name category, but they’ve been busy bees working away at their Vilnius HQ. Within the space of a few years, Mr Slotty has built up a portfolio of good HD slots that work on multiple platforms.
Mr Slotty's HTML5 games are perfectly suited to mobile-optimized devices. Games can be played on the move, whatever your platform. This hasn't always been a successful move for the Lithuanian firm, however, as there has often been a disparity in the quality of graphics between games.
The Xmas Party video slot, however, is nothing if not simple. It's a festive-themed game which works off a set of 4x4 reels. As a result, there are just 24 paylines to play across.
At first glance, the reels look so simplistic that one might be mistaken for thinking the game has cascading reels. Unfortunately not: this is just Mr Slotty keeping things ultra-simple for real cash players. The wintry backdrop is cute enough, though, and snowflakes fall across the screen as you play. If you're in for a long session, you may want to mute the We Wish You a Merry Christmas tune playing on loop in the background.
Spin the Festive Reels from 0.01 a Line
Adjusting your coins in Xmas Party couldn't be simpler. Tap the chips icon and alter your coin value up or down. Coins start at just 0.01, but there's a 1.00 top bet for the player. You can also adjust your paylines (1 to 24) manually.
With just four rows in play, prizes are awarded for hitting at least two matching symbols. That's the prize structure for the low limit symbols – the gingerbread man, stocking, and bauble. Two gingerbread men or stockings will earn you 5x the line bet, while two baubles running left to right pay 10x.
The remaining symbols in the game kick in when you line up three of a kind. The gingerbread man and stocking both earn 15x, while the bauble pays 20x. The bells pay 30x, three snowmen dish out 75s, and three reindeer 100x. The Christmas tree is the game's jackpot symbol. It pays 150x for three symbols of a kind and 300x for four.
The variance in this online slot can be seen with the top payouts. While there is no prize at all for three bells, snowmen, reindeer, or trees, you will bag 50x, 100x, 150x, and 300x respectively for hitting five of a kind.
Hit the Presents and Win Free Spins
There is a wild symbol in this game. It's the jolly Santa Claus figure, which will substitute for all regular icons in the game. You'll need him, too, if you’re going to complete any serious win lines. The only cash prize for Santa comes if you land five of a kind on a payline. This pays out 500x the line bet.
Look out for the orange Christmas present that’s waiting to be opened on Christmas morning. If you’re lucky enough to land four presents anywhere on your 4x4 grid, you'll win 24 free spins. If you like your free spins bonus features when playing slots, however, you may end up disappointed.
Deck the Halls with Microgaming
According to sources, Americans spend nearly a trillion dollars on Christmas spending each year. Now, we're not sure how much of that includes betting on slots, but there's a chance that figure is fairly high.
Developers love a festive online slot, and luckily there is plenty of choice out there. We've already mentioned Microgaming's Deck the Halls game, and it's a good to place to start for Christmassy alternatives.
This classic 5-reel slot has 30 paylines, with coins starting at just 0.01. The graphics are in a different league to those found in Xmas Party. Each of the images – including a roaring fire, roast turkey, Christmas bauble, Christmas tree, and jolly Santa – is beautifully rendered. Although a bit volatile, the jackpots are pretty decent too. All wild wins are doubled, and it's possible to win 2.4m coins in the free spins bonus round.
Keeping things Microgaming for a while, let's look at Santa's Wild Ride with 243 ways to win. A major departure from both Deck the Halls and Xmas Party, this game gives Father Christmas a Hell's Angels makeover. The slot features 243 win ways and a free spins bonus round. During the feature, players get to trigger three types of wilds including stacked wilds, expanding wilds, and trailing wilds. Free spins wins are doubled too.
Try Xmas Party for Free Today
Mr Slotty is a developer with some very interesting titles on the market. And if you like what’s on offer, give the free Xmas Party slot a try right now. It might not make the list of best new online slots currently out there, but it's simple and quick to play.
The inflexible free spins round is definitely a pain. It would have been good to see free spins awarded for hitting just two or three scatters. The gameplay can be highly volatile too. In most cases, players are waiting to hit groups of Santa wilds on the reels to earn their bankroll.
If it's a simplistic mobile slot you're looking for, try Mr Slotty's new festive release. But if you’re after something a little more standard, best stick to the tried and tested Microgaming slots on the market.
