There's just some ethereal, and otherworldly about wolves. There's a reason they've captured our imagination and have been inserted into so much of our lore. From their beauty stance, the grace within every step they take, to the gorgeous howl of a lone wolf. We've been obsessed with preserving and learning more about this fascinating creature, which makes this slot so diverse, and appealing to so many groups of people. You'd have to be a pretty unusual person to say you hate wolves or animals in general. You may be a psychopath otherwise. So lean back, get yourself a snack or something to drink, and immerse yourself into the untamed, wild, and spiritually free home of the majestic wolf.
An Oldie, But 100 Percent a Spiritual Totem Wolf Goodie!
I'm fairly certain this slot is based on a classic you may or may not have played at a physical casino at some point, but what's great about it is this game is available on your desktop and mobile device, so you can play this any time, any place, workday or weekend without paying for gas, driving, or overpriced drinks. A large grey wolf, with its thick mane, proud and ancient features, and strong nose stares at you through the screen as you pull up this board. The wolf animation is well-designed art, given it's the centerpiece of this board. Some might say the slots are semi-plain in comparison, but I honestly didn't notice that. The background of this board is a textured grey-blue, and I'm not sure what it's supposed to resemble. It looks somewhat like it's a wintery forest background, and the accents of this board give the player tribal energy, complete with wild painted faces on tree trunks, in a potentially native American design.
Layout, How to Play, and More Information
The slot board itself takes up about three-quarters of the screen on the left side. On the far right will be a large grey wolf, the centerpiece of the board, and below him is all your navigation buttons. The Wolf Rising logo has tribal lettering, and within the O in wolf contains a wolf howling at a crescent moon, which maybe is slightly inaccurate, but I understand the artistic aim of the logo. The win and balance window is the first set of stacked windows on the right side, down towards the corner. These windows are not interactive and don't need to be as they're self-explanatory. They display your wins and your balance! The next stack of windows directly below are the windows to customize everything you'll need. It has the lines on the first panel, which can be adjusted using your arrows, the line bet on the second panel which also comes with adjustable arrows, and the total bet on the furthermost side on the right. Down in the middle is the yellow spin button, and on the left side of the mini window is a wrench button, where you can change all the settings - everything from the sound and so forth, and another marked auto spin button. I'm more of an auto spin sort of person, so I always appreciate it when this option is available to me, especially if I intend to bet lower amounts. Be a little more guarded and don't use auto spin if you are planning to bet large amounts. Make sure to play it in free mode first, that way you can both get a feel for how the slot delivers its content, and make a fair estimate on the smartest betting, and how to get the most bang for your buck.
Symbolism, Paylines, and Payouts
All the icons and symbolism, and art on this board have a gritty realism that's endearing for horror fans, or those who have a supernatural and dark view of wolves. The symbols on this board include a grey wolf, a brown wolf, a black wolf, a white wolf, a totem, and a bonus symbol. It also includes the traditional poker symbols of K (king) Q (queen) J (jack) A (ace) plus 9 and 10. The font for the symbols matches the logo down to every last detail. This is a five by eight reel, which is pretty unique. It features an enormous 100 pay lines. The coin size is a fixed rate of a dollar, so this virtual video slot is probably because of medium rollers. It includes a free spins bonus round and a stacked wilds feature which I will detail further below. Keep your eyes peeled on those totem poles I mentioned, because they award the highest payout for your stake, with a total of 1000x! The card values are the lowest paying symbols, as you would expect. However, the 9, 10, jack, and queen award a 100x multiplier when you trigger a line of matching symbols, and the king and ace award a 150x multiplier. The medium value symbols on this board are the wolves, both brown and grey will award the lucky user a 250x multiplier, and the black and white wolves award a 500x multiplier. The totem pole is the wild symbol, so hope for a five of a king totem combination. To unlock the free spins and scatters, you'll need to trigger the bonus symbol on reels 2, 3, or even 4. This game isn't for penny slot players, but those who can afford it will find it to be fun and rewarding.
The Free Spins Feature
If you can trigger the bonus symbol in the middle three reels, you'll unlock the free spins. Of course, with this, you'll be relying on luck, but that's what slots are all about. The scatter pay will give you x2 when three symbols are triggered before five free spins are activated. The totem pole even changes colors, turning pink and purple during the free spins round to indicate both when it starts and ends. Since the free spins round is somewhat minimal, the creators of this game made up for this by giving you a higher chance at triggering wild stacked symbols. You can also re-trigger free spins, using the scatter during the bonus rounds, and can be re-triggered for 255 rounds. The number is sort of random, but still pretty high.
Summary Of Game
I've played a few different wolf-themed games, and I'm not usually a huge fan of the casino classic. It's not that I don't love games based on wolves, or even animals, either! I usually am more one to opt output-output-out of this game and play a vampire-themed slot, but the supernatural darkness of this game did draw me in like a moth to the flame. At first glance the free spins round seemed a bit short, but when I learned about the stacked wilds feature, plus the ability to retrigger the bonuses it made me re-think the slot's overall value. Theoretically, if you could keep the bonus round going for 255 rounds - that's excellent. The fixed pay rate isn't something I usually mind, especially as you can still adjust all of the 100 lines, and out of the 100 lines, I'm the type who might only play 4 or 5 because I don't have excess money to spare, and I like to play for the thrill of it all. High rollers might go a little crazy and prefer a slot machine with a maximum five-dollar bet, but I think if they took a chance to play this and learned about the bonus features, it might change their mind on this creative slot. After all 100 dollars, a game still isn't a joke, by any means. Plus, any game where you can re-trigger the free spins will always hold great value. Do not underestimate the potential of this classic because of the fixed pay rate.
Would I Play This Again?
IGT did a great job with this slot - it'll draw in those folks who find wolves to be lucky. The bonus round was pretty fun and fast-paced. I'm really glad this fixed machine offered an auto spin feature because I get impatient during the spins sometimes. The look of the slot was shamanic, and the animations were fun. I wasn't expecting the totem pole to turn pink or purple - but I suppose those are psychic colors and this game has a quality where you feel they took a supernatural, Native American approach to wolves to give you that 'casino in the middle of nowhere kind of experience many of us miss these days. With scatters, wilds, multipliers, and free spins the slot is sure to grab everyone's attention. I would play this game again at a low roller financial bet, at least while I'm getting used to the probabilities of rewards in regards to this legendary game, featuring a legendary and majestic spirit animal. Give it a shot on your mobile phone, test out your luck and play a few of the 100 lines available.
