In the realm of online casino gaming, few slots have managed to capture the essence of the wild west as effectively as "Wanted Dead or a Wild". Developed by renowned game studio Quickspin, this 5-reel slot promises an exhilarating experience that’s equal parts adventure and unpredictability. With its rich theme, innovative design elements, and generous payout structure, it’s no wonder why "Wanted Dead or a Wild" has become a favorite among gamers of all skill levels.
Theme and Design
Set against the Wanted Dead Or A Wild free play backdrop of a dusty, sun-scorched western town, "Wanted Dead or a Wild" transports players to an era of outlaws, lawmen, and rough-riding cowboys. The game’s artwork is reminiscent of classic Western movies, complete with dilapidated wooden buildings, faded wanted posters, and rusty street lamps. At the center of this desolate landscape stands our hero – a rugged cowboy on horseback, armed to the teeth and ready for anything.
The slot itself features an impressive 4×5 grid arrangement, allowing up to 1024 different payline combinations per spin. A relatively standard RTP (Return-to-Player) rate of around 96% has been reported, but we’ll delve into that aspect later in our analysis.
Symbols and Payouts
The game’s symbols reflect its Wild West theme with a mix of low-paying regular icons (Aces to Fives) alongside higher-value character-specific images. The five main characters – a cowboy, outlaw, sheriff, saloon girl, and prospector – are designed with individual animation sequences and voiceovers that add an extra layer of immersion.
As for payouts, players can expect to win between 0.2x (regular Aces-Fives) and up to 40x their bet per symbol combination in the base game. Given the relatively low variance nature of "Wanted Dead or a Wild", moderate wins should be quite common.
Wilds
In keeping with its namesake, this slot boasts several instances of ‘wild’ elements that boost gameplay:
- Standard Wild : Appearing on all 5 reels (2nd-4th row), these wild icons can replace any regular symbol in a winning combination.
- Golden Horse Shoe : Occasionally falling from the sky as an instant win bonus, this ornate horseshoe is worth between 10x and 1000x player bet for each instance.
Scatters
A pair of Scatter symbols on reels 1 or 5 initiates a free spin round; but to earn actual scatters players must hit at least three (of any value).
When collecting 2-3, respectively:
- No award occurs;
- 10 spins awarded with a multiplier from x0.15 – up to x25 in increments of five on all winnings for that round;
Three or more Scatters on reels one and/or five unlock ‘Wanted’ Free Spins bonus (more details below).
Bonus Features
In addition to Wilds, we have the already mentioned free spin modes:
- Wanted Free Spins: a) Awarded by three scatters at least; b) Reel 1 locked with either character from reels one; c) A random multiplier is added for that bonus. For all combinations – between five to fifty-five times higher than what can be collected via ‘standard’ mode (Wild Spins)
Other key features:
- Multiplier-free, wild-enriched re-spins during the base game
- Unpredictable ‘Wanted Free Spin’ round
- An average RTP of 96%.
Volatility
Given that payouts in "Wanted Dead or a Wild" don’t climb extremely high nor are expected to fall too low – medium and sometimes even very high variability occur as per some tests with the player’s settings.
Our verdict on volatility for this game? Considerable volatility exists throughout many different levels.
RTP, Volatility & Betting Range
Average RTP of ‘Wanted’ = 96%
Betting range starts from $0.20 up to max. wager amount per spin in-game ($100).
With this vast betting power available – players who don’t necessarily risk too much also won’t be short on opportunities.
Max Win
Since it does offer the opportunity for a higher number of combinations when winning, you could get some great wins through using high-stakes gaming strategy.
Gameplay and Mobile Play Experience
The game runs smoothly in both desktop mode as well as mobile – but do not expect full use out of your bet on smartphone models (Android or iOS). That’s the main complaint.
However there has been work put into creating an all-around nice experience when switching between these two.