For some reason, wolf-themed slots are perennially popular and so it is tempting to think that if you have seen one wolf-themed slot, you have seen them all. Not so, not with this offering from Microgaming at least. This game not only looks fantastic and plays well, it has a number of special features that markedly set it apart from other similar slots in this genre.
Wolf Howl takes you into the cold depths of a wintry forest where you will likely spot a wild wolf howling at the moon along with a host of other animals. You will find five reels with ten paylines nestling nicely to the right of the screen. On the opposite side of the screen there is the button for the Buy Free Spins feature which is just one of this game’s many entertaining features. The game’s graphics are visually appealing and the soundtrack really helps set the scene, especially the howling.
One of the major things that sets this game apart from other wolf-themed slots are the sheer amount of features that Microgaming have managed to pack in. Bonus symbols, Free Spins, Scatters and Wilds are fairly commonplace in a lot of slot games. In addition to those standard features, however, Microgaming have included other features like Wild Call, Scatter Added and Multiplier Wilds.
Multiplier Wilds multiply prizes by either 1x, 2x or 3x. It is worth noting that you will only see the 2x and 3x Multiplier Wilds appear on the middle reels. What’s great about Multiplier Wilds is that if you are lucky enough to spin in more than one of them, they are multiplied by themselves in order to increase your prize even further. Two 2x Multiplier Wilds, for example, would be a total of 4x your bet size.
If the Scatter Adder Feature is activated during the base game, it will award you between two and four random Scatter symbols somewhere on your reel grid. That, in turn, increases your chances of landing Free Spins which are triggered by spinning in three or more Scatters.
Another interesting feature triggered by Scatters is the Wild Call, which converts your Scatter symbols into a 1x Multiplier Wilds. Any existing Multiplier Wilds you have in place will be automatically upgraded to the next multiplier tier, a 2x Multiplier Wild becomes a 3x Multiplier Wild for example. The maximum is 5x and your Multiplier Wilds will stay in position for the duration of your Free Spins thus maximizing your chances to land a prize.
One last feature worth mentioning is the Buy Free Spins feature. No prizes for guessing that using this feature you are able to buy either 8, 15 or 30 Free Spin for 90x, 159x or 314x the bet respectively. The advantage, of course, is that you don’t then have to wait until you are lucky enough to land the necessary Scatters. Be warned, if you don’t land a winner, it can work out quite expensive buying free spins. This additional cost is partially compensated with a slightly higher return to player player percentage when the Buy Free Spins feature is activated.
Wolf Howl is a high-volatility slot with the potential for some really big wins of up to 25,000x your stake. The ordinary return to player percentage is 96.15% but if you activate the Buy Free Spins feature, that percentage will increase slightly to 96.42%. This may not seem like a lot but over the course of a number of games, it can quickly add up. You can play Wolf Howl at stakes ranging from 0.10 to 10.00. With the potential payouts on offer that’s a relatively small stake size and so well worth playing for a shot at something big.