Hot as Hades slot offers scorching game-play for Halloween!

A while ago now, Microgaming released the Hot as Hades slot and it was generally greeted with pretty solid reviews. A few years later, we are revisiting the slot to take a closer look and to see whether it still holds up as one of the most eye-catchingly inventive slot, certainly in terms of presentation, that have been released in recent times.

The game is based on Greek legend and the main character is Hades, who is a god as well as than name of the underworld. He is joined by a number of characters from mythology, including his trusty triple-headed dog Cerberus. Watch out for him appearing on the reels doing the occasional crazy thing as this is one of the nicer touches on the slot.

This is a 5x3 reel slot with 20 non selectable lines and a relatively small jackpot, but it is medium variance game and as such, needs to be played with a more long term view in mind than some less volatile slots.

So how does Hot as Hades stack up nowadays? We decided to take a look to find out.

Overview

• Game: Hot as Hades
• Developer: Microgaming
• Reels: 5x3
• Pay Lines: 20 (non-selectable)
• Minimum Bet: 0.20
• Maximum Bet: 50.00
• Jackpot: 100,000
• Free Spins Bonus: Yes
• Other Bonuses: Yes
• Progressive: No
• Volatility: Medium

Presentation

When it comes to presentation, the Hot as Hades slot is absolutely breath-taking and it is without doubt one of the very best Microgaming slot games that the company has released in terms of visuals, colour, sound and touches of humour.

Set in the backdrop of Hades, the five reels are superimposed over the background and as you spin Hades and his dog Cerberus will appear from time to time at the side of the reels and they can trigger the randomly triggered bonus game. The graphics are outstanding, and the little touches of humour certainly add a great deal to the game.

The sound is also exceptional with a foreboding and dramatic soundtrack, but one that is more understated than some, so it does not dominate what is happening on screen. Few slots have been presented quite as well as the Hot of Hades slot and it is easy to see why it remains a popular choice of game for players.

What is on the reels?

There are a total of ten standard symbols on the reels, five lower value and five higher value. The lower value symbols are the playing card values from 10 through to the Ace and these offer wins ranging from ¼ of your bet up to 10x your total bet.

The higher value symbols are all characters from Greek mythology and include Cerberus the three headed dog, Medusa, Poseidon, Zeus and lastly Hades himself as the highest paying symbol offering wins of up to 50x your total bet. All wins must comprise of three symbols or more and be on one of the 20 pay lines on the slot.

Wild features

The Hot as Hades logo is the in game Wild and it can substitute for any of the standard symbols on the reels. It is also a higher paying symbol as it offers between 5x and 100x your bet for landing three, four or five of the symbols across the reels on a spin. When used as part of a winning line, you will also receive a 2x multiplier for any win that the Wild is part of.

Free Spins features

The main Free Spins feature on the Hot as Hades slot is a little different to the usual Free Spins bonus. Firstly, the Free Spins are triggered entirely at random in the Hot as Hades game, not by landing three of the Scatters across the reels.

During your five Free Spins, one of the characters in the slot will appear on screen and will turn a symbol into a Held Wild slot for the duration of your bonus spins. Three Held Wilds will be granted which, if you can land them across the reels on your Free Spins, can land you a sizeable win. If you get three Wilds held on the reels, then you will also get a 2x multiplier applied to any win you land.

When you land three of the Scatter symbols across the reels, you plat the Quest for the Crystal Helm bonus game, which is a selection game that comprises of up to five levels, where players have one pick on each level that they access in the bonus.

Players begin with a pick on the Pillars of Awesomeness Level 1, which will offer four cash prizes and one Win All cash prize and then players move onto Medusa's Gaze, which as three cash prizes, one Win All and one End Bonus option.

Avoid the End Bonus option here and you move onto the Poseidon's Ocean bonus where there are two End Options in amongst the shells, which also cover cash prizes. Move on to Level Four and you get Zeus' Stairway, which has 2 cash prizes and 2 end game symbols. Finally, the last level is the Chamber of the Crystal Skill where you choose a chest and from two choices to claim your final prize.

Best feature of the Hot as Hades slot

I don't want to make this sound like the bonuses in the Hot as Hades slot are not particularly good, I think they are. The Wild lands often enough to make it very visible to the players and the two main bonuses, Free Spins and the Quest Bonus game are both excellent and offer players some very exciting game-play. However, when it comes to the best feature, it has to be the presentation as Hot as Hades has so many outstanding features including randomly triggered Free Spins, a fabulous quest bonus game and they are all presented so slickly. Add to that the touches of humour throughout the slot and it is easy to see why it is a winner.

Conclusion

Hot as Hades is still a fantastic slot to play and for me, it is a game that does not get the credit it really deserves. I feel this should be up alongside the real greats of Microgaming's back catalogue, like the original Mega Moolah slot, Thunderstruck II, Break Da Bank and similar. Outstandingly presented with some fabulous and innovative features, Hot as Hades is a breath of fresh air, rather than all hot air and it is certainly a game you should try for yourself.

You can play Hot as Hades slot at any of the Mega Moolah casinos.