Retro Galaxy slot comes with 243 Ways to Win and Rolling Reels

The 1980s were a fabulous time to grow up. We had so many cultural influences that still resonate today. We saw the proliferation of arcade games like Space Invaders initially but then more ambitious and graphically superior games followed.

Everything in the 80s was neon bright and it is fair to say that Half Pixel have channelled their inner-80s child to capture the mood of their first slot as part of their partnership with Microgaming.

That slot is Retro Galaxy, a space-age, neon-lit, purple, black and blue slot that brings together 243-ways to win with Rolling Reels and Multiplier Trails once again.

Now there have been a fair few retro-styled slots of late and a number of them have focused on the 1980s, some have been a hit, some have been a little wide of the mark. So where does Retro Galaxy stand in the mix?

We decided to take a closer look to find out.

Overview

• Game: Retro Galaxy
• Developer: Half Pixel (for Microgaming)
• Reels: 5x3
• Pay Lines: 243 ways to win
• Minimum Bet: 0.20
• Maximum Bet: 20.00
• Jackpot: 7,300x
• Free Spins Bonus: Yes
• Other Bonuses: Yes
• Progressive: No
• Volatility: High

Presentation

The Retro Galaxy slot is one of those games that reminds you of many others given how it looks, how it plays and the different features in use. The actual neon-inspired retro look of the slot reminds of of games such as the similarly titled Attack on Retro and Astro Legends Lyra and Erion, which was a release back in November 2018.

With a purple and blue design, the slot also has overtones of Tron infused into it, plus with Rolling Reels and Multiplier Trails, it also harks back to the Jungle Jim slots and Absolootly Mad too. Wins occur pretty regularly but are generally small with the occasional big value win thrown in, making this a higher variance than usual slot.

The game looks and sounds excellent and has a definite 1980s retro vibe going on which really suits the game. This is an impressive start from Half Pixel. The sounds are going to be a bit marmite in my view, you will either love the sound, or hate it, but personally I think it is a fantastic addition to the game.

What is on the reels?

There are a total of 12 symbols on the reels, two of which are the main feature symbols which link to the main bonuses of the slot. The lower value symbols are the five playing card symbols from the 10 through to the Ace and wins on these symbols range from 0.15x your bet up to 1.5x your bet.

There are some pretty niftily designed higher value symbols on the reels too and these include the lightning bolt, the star, the Bar symbol, the 7 symbol and the Prism. Wins on these symbols start at 0.50 times your bet and go up to 30x your bet.

One thing to note is that you can trigger small value wins with just two of the Lucky 7 and Prism symbols on a pay line.

Rolling Reels is in play during all parts of the game and there is a multiplier trail which will increase with successive Rolling Reels wins from 2x to 3x to 5x the standard win in the base game.

Wild features

The Wild appears on just the second, third, fourth and fifth reels in the base game and it can substitute for all symbols in both the base game and Free Spins. Other than that, the Wild serves no other purpose in the game but when landed more than once across the reels it does afford you a better chance of landing a bigger value win.

Free Spins features

The Free Spins Scatter symbol is available on all reels and if you hit three, four or five of them across the reels on a single spin you will a cash prize of 2x, 10x and 100x your bet respectively. Plus, you will also get to play through a Free Spins bonus round.

Land three Scatters, you get 10 Free Spins, land four and that becomes 15 Free Spins and land all five to get the maximum 20 Free Spins. Hit three more Scatters during Free Spins and you will receive an additional 5 Free Spins on top of those already earned.

During Free Spins, the Scatter only appears on the first, third and fifth reels and in addition, the Win Multiplier increases by one with each one of your spins from 2x on your first Free Spin, up to 15x on your 15^th Free Spin (and any more that you may have beyond this number).

Best feature of the Retro Galaxy slot

For me, while the Rolling Reels and Multiplier Trail bonuses are a key part of the Retro Galaxy slot, as is the Wild symbol to tell the truth, it is the Free Spins bonus which is the best feature of the game. It is not easy to trigger but it generally is worth the wait when you do because you can land some superb prizes in this bonus, especially if you can trigger 15 spins or more to land those massive multipliers on those last few wins. Hit a sizeable prize on any of these spins and that is when the Retro Galaxy slot can really pay you out some excellent value prizes.

Conclusion

This is an impressive start from Half Pixel Studios. The Retro Galaxy slot looks excellent and has some very nice touches. The space-age graphics and animations on the backdrop are very nice and almost photograph quality. In addition, the soundtrack that accompanies it fits the game perfectly well and captures the retro vibe superbly. Few games that try to emulate 80s games capture the mood so well. The game lives up to the looks of the slot offering an exciting 243-ways to win slot, with some big money multiplier trail bonuses to be won, especially in Free Spins. I would have perhaps liked to have seen one more feature added to the game, a randomly triggering base game bonus for example, but despite not having this, Retro Galaxy is still a very fun game to play and will appeal to players of all experiences and bankroll sizes.