Magic in the air in the Hansel and Gretel slot
When NetEnt makes a big fuss about a new slot it’s worth taking note and it’s something we at G2G always does. The storyline, graphics and bonus features suggest NetEnts expectations for this slot aren’t exaggerated. The Hansel and Gretel slot could be the most talked-about release of 2017. In this slot review, you will find out what I thought!
This video slot has already got into my head
When NetEnt announced last year they were making Fairytale Legends: Red Riding Hood I was super excited about it. But things were about to get even better because one of the more alert members of the G2G Team was quick to ask the question:
‘Based on the prefix ‘Fairytale Legends’, does that mean it’s the first in a series of fairytale-themed games?’
When the answer from NetEnt HQ was a resounding ‘yes’ the celebrations begun. Champagne was opened, the cake was cut, colleagues were found unashamedly kissing in the corridors of the G2G offices. And earlier this year I was told that the second instalment was called Fairytale Legends: Hansel and Gretel.
The Magic Fairy returns to the reels
If you need a full recap of what the story is all about, have a read of this but in a nutshell, it’s the classic story of siblings abandoned in the forest who find a gingerbread house in the middle of the woods packed with delicious desserts which are owned by a cannibalistic old woman.
She uses the sweets and cakes to lure them into her house with the intention of eating them. But smart, street-wise children that they are, they out-wit her, kill her, rob her and live happily ever after. Hmm, somehow their behaviour seems a little less sweet and heroic when I put it like that than how I remembered it as kids.
What’s instantly clear is that the graphics in Hansel and Gretel are very similar to those in Red Riding Hood. Which in turn aren’t too dissimilar to those in Jack and the Beanstalk. It’s like NetEnt has decided that there’s a particular identical style that they’re going to adopt for all fairytale slots which takes on a cute, caricature-like design. If you do not like the graphical style and find it too childish I recommend other NetEnt games like Jungle Spirit, Warlords and Wild Wild West instead.
The game takes place in the forest on 5×3 reels with 10 fixed bet lines. There’s a Stacked Wild and a Scatter symbol – the same treasure chests seen in Red Riding Hood – they appear on Reels 1, 3 and 5 only.
No prizes for guessing which two characters appear as symbols on the game but there’s also a return of the Magic Fairy, who was first seen in Red Riding Hood. Want to know what she does? Of course, you do. Read on.
Lots of Hansel and Gretel features
It’s pretty obvious that when NetEnt decide to splash the cash like a Kardashian (any of them) on a shopping spree, it normally means a load of bonus rounds. That was certainly the case with ‘Red’ and Guns N’ Roses was just like that, too. Things are no different here so let’s talk Hansel and Gretel features.
Stacked Wild Re-Spins
A Stacked Wild (the symbol has the white bird that features in the story on it) can appear on Reels 2 or 4 (or both) in the base game. It will stay in place and trigger a Re-Spin. During the re-spin, you can also have a Stacked Wild land on Reels 1 and 5. When you fail to get a further Stacked Wild, the feature is over and you collect whatever you won. A feature that was already present in Red Riding Hood and before that, in Stickers.
Bonus Features
Find those three treasure chests on the reels and you’ll activate the bonus features. You’ll be asked to choose one of the three chests that appear on the screen. Here’s what they lead to.
Candy House Bonus
A key element to the story though quite why NetEnt felt the need to change it from gingerbread house to the far more American-sounding ‘Candy house’ is beyond me. But anyway.
Here you’ll be invited to choose from one of four ‘candies’. Those are your Multipliers but you can’t see what you’ve picked till the end. You can either take an average of the value of the three Multipliers or stick with the one you feel is your lucky pick. The Multiplier is then revealed and you’ll get between 1.2 and 120x the value of the bet on your last spin…plus any prize you won when activating the feature.
Free Spins
Well, it wouldn’t be a NetEnt slot without these, would it?
You get 10 free spins. One bonus symbol (the treasure chest) gives you an additional two free spins, two bonus symbols give you four and three gives you another full 10 free spins. The bonus symbols can only appear on Reels 1, 3 and 5.
Stacked Wilds can appear on Reels 1,2, 4 and 5 and if you get one, it will stay there during the re-spin.
At the end of the Free Spins, you’ll get any wins secured by them plus the win that activated the bonus feature.
Coin Win
This is the cheeseburger and chips of the features: it’s good if slightly unadventurous, but at least you know what to expect.
You’ll be instantly awarded 15x your stake.
Random Features
The Magic Fairy is a bit like the taxman. You just never know when she’s going to show up. But unlike the ominous Inland Revenue representative, her appearance is a good thing. She’ll bring you one of these three.
Fairy Wonder Spin
5 to 9 of the Logo Symbols will appear on the reels as an overlay for one spin. The middle reel will always have 3 symbols on it and the remaining ones will be randomly allocated. The more you get the better.
With the Logo Symbols in the place like that, the spin can lead to some wins worthy of the tastiest gingerbread. It’s a clever way to add the logo to the symbols to free up space around the game screen, which allows it to be bigger. Something you can see that ELK has done in Wild Toro as well!
Fairy Surprise
Sometimes when you lose, you win. That’s the case here because a non-winning spin in the base game can activate this feature.
A symbol present on the reels will be randomly selected. One by one other symbol will be turned into that symbol until a win is secured. So not unlike the feature in Hook’s Heroes where Tinker Bell emerges and turns normal symbols into Wilds using her magic wand. A symbol which in that game is called…The Fairy Feature.
Fairy Wild Spin
A Stacked Wild re-spin is awarded if 2 full stacks of Wilds randomly appear on reels 1,2, 4 and 5. If further Stacked Wild symbols land covering the entire reel, more Stacked Wild Re-Spins are awarded.
Bonus features just the icing on the gingerbread cake?
The graphics, symbols and of course bonus features remind a lot of Red Riding Hood (understandable given they’re clearly part of the same series) and if this game is any bit as good as that one, you are in for a treat.
Packing a game with bonus features isn’t in itself a recipe for success but when NetEnt decide to splash the big bucks and tell the world about it, you get the feeling all those bonus features are just that…a bonus. Because it’s likely to be one heck of a lot anyway.
Below I’ve listed the best online casinos who offer Red Riding Hood!