Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win Slot Review 2024
Prepare to come face-to-face with the Gorgon Medusa in iSoftBet’s latest Hold & Win release, Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win!
iSoftBet is back doing what they do best, serving up a new release that focuses all its attention on the Hold & Win mechanic. Hold & Win slots are a lot like Marmite, you either love them or hate them, but throwing the word ‘Mega’ into the mix certainly piques our interest.
iSoftBet are well known for their innovative Twisted Tale and Apex Predator series, so if it were any other provider delivering yet another Hold & Win slot, we’d probably run for the hills, but who knows what kind of tricks iSoftBet has up their sleeves this time around.
Will Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win outlive many of iSoftBet’s other Hold & Win titles? Let’s play on and find out!
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win Base Game and Features
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win is a 5-reel slot with 20 fixed pay lines. Winning combinations are formed when 3 or more of the same symbols land from left to right, starting from the leftmost reel.
The minimum bet available here is £.€0.20 per spin and the maximum bet available is £.€20 per spin, with plenty of other options in between the two thanks to the Golden Bet feature. This game has a theoretical RTP of 95.95% and a max win cap of 15,000x.
In terms of symbols, the highest-paying regular symbol here is the Roman, followed by the Horse, Helmet, and Bow. Low-paying symbols are standard Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten. Wilds substitute for all symbols except Golden Shields.
Golden Bet
Before you can begin spinning, you will be given the option to activate the Golden Bet feature. Choosing to activate this feature will increase your current bet by 50%.
Once active, your chances of triggering both the Gorgon’s Gaze modifier and Mega Hold & Win Bonus round are naturally higher.
Gorgon’s Gaze Modifier
During any spin in the base game, the Gorgon’s Gaze modifier may randomly trigger. Once active, it will turn winning symbols and Golden Shields to stone, locking them in their positions.
All other reel positions will Respin. If any new winning symbols or Golden Shields land in view, an additional Respin will be awarded. This will continue until no new winning symbols or Golden Shields land, or if the Mega Hold & Win Bonus is triggered.
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win: Mega Hold & Win Bonus
Landing 5 or more Golden Shields across the reels during the base game triggers the Mega Hold & Win Bonus, awarding 3 Respins.
The Mega Hold & Win Bonus begins on a 3×5 grid with 3 Respins. Each triggering Golden Shield will reveal a random Multiplier value between x1 and x50.
During the Bonus, only Gold Shields and special Booster symbols are present on the grid. Each time a new symbol lands or an Expand Modifier is triggered, the Respins meter will reset back to 3. After each Respin, the Expand modifier can trigger and expand the grid, up to 7×11 in size.
Special Boosters may land to improve the current wins on the grid, as follows.
- Multiply Booster – These Boosters will multiply all values on Golden Shields by x2, x3, or x5.
- Collect Booster – These Boosters will collect all values from all Golden Shields in view and add them to the Shield where the Booster appeared.
Multiply and Collect Boosters cannot be awarded on the same Respin, and only 1 Multiply Booster can appear on the grid in the same Respin.
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win Bonus Buy
Those outside the UK will benefit from a Bonus Buy option. iSoftBet has granted players access to the Mega Hold & Win Bonus for a total cost of 100x your bet.
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win: Our Verdict
Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win is a fierce and fiery slot that is certainly as ‘mega’ as the title suggests. iSoftBet has quite a fixation with the Hold & Win mechanic, more so than some of us would like, but if it works, then why change something that isn’t broken?
iSoftBet has gone one better here by throwing ‘Mega’ into the mix, but what does that mean for gameplay? iSoftBet has made sure that we’re well-entertained thanks to the Gogon’s Gaze Modifier that turns Gold Shields and winning symbols into stone for additional Respins.
However, the Hold & Win Bonus round is where the real action begins. It’s here that the max win cap of 15,000x feels much more achievable thanks to the Multiply and Collect Boosters that work their magic on Golden Shield values.
All in all, we thought we’d seen the back of the Hold & Win mechanic, but given how much potential Gaze of Gold Mega Hold & Win has to offer, we’ll make room for one more!