Big Bass Halloween 3 Slot Review
With spooky season finally upon us, Reel Kingdom is, once again, taking advantage of the upcoming festivities for their next Big Bass instalment, Big Bass Halloween 3. Switching from the deep-blue sea to a tiny and terrifying fish tank, it’s time to get hooked on the third series to join Big Bass Halloween & Big Bass Halloween 2.
We’ve been critical of Big Bass in the past…and we will again. They’re not bad slots, not by any means, but talk about MILKING IT. Big Bass Bonanza was in the right place at the right time, finding success where countless others failed. Can they be blamed? No, but can Reel Kingdom claim to be an innovative provider? Also no.
Big Bass Halloween 3 is the third in the Halloween series, but the one billionth in the series so far. Reel Kingdom have kind of sold their integrity a bit for a cash cow, but does it pay off once more in Big Bass Halloween 3?
Base Game & Features
Big Bass Halloween 3 is the latest high volatility release to join the existing Big Bass Bonanza franchise, consisting of 5 reels, 3 rows, and 10 fixed pay lines. Wins occur when 2-5 identical symbols appear on adjacent reels, starting from reel 1.
The highest-paying symbol falls to the Campervan, followed by the Bait, Axe, Backpack, Fish, and A, K, Q, J, & 10 card suits. When a winning combination is achieved, a fixed payout between 0.2x and 200x your bet is awarded, where applicable.
During a session, Wild Fisherman symbols persist on the reels of the Free Spins mode, substituting for all symbols except Scatter & Money Icons. Furthermore, Fish symbols reveal a random cash prize between 2x and 5,000x your bet; however, their values are only awarded during the Free Spins mode.
Lastly, Scatter symbols are responsible for triggering the Free Spins mode. When 2 Scatters appear in a base game spin, one of the following Modifiers will trigger:
- Both Scatters will move down one position, triggering a Respin, until 1 or both Scatters reach the bottom of the reel set.
- A random hook animation can pull one of the reels upwards to reveal the 3rd Scatter needed to trigger Free Spins.
Big Bass Halloween 3 Free Spins
Landing 3, 4, or 5 Scatters anywhere in the base game triggers the Free Spins mode, awarding 15, 20, and 25 Free Spins, respectively.
In this mode, each Red or Blue Fisherman Wild that hits will collect the total prize of all Fish Icons in the same spin. Depending on which Fisherman Wild is present, it is stored within its Red or Blue Meter above or below the main reel set.
When 4 Red or Blue Fisherman Wilds have been collected, the following outcomes are awarded:
- 4 Fisherman Wilds: Awards +10 Free Spins and a x2 Multiplier
- 8 Fisherman Wilds: Awards +10 Free Spins and a x3 Multiplier
- 12 Fisherman Wilds: Awards +10 Free Spins and a x10 Multiplier
Once the 4th Retrigger is achieved on either Meter, no further collections can occur. Lastly, when Fish Icons are present on the reels, minus a Fisherman Wild, the game can position random Fish Icons on the reels via a Dynamite animation.
Additional Modifiers are also available in this mode, as previously found in the majority of Big Bass Bonanza instalments before this.
Ante Bet & Bonus Buy
Players may purchase one of the following Ante Bet & Bonus Buy options:
- Ante Bet: Increases your chances of triggering the Free Spins mode for 1.5x your bet per spin (96.50%)
- Free Spins: Guaranteed access to the Free Spins mode with 3, 4, or 5 Scatters for 100x your bet (96.50%)
- Super Free Spins: Instantly triggers the Super Free Spins mode, where only 3 Fisherman Wilds need to be collected to retrigger the session for 300x your bet (96.50%)
Big Bass Halloween 2 has a maximum win potential of 5,000x your bet. If a game session exceeds this, the current mode ends, and the player returns to the base game with the qualifying amount.
Our Honest Verdict
We won’t beat around the bush here. Big Bass Halloween 3 is very familiar to those you’ve played before. It’s got some extra features that evolved later in the series, such as the hook and the scatters that move down the reels for an extra bonus chance, plus a bonus that re-triggers, allowing higher multipliers and more spins, usually with an absent fisherman.
In fairness, there are two progressive sections, which are a little different, but overall? A bit yawn. Of course, Reel Kingdom probably care not about the humble opinions of us or anyone, the numbers that Big Bass Bonanza pulls in speak for themselves, but it’s frankly not worth a thorough examination, a thoughtful pondering of pros and cons or an extensive verdict.
That’s not to be mean and say it’s a bad slot, because it’s not, but the community that actually cares about innovation has had quite enough of this repetitiveness.
*The images found in this slot review are currently from Demo Play. On average, our reviews are written prior to the initial release date and before real play is available.
