Bison Rising Megaways Slot Review
Red sandstone mesas bank one side of the screen, gold prairie grass runs along the bottom, and a heavy gilt frame holds the reels between them under a pale streaked sky. This is the American wilderness as slots paint it, warm and literal. Blueprint Gaming have been here before with Buffalo Rising Megaways and Bison Rising Reloaded, and Bison Rising Megaways is the oldest and leanest of the herd – a slot that puts almost nothing in the base game and bets everything on one four-way decision at the door of its bonus round.
That bet mostly pays off, because the bonus round is the best idea here. It runs at 94% RTP on six reels of up to seven symbols each, for up to 117,649 ways to win on any spin. The route to the bonus is short, and you get to shape it yourself.
How the Base Game Pays
Wins land on matching consecutive symbols from the leftmost reel, regardless of height, and every winning combination on a spin is added together. Payouts are multiples of the total bet. Because reel heights change every spin, the ways to win change with them, from a few hundred to the full 117,649 when every reel fills to seven symbols.
Cascading Symbols
Every win triggers a chain reaction. Winning symbols are removed and new ones drop in from above the reels, and the cascades keep going until no new win forms. Each cascade is a fresh chance to extend the same spin, which is how a small opening win grows into something worth having.
There are extra symbol positions above reels two to five. They count towards wins and are replaced from the right as cascades run, so the top of the grid is never empty for long. They also matter for one other reason: they’re the only positions that can reveal the Wild.
The Wild appears nowhere else on the reels. It substitutes for every symbol except the scatter, and only the highest win is paid per combination. A cascade that ends with no further wins settles the spin, and everything collected along the way is credited together.
Mystery Symbol
The Mystery Symbol can land in any position. All of them in view reveal the same random symbol, which can be anything except the scatter. It’s the only base game modifier beyond the cascades, so the reels stay busy without much help.
When several land together on a thin grid, they can turn a dead spin into a full-width win in one reveal. Because every copy shows the same symbol, a cluster of them above reels two to five is the most useful place to find it.
Symbol Values
All values below are multiples of the total bet.
- Buffalo (gold): 1x for two, 2x for three, 10x for four, 25x for five, 50x for six
- Bear and Wolf: 0.3x for three, 1x for four, 2.5x for five, 5x for six
- Moose: 0.3x for three, 0.4x for four, 0.8x for five, 2x for six
- A and K: 0.2x for three, 0.4x for four, 0.6x for five, 1.5x for six
- Q: 0.2x for three, 0.4x for four, 0.6x for five, 1x for six
- J, 10 and 9: 0.1x for three, 0.2x for four, 0.4x for five, 1x for six
The gold buffalo is the only symbol that pays for two, and it’s the one worth watching when the reels fill. Everything else needs at least three from the left. The animals pull clear of the royals quickly, and the gap widens the more of them you land.
Free Spins
The scatter is a pink diamond, and it can appear on any reel except the positions above reels two to five. Scatter wins are paid in addition to reel wins, so a trigger spin can pay twice over.
Get four scatters in view and the free spins round begins. Triggering with more than four adds extra spins on top, with the amount depending on which option you select.
Free Spins Selection
Before the round starts, you pick from four options, and this choice is the whole character of the game:
- 15 free spins with the Unlimited Win Multiplier starting at x1, plus 4 extra spins for every additional scatter in the trigger
- 10 free spins with a x5 starting multiplier, and 2 extra spins per additional scatter
- 5 free spins where the multiplier opens at x10 and each additional scatter adds 1 spin
- Mystery Choice, where the available spins and multipliers are shuffled into six panels and you pick one of each
Fewer spins buy a bigger head start on the multiplier. More spins give it time to climb. The maths is yours to argue with, which is the point.
Unlimited Win Multiplier
During free spins the multiplier increases by one after every cascade, with no cap on how far it climbs. A five-cascade run from a x1 start leaves the final win at x5; the same run from x10 leaves it at x15.
The positions above reels two to five can reveal free spins scatters during the round: three of them add 5 extra spins, four add 10. The bet that triggered the round holds for its duration, and at the end the total winnings are displayed and credited before regular play resumes.
Bison Bet
The Bison Bet can be switched on during the base game, subject to operator configuration. Activate it and the next spin guarantees a minimum of four scatter symbols, starting the free spins round. It costs 100x the total bet.
That price sits at the cheaper end of bonus buys, but the guarantee is only the entry. Four scatters trigger the round at the base award, so what you’re buying is the selection screen and the spins it brings, not a stacked trigger.
Extra scatters beyond the fourth would add spins, and the buy doesn’t promise them. The value of the purchase rests entirely on the choice you make once you’re in.
Our Honest Verdict
Overall Rating: 6.4/10
Most of your time in these canyons is spent waiting for a pink diamond. The base game is cascades and not much else, so this is a slot you play for the moment four scatters land and the selection screen opens. That moment, and the choice you make on it, is the reason to be here at all.
The free spins pick is the best thing about it. No Megaways game of this vintage hands you this much control: 15 spins at x1, ten at x5, five at x10, or a gamble on the Mystery panels, each with a genuinely different shape to the round.
The weakness is the price of admission. The RTP sits at 94%, and the thin base game does nothing to soften that. It’s for players who like tuning a bonus round to their own taste and don’t mind paying for the privilege. Anyone who wants a base game with its own ideas has herds of better options on the prairie.
Bison Rising Megaways FAQs
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What is the RTP of Bison Rising Megaways?
The RTP is 94%. -
How do you trigger free spins in Bison Rising Megaways?
Four scatter symbols in view award the free spins round. Triggering with more than four scatters awards additional free spins, depending on which free spins option you select. -
What does the Mystery Symbol do in Bison Rising Megaways?
The Mystery Symbol can appear in any position, and all of them in view reveal the same random symbol. It can’t reveal scatter symbols. -
Where can the Wild symbol appear in Bison Rising Megaways?
Only in the symbol positions above reels 2 to 5. It substitutes for every symbol except the scatter. -
Can free spins retrigger in Bison Rising Megaways?
Yes. During the round, the positions above reels 2 to 5 can reveal free spins scatters: three of them award 5 extra free spins and four award 10 extra free spins. -
Can you buy the bonus on Bison Rising Megaways?
Yes, subject to operator configuration. The Bison Bet costs 100x your total bet and guarantees a minimum of four scatter symbols on the next spin, activating the free spins round. -
What is the grid size of Bison Rising Megaways?
Six reels, each showing up to seven symbols, in the Megaways format. Each spin can have up to 117,649 ways to win. -
Who makes Bison Rising Megaways?
Blueprint Gaming, on the Megaways format licensed from Big Time Gaming.
