Launched in 2022, Santa Express™ is a 96.27% RTP slot that can treat casino enthusiasts to a plethora of bonus rewards. The Free Spins bonus is especially generous, granting slot buffs complimentary spins, multipliers, and a randomly chosen symbol that pays out twice its original value during that round of free games. The game is fantastic when it comes to its theming as well. With its vibrant graphics and jolly soundtrack, Santa Express™ is a fantastic Christmas slot for anyone looking for a touch of Holiday joy to their iGaming routine.
Those who love wagering as they are out and about can definitely consider Santa Express™, given the game’s fantastic compatibility with mobile devices. One can choose to play either in portrait or landscape, and the UI will feel comfortable and easy to use in either case.
Santa Express™ Slot Summary | |
Game Provider: Stakelogic | Release Date: 2022 |
Game Type: Video Slot | Theme(s): Christmas, Holidays theme |
Reels: 5 | Wild Symbols: Yes |
Rows: 4 | Scatters: Yes |
Paylines: 20 fixed lines | Free Spins: Yes |
Payout/RTP: 96.27% | Bonus Game: No |
Volatility Level: High | Progressive Jackpot: Yes |
Min Bet: 0.20 | Autoplay: Yes |
Max Bet: 100 | Max Win: 20000x |
Santa Express™ Theme
It seems that in this 5×4 Stakelogic slot, Santa has upgraded to an express locomotive in order to send out rewards worldwide. From the gorgeous winter landscape and decorated reels to the animated theme-appropriate icons that will reward gambling aficionados with generous rewards, Santa Express™ is a Christmas slot through and through. The music is another fantastic aspect of this title, as both the base game track and the song that plays during the free spins will have players embracing the holiday spirit even if they stumble upon this slot in the middle of summer.
How Santa Express™ Compares to Other Slot Games
Stakelogic has played it safe when it comes to tackling a Christmas-themed slot, with only the detail of Santa using a locomotive as opposed to a traditional sleigh allowing the game to stand out from other Christmas slots when it comes to its theme. Other than this, the slot has traditional Christmas visuals, with beautiful winter scenery serving as the background, and icons like Christmas baubles, gingerbread men, and stylized card symbols decorating the game’s reels for the occasion.
What Santa Express™ truly excels in is its gameplay, given how many bonuses and prizes are packed into the title’s features. The game has a cascading reels mechanic, which is how players can receive Wilds and Wild Multiplier icons. Complimentary games can also be won during gameplay, and the Free Spins feature itself comes with additional multipliers. The said Free Spins bonus can even be purchased thanks to Bonus Buy. Alternatively, players can double their chances of landing 3 Scatters and thus accessing the FS bonus via the Super Stake mechanic. Finally, a progressive jackpot is another possible reward casino enthusiasts can look forward to.
More Similar Slots:
- Million Christmas by Red Rake Gaming
- Merry Xmas by Play’n GO
- Candyways Bonanza 3™ Megaways™ by Stakelogic
- Secrets of Christmas by NetEnt
Santa Express™ Symbols and Payouts
Winning combinations of between 3 and 5 identical Santa Express™ symbols can form on 20 fixed paylines. The said symbols must also land on consecutive reels from left to right, starting from the first reel. When a winning combination is formed, the cascading reels function of the slot is triggered. All symbols disappear from their positions on the grid, creating a Wild and giving other icons the opportunity to land and create new wins. This bonus is dubbed Collapsing Wilds.
The Wilds, along with Rudolph, have the largest payouts in the game. Each of these symbols rewards the player 25x their bet if 5 identical copies of the same icon appear on the reels. The Scatter is not too far behind with its 5-reel payout of 20x, while the third-best payout belongs to the Elf at 10x. The rest of the Christmas-related icons are the Hot Cocoa, the Gingerbread Man, and the Christmas Bauble, which have payouts ranging between 1.5x and 5x for wins consisting of 5 symbol copies. As for the card value symbols, they have the smallest rewards, with only the Ace having a max payout of 1x one’s bet.
Do keep in mind that although all bets can be doubled if the Super Stake mechanic is enabled, the payouts below will only affect the original bet amount. For example, if you wager €2, enable the Super Stake so that the bet is increased to €4, and land a win with 5 Ace symbols, you will still be granted only €2 for your win.
Santa Express™ Winning Combinations and Payouts | |||
---|---|---|---|
Symbols | 3 Matches | 4 Matches | 5 Matches |
Wild | 1.5x | 2.5x | 25x |
Rudolph | 1.5x | 2.5x | 25x |
Scatter | 2x | 10x | 20x |
Elf | 0.75x | 1.5x | 10x |
Hot Cocoa | 0.5x | 1x | 5x |
Gingerbread Man | 0.4x | 0.75x | 2.5x |
Christmas Bauble | 0.4x | 0.6x | 1.5x |
Ace | 0.3x | 0.5x | 1x |
King | 0.25x | 0.4x | 0.75x |
Queen | 0.25x | 0.4x | 0.75x |
Jack | 0.2x | 0.3x | 0.5x |
10 | 0.2x | 0.3x | 0.5x |
Bonus Features Overview
Santa is as generous as ever in Stakelogic’s Santa Express™. The slot is full of various goodies, including Wilds, free games, multipliers, and even a progressive jackpot. What is more, this title also comes with a Buy Bonus function, a staple of Stakelogic slot games.
Wild and Scatter Symbols
In Santa Express™, Wilds are not icons that simply land on the reels. Instead, they form when a winning combination occurs, and the participating symbols collapse into a single Wild. If this happens again with the same spin, the Wild is granted a multiplier.
Apart from the Wilds, Santa Express™ also has a Scatter. It features a portrait of Santa and rewards casino mavens with the Free Spins feature whenever at least 3 Scatters appear on the grid.
Collapsing Wilds
Collapsing Wilds is the Santa Express™ cascading reels bonus, and it can serve to make wins all the more rewarding. This feature dictates that each time a winning combination forms, the participating icons disappear and collapse into a single Wild. The said Wild will remain in a random position on the given payline. Moreover, if a Wild, created as a result of this feature, assists other icons in forming a win as a result of a cascade, the icons collapse into the said Wild and grant it a multiplier. The maximum multiplier that can form after multiple Collapsing Wilds triggers is x10.
Free Spins
Santa Express™ boasts a generous Free Spins bonus that can reward complimentary games along with other goodies. The feature starts with the special Santa Express™ reel, which will grant 3 perks:
- Chosen Symbol – this icon is picked at random and pays twice its usual payout for the duration of that round of Free Spins
- Free Spins – 8, 10, 12, or 15 FS
- Random Win Multiplier – x2, x3, x5, or x10
Once the bonus perks have been determined, the complimentary games commence. Scatters are not excluded from the said free spins, and these icons can retrigger the feature. When this occurs, the number of additional complimentary spins granted is determined by how many symbols land:
- 3 Scatters – 5 additional FS
- 4 Scatters – 8 additional FS
- 5 Scatters – 10 additional FS
Another special symbol that can appear during this feature is the Wild, seeing as the Collapsing Wild Symbols mechanic can be activated during FS.
Super Stake
Players should keep in mind that they can double their chances of winning the Free Spins feature from the base game if they make Super Stake wagers. Activating Super Stake will mean that a given bet is twice its usual size, but this will not be reflected in the wins one lands as they spin the reels, seeing as Super Stake does not affect the paytable. The Super Stake’s only function is to increase one’s chances of activating the Free Spins bonus.
Buy Bonus
Casino devotees who are not keen on relying on RNG to trigger the FS bonus, even with the Super Stake being an option, can opt for the Buy Bonnus function. The Buy Bonus menu has several choices to pick from:
- Normal (8 to 15 FS) – 100x bet
- Deluxe (15 FS) – 250x bet
- Random (the player will win either the Normal FS Bonus or the Deluxe FS Bonus) – 175x bet
Spin to Win Progressive Jackpot
Gaming devotees who decide to play this slot will have the chance to score a progressive jackpot. Stakelogic’s jackpot system is dubbed Spin to Win. If an individual is lucky enough to activate it, they are prompted to write a username and are then taken to the Spin to Win live studio.
Spin to Win has two stages, which are played on two separate wheels. The first one determines whether the player will win a monetary prize between €50 and €1,000 or if they will land on the jackpot section and be able to proceed to the second wheel. When the latter occurs, the given player has a chance to win one of three jackpots. The seed value of the jackpots is as follows:
- Grand Jackpot – €100,000
- Major Jackpot – €5,000
- Mini Jackpot – €1,000
Do keep in mind, however, that the values above are essentially the minimum rewards a jackpot starts out with. In other words, they will increase as more bets contribute towards the jackpot amount.
Multipliers
As established, gaming aficionados will be rewarded by the Collapsing Wild Symbols mechanic when they score winning combinations. The said bonus can be triggered multiple times within a single spin, and that is how one will be treated to multipliers. The first multiplier a Wild can gain has a value of x2, and each subsequent collapse will increase it by 1. The largest size a multiplier can reach as a result is x10. A given Wild’s multiplier affects the payline wins it is a part of.
The other multiplier mechanic is tied to the Free Spins feature. Each time the player gains access to the Free Spins bonus, they will be granted a multiplier, which can range between x2 and x10. The said multiplier applies to the amount won from a given complimentary spin.
Pros & Cons of Santa Express™
- Santa Express™ has excellent bonus features
- The slot is part of Stakelogic’s progressive jackpot system
- The 96.27% RTP is slightly above the typical 96% RTP of most online slots
- High volatility
- The Buy Bonus options can be somewhat costly, starting at 100x one’s wager
- There is no gamble feature in Santa Express™
Santa Express™ Slot FAQs
- How will the slot’s high volatility affect the gameplay?
- Slots like Santa Express™ that have a high volatility level payout less often than other slots. To compensate for this, wins can be quite large when they do occur, which makes Santa Express™ similar to low-volatility games in the long run. Casino devotees who cannot afford to play a lot and are not keen on using the Buy Bonus function might end up experiencing long losing streaks and disappointing gambling sessions. This makes Santa Express™ more suitable for risk-takers and those who can set aside larger sums of money for their casino bankroll.
- What does the cascading reels function do?
- Essentially, this mechanic makes icons that create a winning combination disappear from the reels. Then, new symbols fall into their cells. This feature can be retriggered, which can make the winnings from a single wager quite impressive.
- Can I play Santa Express™ on my iPhone?
- Yes, Santa Express™ is suitable for both Android and iOS devices, and this includes smartphones. As the slot is powered by HTML5, you can play Santa Express™ on your browser application of choice.