Santa Paws
Now here is one of the oldest video slots we have reviewed from the game’s developer Microgaming as the Santa Paws slot was released in December 2006. In comparison to the newer Microgaming slots, even with this same theme such as Secret Santa, there is a huge difference in design style. The game may look very dated but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t play well and offer some decent rewards.
Santa Paws by Microgaming is a 5-reel, 3-row video slot with 20 pay lines. These are not fixed so you can vary how many pay lines you would like active. Even though this is an older game it still has features that you find in current games such as a wild substitution symbol, a scatter symbol that can activate free spins and an extra wild during the free spins bonus round. There is also a gamble feature after each win where you can double or quadruple your prize. The Santa Paws slot has a top jackpot prize on 5 scatter symbols of £10,000.
How to play Santa Paws Video Slot
When the game loads you will see that it is set in a winter wonderland that may easily be the North Pole. The colours are quite bold and predominantly white and blue. There is something like a wind blowing sound in the background along with the sound of sleigh bells when the reels spin. Each of the symbols is snow laden to add to the holiday season effect.
The Santa Paws slot incorporates standard card type symbols being 10, J, Q, K and A along with various creatures as the high-value symbols. These include a white rabbit, a seal and an owl to name just a few. The main wild symbol is a big white polar bear called Santa Paws and he can replace all other symbols apart from the scatter symbol. The scatter symbol is a penguin carrying a present. If you land at least 3 of these then you will activate the free spins bonus round.
Before you start your play on the Santa Paws slot, make sure you set your cost per spin and that this is at a level you are comfortable with. Using the + and – buttons at the bottom of the game screen, you can set the coin size at 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 25p or 50p. There is also a coin per line button so you can decide how many of the coins you wish to bet at a time. This can be anything from 1 to 10. As mentioned earlier, you can also set how many active pay lines you would like and this is between 1 and 20. Adjusting these options will allow you to set the cost per spin to as little as 1p (20p for all pay lines) up to a maximum of £100.
To start playing Santa Paws you just need to select the large button shaped like a block of floating ice on the bottom far right of the screen which says ‘Spin’. There is no ‘Auto Play’ button with this game. You do though have a bet max button which will spin the reels at the maximum cost per spin based on your current coin level.
When you play the game you will soon realise, particularly as this is an old game, that it is very simplistic in its nature. The base game is just a case of matching symbols on a winning pay line from left to right. The Santa Paws wild symbol helps on occasion to create a win. Apart from this, you are hoping to land the scatter symbols to activate the free spins bonus round.
If you land 2 scatters than you will be awarded a cash prize, however, you need to have at least 3 scatter symbols anywhere on the game board to activate the bonus round. During this feature, you will be awarded 12 free spins and you will now have an extra wild symbol in the form of a whale. Also, any win achieved will have a random multiplier added to it up to x7. If you manage to land 3 scatter symbols during the bonus round then you will re-trigger the 12 free spins. Once the bonus round is complete you will be returned to the base game.
Santa Paws Video Slot Tips
On the bottom left-hand side and right-hand side of the game screen, you will see a button labelled ‘ Payout’. Selecting this will reveal 2 screens that give information about the game including the main features as discussed above. You can also view the coin payout levels for the number of matching symbols. These screens are useful and help familiarise you with the game and what you need to do to get the best wins possible.
If you are new to playing the Santa Paws video slot, then it would be worth your while to try out the game for free at one of our recommended online casinos. This facility allows you to learn how the game plays and see the features in action before parting with your hard earned cash. You can switch to real cash play at any time. If you would like to play Santa Paws for free then you can at 32Red Casino. You can also get a welcome bonus at this casino so you can have even more time to try out this online slot.
Is Santa Paws the right video slot for you?
The Santa Paws Slot by Microgaming has a theoretical RTP (return to player) of 96.52% giving a house edge of up to 3.48%. The game is a medium variance slot and we tested it out over 100 spins at a £1 cost per spin. Although this online slot gave out fairly frequent wins with our maximum dry spell being 9 spins without a win, it just wasn’t exciting enough.
The game reels spin slowly so it does feel like your gameplay is quite extended especially with the occasional decent sized cash awards. However, unless you can activate the bonus round there is not much else going on. Santa Paws would suit you if you enjoy your Christmas themed slots and you have a free casino bonus that you can use to wait it out for the bigger rewards that you get in the bonus round.
