Snowmania Slot
Snowmania is a 5-reel, fixed 20-pay line slot from Realtime Gaming. Christmas 2016 was a real (or should that be 'reel') special time for online slots fans to celebrate, as most of the big software companies put out a Christmas themed slot game. NetEnt gave us 'The Secrets of Christmas', while Playson released 'Christmas Eve'. Other top-rated software companies such as Microgaming and Playtech had already released festive slots in previous years, so by the end of 2016 there were more slots available at online casinos than sixpences in a plum pudding. Just before the end of November Realtime Gaming added to the list of yuletide slots with Snowmania.
This game qualifies as a slot even though it has no reels. This is a 'block cascade' game in the same style as Gonzo's Quest. All the symbols here are encased in blocks of ice, and they tumble from the top of the screen upon every 'spin'. Also like Gonzo's Quest, cascading wins are available – when you secure a win the winning symbols explode and vanish. New symbols appear from above to replace those lost, and new wins may be triggered. When cascading wins are triggered, an 'Ice Cold Multiplier' rises one level along, from x1 to the maximum value of x5.
The symbols are all suitably festive, and an odd-looking snowman watches from the left of the screen as the symbols tumble. There are twenty pay lines and that's a fixed number. You simply pay a one-off fee from 0.20 to 5.00 (essentially twenty coins) in order to play. When you're ready to snow- … er … go, hit the spin button.
Payout & bonus rounds
The lowest payout here in normal play is for three sprigs of holly. That will win you three coins. The jackpot in normal play of 2,500 coins is awarded should you land five candy-stick-filled Christmas stockings on an active pay line.
The 'Ice Wild' symbol in this game is on the central three reels only but substitutes for all other symbols.
You can earn yourself free spins by landing three or more Christmas present symbols on an active pay line from the left-hand reel onwards. You are awarded ten free spins and the multiplier changes from x1, x2, x3 and x5 to x3, x6, x9 and x15. If you land another three Christmas present symbols you are awarded an additional five free games.
This is a nice-looking slot, but it really is just another clone of NetEnt's classic Gonzo's Quest. The gameplay should be very familiar to you, but don't expect to see anything too ground-breaking as you play. A decent effort by Realtime Gaming, but hardly an innovative one.