Wild Bandolier Slot Review

31/03/2023 | Categories: Play'n GO Slots | Published by: Joe | Last updated: 05/01/2024

Play’n GO has been on our radar recently, primarily because of news that hit the Web around a month ago that they expanded their US ambition with a Connecticut gaming license. And just now, we read they secured a new Swedish supplier license. Without question, this provider is one that is continuously moving up in the interactive gaming sphere and never stops making moves. They also released three slots in March 2023. And their last one, Wild Bandolier, ranks in the top ten in multiple markets a week after its debut, claiming the top spot in multiple regions like the Netherlands, Japan, and Thailand. For this reason, we are reviewing it below.

Theme & Design

What is a bandolier? It is a belt for holding ammunition. You may have likely seen it in photos showing Mexican revolutionaries, like the famous Pancho Villa, who usually had two strapped across his chest, forming an x. In pop culture, Michael Jackson wore a bandolier as part of his early-1990s Dangerous World Tour, and Chewbacca had one in the Star Wars movies. Here, a bandolier gets infused with a Wild West theme. We must say, this motif, for us, has grown to become a bit tiresome. By our count, more than four hundred of these spinners exist, and six can get contributed to Play’n GO. Aside from this one, this company has also unleashed Cowboy Treasure, Gunslinger, Gunslinger Reloaded, Golden Colts, and Wild Trigger as games boasting a Western motif.

Sadly, the presentation in Wild Bandolier does not differ tremendously from other titles in this sub-genre. As many would expect, the setting here is a desolate street at noon, and the soundtrack is the typical Ennio Morricone-style fare. The audio effects are whip noises paired with cowboy yells. What we will say is that the painterly graphics here are top-notch. They are super high quality, and the same goes for the cartoony/comic book-like animations, which add a sense of uniqueness to this product’s overall vibe. Though this slot’s presentation does not feel novel, it is very competent.

The button configuration here, as is the case in all Play’n GO releases, is the company’s traditional panel, with the spin functions on the right set to match the theme of this gaming product.

Wild Bandolier Slot

Specs & Gameplay

What took us by surprise when looking over the specs of Wild Bandolier is that Play’n GO has set the variance of this game at medium, but its RTP by default is only 94.2%, which is low. The provider states that this percentage can range, but for medium variance products, it should never be below 95%, in our opinion. Never. The max exposure here is x2,000, and the betting range moves from $0.1 to $50. Wild Bandolier implements a 5×3 layout with twenty paylines.

Wins in this game get paid when three to five same image symbols materialize in view on the same spin, landing on adjacent reels. The A-10 royals pay prizes of x2 to x5 for five-of-a-kind combinations, and the premiums divide into two groups. The first are a boot, a whiskey bottle, and a revolver, generating rewards of x8, x9, and x10 for five matching tokens from this batch stopping in view, and the two characters supply wins of x20 and x25 when they appear five times on the same reel rotation.

A bullet is the wild, and it pays x100 when five hit on the same spin. The scatter is a cow’s skull which cannot get substituted by a wild, as the regular pay symbols can.

Bonus Features

Do not expect to see many extra modes in Wild Bandolier. As is often the case with Play’n GO slots, this one is also light on bonus features. Know that up to six bullets (wilds) can get shot on the 5×3 grid at random spots on any spin. That may happen both in the free spins mode and the base game. To enter the free spins round, you must land three scatters, giving you ten complimentary reel rotations. Before this mode begins, the game will let you pick from three Wanted posters. That will determine how many wild bullets will land in this mode, ten, twenty-five, or forty. Also, an up to x5 multiplier gets applied to every win here.

You can gain access to the discussed bonus round above via the shadow Bandit too, who can appear at random in the base game.

Wild Bandolier Slot

GOSU Verdict

Boring is what we would call the Wild Bandolier game. Without question, in many ways, this plays and looks like a solid slot. Yet, once you get into it, it feels very much passe. While also substantially lacking creativity. It is clear the development team has everything it takes to make an exciting game. They just did not put their tools to good use here or lacked the energy and time to do so. In our eyes, this is a very run-of-the-mill spinner that does not offer anything new. It is far from terrible, but it is very underwhelming. If you are into Western-themed games, we recommend checking out Wanted Dead or a Wild from Hacksaw Gaming or Money Train 3 from Relax Gaming as terrific representatives of this sub-genre of slots. Avoid this one if you can.