Miss Red Slot: Fairytale-Based Slot Hits The Mark

My word, Little Red Riding Hood isn’t so little any more in this entertaining and slightly provocative slot from IGT. Little Red Riding Hood is no more as she’s definitely all-woman and has the assets to prove it, so has been called “Miss Red” to convey the fact that, rather like the film A Company of Wolves, this is a Little Red Riding Hood tale for the older slots fan.

So what has IGT done to make this more appealing apart from making Miss Red older and a more alluring? Well, in truth not a lot. All the key characters are all still. These include Miss Red’s Granny, the Huntsman and of course the Wolf, who is just as fierce as in the story but who is less the villain of the piece as it is one of the top features of the slot. It’s also one of the better paying symbols on the reels. Let’s take a look at how the slot has been pieced together.

Overview: Miss Red

This is an interesting slot from IGT in that Miss Red is a 5×4 reel slot but it features no paylines but instead has the Multiway Xtra system in operation. What this means is that you can win on the reels both left to right and right to left. However, you can also win on the middle three reels by having the same symbol adjacent to each other across there too. Furthermore additional symbols on the same reels as winning combinations will multiply the value of the win. Amazingly, the cost for this flexibility is 45 coins per spin. You can also select how much you want to wager by adjusting the value of each coin.

Coin values start at $0.01 and increase up to $50.00 per spin. This means you can play from as little as $0.45 per spin up to a maximum wager of a huge $2,250 per spin. So Miss Red is playable for the lower stakes gamer right up to the highest of high rollers. Alongside the Multiway Xtra feature there are also a number of other bonuses you can access as you play through the game, meaning that Miss Red is certainly a content-rich slot.

Who will the Miss Red slot appeal to?

Fairy tales are a rich source of inspiration for slot developers and to be honest, I’m rather glad that IGT took a different tack on the Little Red Riding Hood story and set it in more adult tones. It gives the slot a bit of added intrigue and makes it less generic and formulaic than some of the other fairy tale slots you can play by the bucketload at other casinos.

The fact that this is also a slot that comes jam-packed with features, including the fantastic Multiway Xtra feature, as well as a number of bonuses that can be unlocked in the game will certainly attract players who enjoy this type of slot. The Multiway Xtra will certainly make this a slot many slot fans are keen to play given the flexibility it offers players over payouts and the fact that it ensures players are invested in every spin right up to the final reel settling.

Gameplay: Miss Red

The first thing you’ll notice is that there aren’t a huge amount of options to select before spinning. You’ll bet 45 coins and you only need to set the individual coin value to start playing. (Remember, your total bet will be 45 times this number.) It sounds like a lot but for all the features you get, it’s actually a very good value wager.

Miss Red is set against the backdrop of a forest, as it should be given it’s based on the Red Riding Hood legend. On the reels are a selection of symbols. There are six lower value symbols. These offer a payout of up to 25 coins in the base game. These symbols are two different flowers, a pine cone, a toadstool, a squirrel and a rabbit.

Higher value symbols in the game are the key characters. They start with the Woodsman and Granny. Then there are the two End2End Expanding Symbols, Miss Red herself and the fearsome Wolf.

Additional features

With the End2End Expanding Symbols feature, any symbol that lands on the same row in between either two Miss Red or two Wolf symbols will be turned into the corresponding symbol. This can turn more rows to the same symbol. This, of course, means more wins for the player. If another Expanding Symbol is in between two other Expanding Symbols, then that symbol becomes the Wolf/Miss Red Wild symbol instead.

This feature can trigger when the symbols are anywhere on the reels, not just to the extreme left to right. Furthermore, if there are other Expanding Wild symbols above the paylines, these symbols act as a multiplier to increase the value of the win.

The other symbol on the reels to note is Miss Red Granny’s House symbol. This is the scatter symbol. When you land this on the middle three reels on any spin it will trigger a free spins bonus. First you must select a basket to trigger between 5 to 15 free spins. You can retrigger the bonus by landing three or more scatters once again during the free spins round. You can earn up to a maximum of 280 free spins.

During free spins, there is just the Wolf/Miss Red hybrid symbol on the reels as the Expanding symbol which offers you a greater chance of a win.

Special Features: Miss Red

MultiWay Xtra

The Multiway Xtra feature is really what gives Miss Red huge appeal. Although the minimum wager of $0.45 is higher than many slots, you get a huge amount for that including this feature which offers 1024 ways to win both ways across the reels and across the middle three reels too.

Free Spins bonus

Land three of the the Granny’s House scatters across the middle three reels on a single spin and you get to play a free spins round where you select a basket of flower to receive between 5 and 15 free spins. You can retrigger this up to a maximum of 280 free spins.

End2End Expanding Symbols

During the base game, Miss Red and Wolf symbols are Expanding Symbols which will expand both ways across the reels when two are landed in a row. When they do they will turn all other symbols to the same symbol, guaranteeing a win. If another Expanding symbol is in the row, this turns into a Miss Red/Wolf symbol which is also a Wild. During Free Spins only the Miss Red/Wolf wild hybrid is the Expanding symbol, which offers a greater chance of bigger wins.

What works?

Multiway bonus

The Multiway Xtra feature really does lift the Miss Red slot above most of the competition. The fact that you have a total of 1024 ways to win, but can win both ways across the reels and even across the middle three reels, is a fantastic addition to the slot and makes the game hugely playable. Players remain invested in every spin right through to the final reel.

Expanding symbols

The Expanding symbols feature works well and the fact that there are two in the base game and a hybrid Wild symbol in the free spins round which act as these symbols means that they get triggered relatively frequently and can lead to some very decent payouts in the base game and especially free spins.

Regular mixed value wins

Miss Red is a medium variance slot and wins are relatively common and while most tend to be small value, you will get the occasional bigger win which keeps your bank balance topped up nicely. The very big wins tend to come in the free spins round with that Expanding Wild symbol proving hugely beneficial.

What doesn’t?

Lack of multipliers

One small gripe, as with many other slots, is that IGT hasn’t used multipliers a lot throughout the game. Even adding just a couple at various points would have given players an added bonus, especially on those lower value wins.

Few Wild wins

Unlike other slots where Wild wins play a key part in its play value, Wild symbols are not actually that prevalent in the Miss Red slot. Wins with them tend to be much rarer as a result.

Small jackpot

The biggest knock against the slot however is that the size of the wins available are not huge. A maximum base game and free spins jackpot of 150 coins isn’t going to have too many people rushing to play for the jackpot prize available and that is a shame because this is a slot that has so much to offer.

The scores

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Graphics & soundtrack 4/5

The Miss Red slot is well presented. It is a more mature version of the Little Red Riding Hood story and for the modern era it works well. The soundtrack is nicely done and the sound effects fit the game well. The animations too are also excellent, especially when the Expanding Wild symbols are hit.

Originality & creativity 5/5

I think there’s a lot to congratulate IGT here for this slot. The features it includes have all been seen on other slots but they have put them together in this slot very well indeed and added a twist to the general Red Riding Hood theme that provides players with a genuinely original experience.

Play value 3/5

Although most wins on the slot tend to be smaller in value, you are topped up relatively frequently with some better value wins. There are times when it plays tighter, but also you can earn some profitable payouts in some sessions too. The balance is good for slot players who want value for money on each spin.

Jackpot potential 2/5

This is where the Miss Red slot does let itself down a little. Though you can win cumulatively in Free Spins and with the help of multipliers, the initial jackpots available on paylines are only very small and will not attract many big jackpot hunters to give the game a try.

Repeat play 5/5

Despite the low jackpot prize this is most definitely a slot that will attract players and keep them fully engrossed on the action on screen. The different features make the slot a real treat to play and with decent play value, this is a game that will remain on your play list for a long time to come.

Total score: 19/25

Miss Red could have been a real mess, but instead IGT have turned out an excellent slot packed with innovative features. The jackpot size does let it down a little but if you want a great value slot that is fun to play and offers you more chances to win than the normal slot, then this is certainly one slot to try.