Game of the Week – Reel Hero

The 80s called and they want their Sci-Fi pokies back. Reel Hero is the latest 5-Reel pokie from Wazdan. Fans of 80s sci-fi will love this game for its retro look, including a soundtrack that screams 80s.

The game has multiple bonus features and the option to select your own volatility. Learn more about the features of this game and my overall recommendation.

Reel Hero an 80’s Retro Pokie With Fun Layout

When I saw the listing for this game, I knew I had to try it out. The game screams 80s sci-fi and it doesn’t disappoint in that regard. It has a retro design that looks like a mix between Tron and The Last Starfighter.

The symbols are also classic 80s with Royals, bells, 7s, stars, and diamonds serving as the primary symbols. Heroes also are symbols, but they are non-paying. The Wild symbols looks almost like a classic Viacom symbol. It substitutes for any symbol except for the scatter and pays on three or more.

Symbols on this game are low paying across the board. Unless you get five of a kind on medium or high paying symbols, you will need to hit multiple lines to turn a profit on a spin.

This game also features numerous bonus features to help you win more. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Hero Bonuses

There are four heroes in this game. During spins, the symbols of these heroes will land on the board and add 1 to the appropriate hero counter. Collect five symbols of the same hero and unlock the bonus feature for that hero. Here are the different bonuses you can unlock:

Rich Bonus – When at least one Wild lands on a reel, it will expand to cover the entire reel. The Wild will then lock and you’ll get a re-spin.

Victoria Bonus – After landing a winning combination, the winning symbols lock and move one to the right. New symbols are then drawn on the first reel.

Altiera Bonus – When a non-winning combination lands, 4 to 6 Wilds will overlay random symbols to try and create a winning combo.

Jax Bonus – After a winning combo, the winning symbols are removed and the other symbols cascade to try and make new winning combos.

When these bonuses trigger, they are good for five spins. However, they may not trigger in five consecutive spins. For example, we triggered the Altiera Bonus and it took about 8 spins to use up the feature. Five of the spins she added Wilds to the board and the other three she did not.

Over time, we were able to trigger all five bonuses. You can also trigger multiple bonuses at the same time. At one point, I had triggered three heroes but only two played at once. Once one of the heroes used up their five spins, the other stepped in.

Free Spins Bonus

A symbol showing all four heroes is the scatter for this game. Get three or more scatters and you’ll trigger the free spins game. At the start of the free spins game, two heroes will be selected at random and they will help boost your wins. Also if you draw a +3FS symbol, you’ll get three extra spins.

It took a long while to trigger the free spins game, but I was able to then trigger it twice in a short time. The addition of the heroes really helps to give you a big win. In fact, the two wins helped me recover a large chunk of losses to that point.

Pick Your Volatility

One interesting feature of this game is the ability to select your volatility. You can choose Low, Standard, or High Volatility. The game defaults to Standard and you can click a button that looks like a radio wave to change it.

I ended up moving to Low volatility because standard was playing way too tight. I’d recommend starting on Low unless you don’t mind huge swings in your bankroll.

Reel Hero a Fun Game But Be Prepared to Spend a Lot of Money

Reel Hero is a fun retro pokie with a ton of cool bonus features. However, I found that the game plays a lot tighter than it’s RTP of 96.22% would indicate. At one point, I found myself down over 200 bets. Hitting multiple heroes and free spins rounds helped to recoup most of the losses, but I still finished down about 80 bets. And the majority of play was on low volatility.

The game is definitely a lot of fun and a bit addicting, but be prepared to spend some money. I’d recommend trying it at the .20 per spin level for those wanting to clear online casino bonuses.

Reel Hero is available at Joka Room, Woo Casino, and all Australian Online Casinos offering Wazdan games. It is definitely worth checking out if you’re into fun retro pokies. If you don’t like a lot of fluctuations in your bankroll, you will want to try a different game.