The Great Icescape slot by PG Soft review

The Great Icescape slot from PG Soft is an arctic thrill game that takes you on a frosty adventure. It packs a 96.33% RTP, a 5x5 layout and up to 3125 bet ways. Crack the ice blocks with winning combos and watch your payouts explode up to 50,000x. With the bonus features and a little luck, the playfield can expand into a playground of possibilities. Look out for respins and bonus multipliers to boost your potential payouts. Enjoy this with reasonable bets of $0.25 to $75 per spin. This comprehensive review examines the game while recommending top The Great Icescape online casinos.

The Great Icescape slot: General info

PG Soft’s The Great Icescape slot was released in 2019 and is ready to roll on both mobile and desktop gaming consoles. You win by matching symbols from the leftmost reel. Land matching symbols on at least 3 adjacent reels from left to right, and you win. Theme-wise, it’s all in the name. The game is set in hoar frost, with cartoon-style animations as smooth as silk. Controls are slick and easy to spot at the bottom. The reels are perched over an icy wasteland, with frozen blocks packed in the background. The soundtrack is a perfect mix of charm and suspense, cranking up the excitement with every spin.

The characters (penguins) are trapped in icy prison cells. Break all blocks and win yourself bonus respins. As one of the best PG Soft slots, this game packs some serious heat with respins, expanding reels and multipliers that’ll increase the payout potential. But before we get down to the typical features and functions, players who want to test the waters can dive into The Great Icescape’s free play at our listed online casinos. See how easily you can break the ice blocks and trigger bonus respins without risking a dime. Once you’ve got the hang of it, sign up, load your bankroll with Bitcoin or fiat currencies, and let the real action begin.

Reels and bet ways

The Great Icescape kicks off with a 1-3-5-3-1 grid, dishing out 45 bet ways. There are 12 ice blocks to crush and transform it into a 5×5 grid. This will give you up to 3125 ways to win. Land a winning combo, and you’ll destroy as many blocks as the number of symbols making up the win. This expands the grid, and together with the respin that comes after every win, it boosts your chances for a bigger payout. But one non-winning spin before you clear all 12 blocks resets all your progress.

Bet sizes in The Great Icescape

PG Soft often allows online casinos to set their stake limits. While some will allow you to play The Great Icescape for real money with up to $225, others will cap it at $75. But for this review, we’ll use $0.25 as the minimum bet and $75 as the max per spin.

RTP and maximum win

Getting down to the nitty-gritty, The Great Icescape slot has an RTP of 96.33%. That’s slightly above the industry average of 95-96%. It’s a medium-volatility game, meaning you can expect frequent small wins and a fair shot at bagging a sizable payout in between. 

The game is advertising a 50,000x max win potential. Going by the max bet of $75, that’s $3,750,000. Sounds sweet, but hold your horses. Online casinos have their caps, often way lower than this amount. Also, realistic trials put the highest multiplier at 7963x, based on a billion simulated spins.

Normal symbols and payouts

The Great Icescape slot comes with ten regular symbols, some paying more than others. Align matching symbols on 3, 4 or 5 adjacent reels (starting from the leftmost), and it is payday. Here’s the lowdown on the maximum each symbol pays out (when it appears on all the 5 reels):

1. Penguin: 500x ($1500)
2. Seal: 300x ($900)
3. Squid: 250x ($750)
4. Fish: 200x ($600)
5. A: 50x ($150)
6. K: 40x ($120)
7. Q: 35x ($105)
8. J: 30x ($90)
9. 10: 25x ($75)
10. 9: 20x ($60)

Bonus symbols and payouts

The Great Icescape might not have wilds or scatters, but it has bonus symbols to match. During Bonus Respins, you can trigger Blue symbols (those with blue backgrounds) or Purple symbols (purple background). Land 10 Blue symbols on the reels and increase the available multiplier by 1. If you land 10 Purple symbols, you get an extra life. This little lifesaver keeps your respins rolling even when Lady Luck takes a break.

Bonus features in The Great Icescape

The Great Icescape also comes with bonus features, and this section reviews them all. To boost the initial 45 win ways to 3125, you need to remove the blocks in this video slot. To do that, nail a winning combo; each winning symbol shatters one ice block.

Respins after every win

After busting the blocks and expanding your playground, you get a free respin with the same bet amount. Keep the wins coming, and you’ll keep smashing blocks until none is left. But if you fail to land a win, the blocks will be back. You’ll need to start back from square one with 45 win ways.

Respin bonus

Demolish all 12 ice blocks to activate the Bonus Respin feature on a full 5×5 grid. You start with an x2 multiplier and 1 extra life (think of it as a free spin). Every win in the bonus game is multiplied by the current multiplier. 

The bonus symbols also come into play. Land a win with 10 blue symbols, and your multiplier jumps by x1. The purple symbols are your lifeline. Fill the purple metre with 10 symbols, and you score an extra life. Every win (regardless of the number of winning symbols) in the bonus game gives you another Bonus Respin. The party’s over when you run dry on extra lives.

Play The Great Icescape slot for free in demo mode

Conclusion

The Great Icescape is one of the best PG Soft slots for several reasons. First, the game has an industry-standard RTP of 96.33% and medium volatility. Second, it presents up to 3125 ways to win, so you know it means business. Crack the ice blocks, and you could bag a significant 50,000x win. And after every win, you’re looking at one free respin. The icing on the cake is the Bonus Respin feature. Clear all 12 blocks, and the 5×5 grid opens up, presenting up to 3125 winning ways. You also get a x2 multiplier and an extra life on top. Stack 10 blue or purple symbols for more multipliers and extra lives to keep the bonus game going. All these make The Great Icescape slot a game worth trying.