Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel

Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel: Slot Overview

The famous children's story The Three Little Pigs is a classic tale of putting in hard work first, then enjoying the fruits of your labour after, rather than slacking off from the get-go. The story has offered sound advice for youngsters (as well as not-so-youngsters) for years and has served software provider Quickspin well in other ways, too. The Swedish casino games designer first garnered success with Big Bad Wolf in the early/mid-2010s, followed by Big Bad Wolf Christmas Special about eight years later, Big Bad Wolf Megaways after that, and a Big Bad Wolf Live edition. Proving there's more to huff 'n' puff to blow out of the tale comes the next instalment - Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel.

If you're going to build something that lasts, steel is a pretty smart material to use. Without steel, we wouldn't have skyscrapers all over the place, which, when you think about it, might not be so bad, in some ways. The world would probably look a lot closer to the scene players are presented with in Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel. Here, the pig vs wolf showdown occurs in a green scene of rolling hills, an old-fashioned windmill, and quaint cottages dotted about the place. It's not the exact same view as in previous Big Bad Wolf games, but the atmosphere is the same: picturesque, peaceful, and… porky.

Set within a structure made of straw is Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel's gaming grid, constructed of 5 reels, each holding 3 rows, and crossed by 25 paylines, awarding wins left to right from the first reel onwards. Available in four RTP models, the default return value is 96.14%, and at all return levels, the volatility is high (5 out of 5), while bets of 20 p/c to $/€100 per spin may be locked in.

The three little piggies of the tale are used as the 3 high-paying symbols. After them are an axe and a trowel as the mids, then 10 to A card ranks as the lows. Hitting a 5 OAK winning line triggers a payout of 1 to 2 times the bet for the royals, 5 times the bet for the mids, and 15 to 25 times the bet for the highs. Wilds appear on all five reels, and Piggy Wilds can appear through one of the features, as we will see. Wilds of all kinds substitute any normal pay symbols, and 5 of the regular wilds pay 40x the bet, while wild versions of the pig symbols have the same value as their non-wild counterpart.

Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel: Slot Features

Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel's features are a mix of old and new, quite a lot of new, too. Here's how this one works.

Tumbling Reels

The Tumbling Reels mechanic removes winning symbols from the reels when they have formed winning combinations. Symbols tumble top to bottom, creating another chance to win. Tumble sessions end when no new win hits.

Piggy Wild

After tumble 2, 4, and 6 in a sequence, the red, green, and blue piggy pay symbols, respectively, become Piggy Wilds.

Pigs of Steel

Pig symbols receive protection when tumbles create wins and are removed. After 3 piggy symbols have been removed, protection level 1 is achieved, and after 6 piggy symbols have been removed, protection level 2 is achieved. Protected symbols lose a level of protection during a tumble instead of being removed from the board. A symbol is no longer protected when it loses all of its levels of protection.

Bonus Games

Landing 3, 4, or 5 scatter symbols awards 10 free spins in the Bonus Game, Super Bonus Game, or Ultra Bonus Game, respectively. Each bonus round has a win multiplier, starting on x1, x2, or x3, respectively, for the Bonus Game, Super Bonus Game, or Ultra Bounce Game. Scatters only appear in the base game. In all 3 bonus rounds, collecting Moon symbols triggers a reward. Collecting 3 Moon symbols awards +2 free spins and doubles the win multiplier, while collecting 6 Moon symbols awards +2 free spins and doubles the win multiplier again. In the Bonus Game, the Pigs of Steel and Piggy Wild meters reset between spins. In the Super Bonus Game, the Pigs of Steel meter does not reset between spins, but the Piggy Wild meter does, and in the Ultra Bonus Game, the Pigs of Steel and Piggy Wild meters do not reset between spins.

Buy Feature

By paying 60 times the bet, players can buy 3+ scatter symbols to trigger the feature (96.41%) or 240x the bet to buy 4+ scatter symbols to trigger the feature (RTP 96.78%).

Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel: Slot Verdict

Big Bad Wolf is a fine example of a sequel that mixes just the right amount of old and new. Doing so both honours its elders and caters to fans of earlier games while also being a follow-up which doesn't feel forced, pointless, or overshadowed by the past. The series has undergone graphical changes as the slots have progressed, but it's the evolution of the gameplay that really sticks out, and Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel is one of the most playable of the lot. Some may find it the most playable.

For starters, the game has a great flow to it, with action popping from numerous directions - tumbles, Piggy Wild transformations, and the protected symbols element. On their own, they function well enough to keep the base game busy, wins ticking over, and engagement levels buoyant. Then you've got the three bonus rounds, each higher tier round that bit better than the lower ones. The only sort of furrowed brow moment was realising it was not possible to guarantee buying the Ultra Bonus Game or being able to upgrade to it from the Super Bonus Game. If you don't get 5 scatters to trigger the feature organically or get lucky with a bonus buy, it might be pretty elusive, like catching flies with chopsticks. Never mind, all three bonus rounds are capable of huffin' n' puffin' moments, and Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel's max win of 18,081 times the bet is worth brushing up on construction skills for.

Considering how popular Big Bad Wolf became, it is surprising how long it took Quickspin to come up with another one. The studio is certainly making up for lost time now, though, but the good news is Big Bad Wolf: Pigs of Steel is a highly playable game that evolves the series while also catering to fans of past work.