Plinko (Hacksaw Gaming) Slot Demo & Review

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Plinko Hacksaw Gaming Slot
Provider Hacksaw Gaming
Reels0
Rows0
Bonus Rounds0
Bet Range0.10 - 100
VolatilityLow, Medium, High
Max Win3,843x
Bonus BuyNo
RTP98.98%
Our Rating7.3

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Game Overview

I previously reviewed another ‘Plinko’ game by a different developer and didn’t realise at the time that it’s actually its own genre! In fact, I distinctly remember writing that I thought it was nothing more than a clone of the ‘Pachinko’ mechanical games that are enormously popular in Japan. It turns out that I had this backwards – Pachinko is a much more developed version of the original Plinko concept, which, in turn, forms the basis of the subject of this review – Hacksaw’s Plinko casino game. I use the term ‘casino game’ as this really isn’t any type of video slot – that’s not necessarily a bad thing, however, as Plinko offers an attractive RTP of 98.98% and a top prize of 3,843.3x the total stake.

In terms of features, this version of Plinko doesn’t add a great deal to the established formula – the aim of the game is still to drop balls from the top of the screen, through a pyramid-shaped array of pegs, and into the multiplier pockets located below. However, hacksaw has included a few options that allow you to control the risk-to-reward ratio of each round – increasing the number of rows in the pyramid will increase the amount that can be won during a game but also makes it more difficult to reach those new higher prizes.

If you have fond memories of dropping coins into a penny pusher at the seaside arcades when you were younger, this game is likely to be a source of fantastic nostalgia for you! If that sounds good, be sure to check out our free demo of Plinko – available to play below:

Plinko Theme, Stakes, Pays & Symbols

Hacksaw Gaming's Plinko
Hacksaw Gaming’s Plinko

You may not think that there is a great deal of mileage in the idea of a Plinko-based online casino game, but the software houses that create these games have different ideas! Aside from the handful of traditional Plinko-based games that you can find on the web, some developers have chosen to incorporate the concept into their standard slot machines as well. The most obvious example of this is probably Print Studios Pine of Plinko, a reasonably fun Dream Drop Jackpot video slot that we rated 7/10 when we reviewed the game in late 2022. I’m surprised that we have not yet seen any Pachinko-based casino games, to be honest – I have no doubt that such games already exist at Asian online casino sites.

The big question is, how much can you win by playing Plinko? Configuring the game at its lowest risk setting with the minimum number of rows (eight) will give you nine pockets with prizes ranging between 0.9x and 5.6x. You can then change the risk setting to its medium level, resulting in pockets valued at 0.7x and 13.4x each, or go all the way to high risk for the widest possible range of 0.4x to 28.7x. That’s still not particularly exciting, of course, so how do we truly win big? For that, you’ll need to increase the number of rows in the pegboard which the balls drop through. At medium risk, a ten-row pyramid gives you pockets ranging between 0.7x and 43.1x, whilst twelve rows increase the upper bound to 150.4x and fourteen rows to 479.7x. Finally, if you’re feeling extremely lucky, a sixteen-row pyramid boosts the top prize even further – 1718.7x at medium risk or the 3843.3x jackpot at high risk.

This type of game permits you to make bets exceptionally quickly, as nothing prevents you from having numerous balls in play at any time. As such, you should apply caution when deciding how much you want to bet when playing Plinko! The minimum/maximum permitted wagers in this version of the game are set at €0.10 and €100.00 per ball, respectively.

Base Game & Modifiers

Plinko Gameplay
Plinko Gameplay

Plinko does not function like a traditional video slot – the game does not utilise reels, so there’s no need for pay ines or payways. Instead, the aim of this game is to drop balls into a series of multiplier pockets by traversing a pyramid of pegs. When the ball bounces off of a peg, it will randomly drop to either the left or right – this makes the multipliers in the middle of the screen much easier to reach, with those positioned on the far-left and far-right holding the most valuable prizes. Two settings are available with which to control the value and positioning of the prize pockets.

Number Of Rows

The default pyramid has eight rows for a total of nine prize pockets at the bottom of the screen. You can increase the size of the pyramid to 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, or 16 rows, which will also increase the corresponding number of pockets. At least three pockets in the middle of the pyramid will always pay less than your total stake.

Risk

There are three risk settings – low, medium, and high. Changing this setting will not affect the number of pockets but does change their value – higher risk makes the middle pockets less valuable and the outer ones more valuable, and vice-versa.

Plinko Bonus Features

There are no bonus round or special features included in Plinko, I’m afraid!

Pros

  • More settings and special features than other versions of Plinko.
  • A very high RTP of almost 99% makes this game more generous than any traditional video slot.

Cons

  • The basic presentation falls short of what I’ve come to expect from Hacksaw.
  • Once you’ve seen the base game, you’ve seen everything there is to see.

Plink Review Final Thoughts

I was excited to hear that Hacksaw was to release a Plinko-themed game, as I felt sure that this developer would do a much better job than those who have tried their hand at this genre in the past. Whilst this variant of Plinko is a little more configurable than those I have reviewed previously, it’s still only suitable for small bursts of play during longer sessions.

7.3

Good

Author Bio

Chris Howlett

Article by Chris Howlett

11 Years Slots Playing Experience

About Chris Howlett

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