Hot Hand

Hot Hand. Despite reviewing many slots, we found that direct sequels are not nearly as common as in other industries. Movies, video games and TV shows can go into six or seven installments, milking the franchise for all its worth.

The iGaming business prefers tie-ins or spiritual successors – releases that follow the core mechanics, but offer a different theme. And while we do not have any actual proof, we are certain this slot is a throw-back to a previous Rival game!

The symbols are somewhat bland and uninspired. Some of it is down to personal preference, but many of these are very generic. Playing card suites, fruits, bells, diamonds and lucky seven have been added to every slot since the dawn of time.

On top of lackluster design, there are also animations with a question quality. A big win, for example, will create a succubus to clap excitedly for your success. And each time we saw it, we felt underwhelmed.

Finally, the background image could definitely use a better look. We get what the developers were trying to do, but it just does not work that well. Completely static, with pink being the dominant color, occasionally interrupting by a flash of red flames? It makes this game look much older than it really is.

The layout can seem somewhat intimidated at first glance, but is easy to use after the initial hurdle. It may take you a little while to figure how coins, coin sizes and active paylines all come into play.

Rival’s Gaming themselves have not revealed the volatility of Hot Hand. However, after testing it, we would place it into the high variance category. You have fantastic initial jackpots, and multiplier Wilds to further enhance any satisfying wins!

The Reels are Lit

The slot is played on a 3×3 board with 5 flexible paylines. This allows players to turn some or all paylines on or off to lower their minimum wager. However, doing so lowers your chances of forming winning combination. Because of that, we do not recommend turning off any paylines unless you have no other choice.

The RTP for Hot Hand is 94.78%, which is below the current industry average. Considering that most games nowadays launch with 96% or more, we cannot recommend this Rival Gaming release. The jackpot isn’t enticing enough to play with such a high house edge.

We did not miss having to deal with coin value and coin sizes in order to change your total bet. Seeing as most slots nowadays are made for the digital market, it is nothing but a relic of a by-gone era. Still, by changing these two values, and the number of active paylines, you can set your wager between $0.01 up to $75 per spin.

The good news is that the developers have implemented an Autoplay mode. The bad news is that you will not be able to make use of it if you try a demo version. In an effort to entice gamblers to spend real cash, Rival Gaming locked the options for Autoplay behind real money play. While they are within their rights to do so, it still feels very scummy.

Collect three identical icons from left to right in adjacent positions from left to land a winning combination. Said win has to follow one of the currently active paylines, or it does not count.

The highest paying symbol are the Wilds, coming in at 4500 coins for a three-of-a-kind win. They are followed by the succubus, then lucky sevens, diamonds, silver bells, cherries, card diamonds, spades and hearts. The least valuable icon are the clubs, awarding 6 coins per each three-of-a-kind win.

A Hot-Handed Affair!

Each time the Wild appears, it comes with a multiplier attached. A 2x Wild can only appear on the first reel, a 3x Wild on the second, and a 4x Wild on the third reel. The multipliers apply to all symbols, except for other Wilds.

In many ways, Hot hand evokes its predecessor, Almighty Dollar. They both offer the same layout, similar gameplay, and share certain characteristics. That said, they obviously have different special features and prizes. If you enjoyed the previous slot and want some more, this is a great starting point. Just mind that high volatility.