Big Catch Craze: Slot Overview

It’s a little surprising for a modern studio, but software provider AvatarUX hadn’t released a proper fishing slot until now. There was ReefPop in 2023, though that leaned more toward reef life than hauling fish from the water. Shippy D Pop (2024) and Depths of Fortune (2024) don’t really qualify as dedicated fishing slots either. The team may have been pumping out Pop titles at a rapid pace, yet a true angling game was still missing from the lineup. That changes with Big Catch Craze, which, as expected for the genre, has you snagging fish money symbols from the reels.

If nothing else, Big Catch Craze feels like a full-on tribute to the outdoors. AvatarUX chose a more realistic look instead of a cartoon style, setting the action on a lake or river somewhere akin to Canada—autumn-orange trees along the shoreline with sharp, snow-capped mountains in the distance. Judging by the vibe here, fishing is less about the catch and more about escaping everything to unwind in nature, recharging body and mind after the grind of city life. The calm-looking guy in the boat beside the grid certainly seems to be enjoying the moment.

Big Catch Craze runs on a see-through 5×4 reelset, using 20 paylines to calculate wins. The theoretical RTP is a very exact 95.991%, driven by a highly volatile math model. Bets range broadly from 10 c to $/€300, and players can also switch on the ante bet at 1.5x the stake to triple the chance of triggering free spins.

Low-value symbols are Jack to Ace card ranks set against a moody monochrome backdrop, while the premium icons are fishing-themed items like a rod, a lure, a box, a basket of gear, and a fish. The top fish symbol also serves as the money symbol for the collection mechanic. A 5-of-a-kind line of royals returns 1 to 4 times the bet, while 5 matching high pays deliver 6 to 10 times the bet.

Big Catch Craze: Slot Features

Prepare to hook some digital catches thanks to the Fisherman’s Net feature, sticky fish respins, free spins, and bonus buys.

The Fisherman’s Net

In the base game, the Fisherman can randomly cast his net on any spin in an attempt to scoop up fish money symbols. In the bonus game, the net can be upgraded, allowing the Fisherman to throw it more frequently. In the base game, cash-value fish symbols can land and potentially be collected by the Fisherman’s Net. During the bonus game, multiplier fish may also appear, boosting the total cash value of fish gathered in the net.

Sticky Fish Respins

When 5 or more fish symbols show on the reels, the sticky fish respins feature activates. Each respin pays any line wins, and every newly landed fish awards a new respin. The Fisherman’s Net can also trigger while this mode is in progress. In this feature, all fish that land become sticky, but they are removed if they get caught in the net.

Free Spins

Hitting 3+ scatter symbols launches the free spins bonus. Any new scatter symbol that lands during the feature increases the net’s size and grants +1 free spin. A tracker in the top-left corner shows the available net size stages. Once the final stage is reached, the net will cover the entire grid.

Xpress

The Xpress section lets players switch on different bonus options. For 10x the bet, players can ensure a net throw on every spin, while sticky respins require 25x to enable. Buying 7 free spins costs 75x, and the price climbs to 500x for 12 free spins.

Big Catch Craze: Slot Verdict

Claiming there are loads of fish slots these days is about as obvious as saying the sky is blue. Many of them hinge on a pretend fishing-style mechanic that gathers fish symbols from the reels. In Big Catch Craze, that role is filled by the Fisherman’s Net, which is similar in spirit to a Fisherman symbol collecting money icons—yet with one key twist. The net comes in different sizes, so it won’t necessarily pick up every fish symbol you can see. In fact, there’s no certainty it will grab any at all. It’s a different take, though whether it’s actually better than the usual “collect everything” Fisherman approach is open to debate.

That said, the Fisherman’s Net can appear in the base game, and sticky fish respins are also available there, meaning you don’t have to wait for free spins to start interacting with money symbols. On top of that, multiplier fish can swim in alongside the standard cash fish. Altogether, there’s enough variety here to tempt fish slot fans to pause their Big Basses or Fishin’ Frenzies and give this one a try. The 10,000x win cap is another point in its favor.

Is Big Catch Craze strong enough to bump the two giants of the fishing genre down a rung? Probably not, in all honesty. Not because it’s a poor slot, but while the scenery is very much “chicken soup for the soul,” the gameplay and mechanics may feel like they’re missing that familiar spark.