Extreme Megaways: Slot Overview

Blast off into space with Extreme Megaways, a slot that borrows ideas from a couple of earlier Stakelogic titles while also showing hints of inspiration from outside studios. The first Extreme game launched in 2016, making it one of Stakelogic’s early releases from before the studio became widely recognised. Along with continuing the original’s Starburst-style feel, a large part of Extreme Megaways is clearly derived from Stakelogic’s Black Gold Megaways series. It may sound like a mixed bag, but it could still come together—so let’s see what it offers.

Simple, no-frills, and very traditional—Extreme Megaways’ visuals can be described in a few different ways depending on what you expect. To be kind, “classic” fits: a static night-sky backdrop sits behind a straightforward grid framed in purple (or gold). As in Black Gold 1 or 2, gameplay is divided across three reel sets. The bottom set is the main grid with 6 reels, each showing between 2 to 7 symbols. Combined with the middle horizontal 4 symbol reel, this creates up to 117,649 ways to win. The top reel is reserved for bonus feature symbols, which occasionally drop in to add a modifier to the action. A gentle, ambient space soundtrack rounds things out, making Extreme Megaways easy on the ears—though it won’t exactly get your heart racing unless the reels decide to do something special.

Beyond the expanding reels, Extreme’s underlying math has been heavily reworked compared to the 2016 original. Volatility is one of the biggest shifts, moving up from the first game’s low setting to high volatility in the Megaways edition. The win potential has also been boosted, although the default RTP has been reduced and now sits at 95.6%. By now, many players will recognise Super Stake as a Stakelogic trademark: it increases the bet by 100% and adds more scatters symbols on the reels to improve the chances of activating free spins. Standard wagers run from 20 p/c to $/€40 per spin, and the slot is available to play on any device.

The symbol set has been updated since Extreme, with the old low-paying globes swapped out for six gems. After the gems come familiar classics—cherries, Bars, bells, and 7s as the top-value icons. The 7s pay when two appear; all other symbols require at least three landing next to each other starting from the leftmost reel. Finally, Extreme Megaways features a Starburst-inspired wild, which helps form wins by substituting for any paying symbol.

Extreme Megaways: Slot Features

Extreme Megaways packs in plenty to do, including cascades, five bonus features, a gamble option, and free spins powered by a progressive multiplier. Cascades activate after every win, clearing the winning symbols from the reels so new ones can drop into place. This can produce multiple wins from a single spin, and it only stops once no further winning combinations appear.

In addition, after a win sequence, players can choose to gamble their winnings. By correctly predicting the colour or suit of a face-down card, you can double or quadruple the payout. If you find this option bothersome, it can be switched off so it won’t appear again.

That brings us back to the Bonus Reel positioned above the main grid. Most spins show empty spaces there, but from time to time it will reveal a feature. There are 5 in total, and when one triggers, it affects the current spin:

• Random wilds – a random number of wild symbols are added on reels 2-6.
• Multiplier wilds – 2 multiplier wilds are added to reels 2-5.
• Destroyer – all symbols on the reels are removed following the cascade sequence.
• Mystery – mystery symbols are added to reels 1-6, converting to the same pay symbol type.
• Dropping wilds – one reel between 2-5 is filled with dropping wilds. If there is no win, the wilds go one position down, and a respin awarded. If a win occurs, the wild reel goes down one position.

After that comes the free spins round, which starts when 4, 5, or 6 scatter symbols appear to award 5, 7, or 10 free spins respectively. Before the bonus begins, you can spin a wheel to gamble for more free spins—up to 14—or risk losing them all. If you’d rather skip the gamble, you can simply take the awarded spins and enter the feature immediately.

While free spins are running, a win multiplier is applied, beginning at x2 and increasing by one after each win. On top of that, the upper bonus reel displays a bonus feature on every single free spin. Finally, the round can be extended by landing 4 scatters, which grants +5 extra spins. Each additional scatter beyond four in view awards +5 more spins.

Extreme Megaways: Slot Verdict

Unless you’re specifically after a Starbursty Megaways-style slot or you’re totally sold on the Slinky Planet soundtrack, there’s little here that makes Extreme Megaways a stronger pick than either of the Black Gold Megaways games. The main issue is that Extreme Megaways looks very plain and often plays in a way that feels a bit lifeless. It has the numbers and the feature set to create excitement, but it doesn’t pull you in the way the Black Gold Megaways slots managed to.

From a gameplay perspective, it’s difficult to point to any huge flaws in Extreme Megaways. One sticking point is the small number of free spins you’ll typically win. Yes, you can gamble using the Avatar UX-style wheel, but there’s a genuine chance you’ll end up losing them entirely. Both Black Gold games began with 12 free spins for four scatters—or 6 if you wanted to start with an x10 multiplier. Extreme Megaways does guarantee bonus features on every free spin, so it’s up to players to decide whether that trade-off makes the lower starting count worthwhile.

After spending some time with Extreme Megaways, the features started to feel less fun than those in the Black Gold titles, largely because the audio-visual presentation doesn’t give them much punch. People say looks aren’t everything, and visuals aren’t the only thing that matters in games, but the weaker production values do take away from the overall enjoyment of Extreme Megaways. That said, Stakelogic has proven they can deliver “classic” Megaways slots and now have plenty of them in their catalogue, so the intended audience may still warm to Extreme Megaways. It could also suit players who want a more modern take on a Starburst-like experience but don’t feel like pushing things to the limit with Starburst XXXtreme.