Pilgrim of Dead: Slot Overview

It’s no secret that the market is packed with ‘book of’ slots, and there’s also a sizeable crowd of ‘of Dead’ titles too. Most of them have rolled out of the Play’n GO factory, with Book of Dead arguably the most famous and widely loved. Here’s another entry for that ever-growing roster: Pilgrim of Dead. Like many relatives in the genre, Pilgrim of Dead follows a familiar framework, but adds a couple of small adjustments to give players something slightly fresh. In this case, the standout is a free spins round where a randomly selected symbol expands and pays from anywhere, paired with an unusual sticky mechanic.

Some people look to cryonics as a route to a future return, but for the Ancient Egyptians, death was simply a brief stop on an endless journey. To them, when the body ended, it wasn’t the finish line—it was the start of the next stage of a person’s passage into immortality. There’s something comforting in that outlook, and the civilization behind it also produced some of the most memorable art, architecture, and writing ever created. That influence seeps into Pilgrim of Dead, delivering a weighty mood—less oppressive than Hand of Anubis, yet still dense with a Pharaonic/temple/tomb feel. Visually, it also keeps clear ties to Book of Dead, so anyone who enjoys Play’n GO’s ‘book of’ look and vibe should settle in quickly.

Another connection is the overall format, since Pilgrim of Dead runs on a 5-reel layout with 3 symbols per reel and 10 fixed paylines. Expect a highly volatile ride, with a maximum theoretical return to player topping out at 96%. In classic Play’n GO fashion, the game leans heavily on coins to display many values—either charmingly retro or mildly irritating, depending on taste. As a result, players choose coin value and coin count for staking, with cash bets ranging from 10 p/c to $/€100 per spin.

Across the 10 paylines, wins are created when at least two premium symbols or three low pays land left to right starting from the first reel. For five-of-a-kind line hits, payouts come in at 4 to 6 times the bet for the 10-A card ranks, or 12.5 to 100 times the stake for the scarab, scales, Anubis statue, or Pharaoh symbols. Those figures are a little restrained compared to some, though the sticky expanding behavior in free spins helps balance things out.

Pilgrim of Dead: Slot Features

Pilgrim of Dead doesn’t use a book as its wild/scatter symbol (the book was removed from Book of Dead, likely for legal reasons), opting for a tomb instead. The tomb symbol can appear anywhere and substitutes for all paying symbols to help form winning lines – excluding expanding symbols. It also has its own payout, matching the value of the Pharaoh top premium. When 3 or more tomb scatters land, players receive 5 free spins.

The bonus begins with a pay symbol randomly being selected to be the special expanding symbol. Once it’s shown, players can reject it, and a different one will be chosen at random. Players must accept the second symbol; it cannot be rejected.

During free spins, if the selected symbol lands on at least two reels when it’s a high pay, or three reels when it’s a low pay, it expands to cover all positions on its reel. This happens after any standard line wins have already been paid. Expanded symbols award wins on all lines from any position. The twist is that the first selected symbol to land on each reel becomes sticky. After expanding and paying, it shrinks back to 1×1 and is locked in position until the round ends, meaning it can help produce another win on the next spin. If 3 tomb scatters land, additional spins are awarded, up to 30 at the most.

Pilgrim of Dead: Slot Verdict

If any studio has proven it can deliver a ‘book of’ style slot with a new angle, it’s Play’n GO. They’ve already built up a sizeable collection of them, and there’s no sign they’re slowing down. For players who enjoy this format, that’s good news, because Play’n GO generally executes it very well. Pilgrim of Dead shows why: it looks great, it comes from a strong lineage of earlier releases, and—most importantly—the added twist works.

That said, there’s a bit of give-and-take here that won’t appeal to everyone. Triggering free spins can be punishing, and to stop the sticky symbols from becoming too explosive in the bonus, Play’n GO has toned down symbol payouts and slashed the number of free spins you get at the start. The result is a tighter, more urgent-feeling feature, where the pressure is on to lock in as many sticky expanders as possible before the spins are gone. Retriggers are still technically on the table, of course. The option to reject the first chosen symbol can be either helpful or painful depending on what comes next—fantastic when it improves, but pretty funny when you turn down the King and end up with the Queen instead, as happened during one of the earlier triggers.

On the flip side, when Pilgrim of Dead gets into a rhythm—sticky symbols set, expansions landing, and wins rolling in spin after spin—it can be seriously entertaining. Taken as a whole, it’s another enjoyable Play’n GO ‘book of’ style slot. Pilgrim of Dead may be different enough to put some fans off while drawing others in, but it’s definitely worth a look if this type of gameplay is your thing.