Sticky Bandits 3 Most Wanted: Slot Overview

Quickspin’s well-liked Sticky Bandit series turns into a three-part saga with the third entry, Sticky Bandits 3: Most Wanted. This release takes the franchise in a very different direction. There’s still plenty of sticky mayhem, but the huge symbols that dominated earlier games are gone. And rather than introducing a bold new idea to replace them, Quickspin leans heavily on one of the most famous Western slots ever made – NetEnt’s Dead or Alive.

Sticky Bandits 3: Most Wanted uses the smallest setup in the series so far, featuring 5 reels, 3 rows, and 9 fixed paylines. The setting stays outside, on the steps up to a bank in a windy, remote landscape framed by rocky cliffs. Of the three titles, this one feels the brightest and most upbeat, without the gunslinger edge or sense of threat found in the first two. That said, Sticky Bandits 3 does come with a strong soundtrack, complete with vocals.

In line with the payline count, you can choose stakes from 9 p/c to $/€90 per spin across devices. As a pure gambling machine, Sticky Bandits 3 is easily the most hard-hitting of the trio. The upside is huge thanks to its volatile profile, which Quickspin rates at 5 out of 5. The RTP is lower this time, coming in at 95.82%, although it increases to 96.25% when purchasing free spins.

At the lower end of the paytable are Western-styled 10-A card royals, with higher-paying scarves, liquor bottles, dynamite sticks, horseshoes, and bags of loot above them. Premium symbol wins pay between 22.22 to 111.11 times the stake for five of a kind. Above those sit the wilds, which pay 166.67 times the bet for a five-of-a-kind line and can also substitute for any paying symbol to complete combinations. Only one regular wild appears in the base game, while five show up during free spins.

Sticky Bandits 3 Most Wanted: Slot Features

Sticky Bandits 3 keeps things simple by delivering just a couple of features – a free spins round built around sticky wilds, plus a bonus buy. If you know Dead or Alive or the sequel’s Old Saloon Free Spins, Sticky Bandits 3 will feel very familiar. The action begins when 3, 4, or 5 scatter symbols land, awarding 12 free spins and a payout of 4x, 25x, or an enormous 2,500x the bet. After that, you head into the golden core of the bank vault and meet 5 gun-slinging femme fatales.

Each of the women is tied to her own reel and wild symbol. When wilds land, they become sticky and stay locked in position until the free spins round ends. If you manage to hit a wild on each of the 5 reels, you receive +5 extra free spins. On top of that, every win is multiplied by x2 throughout free spins.

One addition Sticky Bandits 3 brings that DoA didn’t is a feature buy option. For a relatively modest cost of 60 times the total stake, at least 3 scatter symbols will land on the next spin to activate the free spins feature. The RTP is higher here, as noted earlier, but the feature is still just as volatile, so proceed with caution.

Sticky Bandits 3 Most Wanted: Slot Verdict

There’s a certain irony in a slot about cracking a bank vault while borrowing so many ideas from elsewhere. Taken on its own, Sticky Bandits 3 offers sturdy Western-themed play. The free spins round is where it really delivers; the base game, by comparison, is far less engaging. Landing the bonus can also feel like work if you insist on triggering it naturally or can’t use the feature buy. Once you’re inside the vault, though, Sticky Bandits 3 can turn into a wild, rapid-fire rush that leaves you needing a moment to take it all in afterward.

That’s the upside. The less appealing part, for anyone who cares, is that Sticky Bandits 3 is essentially a Dead or Alive clone, though with a bigger top-end of 22,000x the bet available. Even the famous 5 scatter payout has been brought along for the ride. It’s always a little strange when studios imitate each other this openly, and whether NetEnt will respond with a showdown is something we’ll have to wait and see.

One clear divider between the two is the bonus buy, which will undoubtedly appeal to players who want a fast track to the main feature. It’s easy to picture this option being used heavily in Sticky Bandits 3. For one thing, the price is fairly sensible. With bonus rounds increasingly carrying price tags of 500x, 750x, or more, paying 60x feels like a steal. The other reason is how quickly the bonus can explode – land a few wilds in the right places, trigger +5 extra free spins, and suddenly you’re collecting on virtually every spin from that point forward. Of course, it won’t always break your way, but when it does, it can be spectacular.

Still, returning to the first two Sticky Bandit titles after this one makes Sticky Bandits 3: Most Wanted feel a bit disconnected. The oversized symbols that defined the earlier games are gone, and so is any real sense of innovation. Yes, it’s the most profitable of the three, but it doesn’t truly push the series forward. There’s no question Sticky Bandits 3 is an enjoyable, highly playable slot with excellent win potential, though that’s not surprising when it follows such an iconic blueprint.

All told, if you want a bonus buy take on the original Dead or Alive, Sticky Bandits 3 is a strong fix. It doesn’t outgun the biggest names in the Western slot space (Dead or Alive 2, Deadwood, etc.), but it definitely lands some solid hits during free spins.