Wild Storm Legionnaire: Slot Overview

Self-service checkouts, self-service restaurant ordering, self-service petrol stations—one of the big differences between then and now is how much less human interaction there is, and it seems to keep shrinking over time. You could say something similar about warfare, or at least parts of it. Today, someone sitting in a dim room can steer a drone with a joystick and take out entire platoons from thousands of kilometres away; in earlier times, you had to be right up close to an enemy to drive a sword or spear into them. Those face-to-face clashes might sound heroic in stories, but they must have been brutal to experience (not that modern war is any better). With a bit of imagination, players can act out that old-school close combat through Yggdrasil partner and software provider Boomerang‘s online slot Wild Storm Legionnaire.

Wild Storm Legionnaire’s battlefield is a dark, craggy ravine—exactly the kind of place poets might choose to set grand tales of legendary conflicts. The game info talks about blending Roman and Spartan army concepts, which is a touch puzzling, but if you’re fine with everything else Wild Storm Legionnaire brings, the army mash-up is probably the smallest concern.

Classed as a medium-high volatile slot, Wild Storm Legionnaire comes with a default RTP of 96%, though there are also two lower return settings in circulation. Play takes place on a 5-reel grid with a 3-4-3-4-3 symbols reel layout. Thanks to a ways system, this uneven setup offers 432 ways to win, and stakes range from 25 c to $/€125 per paid spin.

Wild Storm Legionnaire’s low pays are represented by four flags, then come a stone tablet, a ring, a helmet, a ship, and a warrior. Hitting a 5 OAK line with these symbols returns 1.2 to 10 times the bet. The lady legionnaire shown on the wild looks more like a Gucci model than a soldier, and wilds can land on reels 2 and 4. Wilds replace any symbol except Coins or Collects. With 1 wild included in a winning combo, it multiplies the win by 1; with 2 wilds in the same win, it multiplies the win by 4.

Wild Storm Legionnaire: Slot Features

Wild Storm Legionnaire offers two bonus mechanics: a free spins round and a Hold & Respin feature.

Free Spins

Triggering the bonus awards 8 free spins when 3 or more scatters appear. Scatters can land on every reel, and besides starting free spins, they also pay 1x, 5x, or 10x the bet for 3, 4, or 5 scatters respectively. In free spins, a Collect symbol stays locked in the middle position of the third reel. In addition, a wild reel can show up to cover all of reel 2 and/or reel 4. Free spins cannot be retriggered.

Hold & Respin Feature

The Hold & Respin feature starts by landing at least 1 Collect symbol together with at least 2 Coin symbols. At the start, players receive 3 respins. While the feature runs, only Coins and Collect symbols can appear. Each Coin value (ranging 0.4 to 25 times the bet) is collected by every Collect symbol on the grid. Coin symbols become held as they land, with all remaining spaces respinning; whenever a Coin or Collect lands, the respin counter resets to 3. Coin prizes are only paid when a Collect symbol appears. If the grid fills entirely with Coin symbols, the demo paytable shows a payout of 32.52x the bet, and the feature ends.

Wild Storm Legionnaire: Slot Verdict

First up, the payout for filling the screen with Coins in the Hold & Respin bonus genuinely raised a laugh. Seriously… 32.52x for stuffing the grid? Is that a joke, a mistake, or is it meant to be taken at face value? It’s such a strangely specific—and frankly small—number. It feels like a consolation prize for a consolation prize, a participation ribbon, or a kick in the nads. However you interpret it, it’s a tiny, amusing reward. You’d think filling the reels in Wild Storm Legionnaire’s Hold & Respins might happen more frequently than in a typical hold ’n win feature here, but even so… what’s the point? That said, it’s worth noting that partner Yggdrasil Gaming’s site lists the full grid prize as 888x, which sounds far more reasonable—so perhaps the demo wasn’t updated when this review was written?

Even so, what’s the reason to play Wild Storm Legionnaire at all? It doesn’t offer many other standout qualities, and there’s nothing here that would make serious players hunt it down. The only mildly interesting touch is the unaligned reels. Beyond that, there’s not much to grab onto. Wilds do increase payouts on wins they’re involved in, but it’s hardly a “storm,” and free spins include a locked Collect symbol—sure, fine. After seeing that modest full-grid Coin prize, it’s hard to imagine Wild Storm Legionnaire’s top-end potential being anything remarkable. And that’s reflected in the developer’s stated maximum win of 1,840 times the bet.

Then there’s the theme. Is it Roman legionnaire, is it Sparta, is it some kind of blend—what is it meant to be? It’s definitely war-themed, but like the rest of Wild Storm Legionnaire, it tosses ideas out that seem to miss almost every target they’re aimed at.