Christmas Slots 2022: Exclusive industry insider with Light & Wonder, Relax Gaming and more
The biggest names within the slot community spoke to us about their recent Christmas slot releases
'Tis the season to be jolly and slot players have a lot to be excited about this festive season. There is no better way to get into the holiday spirit than by playing the best Christmas slots out there.
Within the past month, we have reviewed hundreds of new online slots and there have been a few that have made the Slot Gods good list this year. These include titles from some of the best names within the slot industry such as Relax Gaming, Wizard Games, Playson, Kalamba Games, BF Games and Light & Wonder.
As this is the season for giving, we have been fortunate to speak directly to these slot developers to uncover what makes their latest Christmas releases so magical and exactly what players can expect from these slots.
Santa's Stack Dream Drop
Dream Drop Jackpots is putting the WIN in Winter this year! In 2022, Santa’s Stack brought joy and cheer to the masses, but this year there’s something extra special amongst its gifts. Relax Gaming is bringing back the festive favourite slot and giving it a Dream Drop Jackpots spin!
‘Twas the night before Christmas, and no slots were spinning. Fingers were still and all sounds were thinning. Out of the darkness came a drawn-out cry, “Santa’s Stack is a game we must try! From a distance echoes the sound of printing, with the Dream Drop Jackpot there’s more chance of winning!”
- Name:
- Santa's Stack: Dream Drop
- Developer:
- Relax Gaming
- RTP:
- 94.00%
- Max payout:
- 20,000x stake
- Volatility:
- High
- Jackpot:
- Dream Drop Jackpot
- Reels:
- 8
- Theme:
- Christmas, Retro
- Release date:
- 1st Dec 2022
Join the Christmas clan in a seasonal slot with a difference – 1,000,000 differences to be specific. Dream Drop has made over a million jackpot winners in its first few months, there’s no saying how many cheers Santa’s Stack Dream Drop will drive this year!
Set against an 8x8 grid, wins are created through clusters of 5+ matching symbols, helped by wilds, re-spins, free spins, the Secret Santa Features, and of course, the Dream Drop mechanic. Look out! There might be gold amongst the snowfall this season.
What they say:
Callum Sultana, Senior Game Product Owner, Relax Gaming said: ‘‘With the success of Dream Drop Jackpots this year, we wanted to create something festive to help players get into the Christmas spirit whilst still being able to experience the excitement of the Jackpot mechanic.”
‘‘With last year’s Christmas release proving to be another great hit, it felt natural to combine them - and the game does not disappoint! You could say it’s the gift that keeps on giving.”
Play Santa's Stack here:
Naughty Nik
Wizard Games has put a twist on the usual Christmas festivities, with a very bad Santa running amok in Naughty Nick. Handcuffs, naughty lists, booze and a bevvy of beauties fill the reels in this 5x4, 25-payline slot that sees players attempting to claim cash prizes through the Naughty Collect feature.
These cash values are triggered when a Naughty Nik symbol lands on the reels, while six or more Cash Symbols will trigger the Naughty Nik Respins, awarding five respins for players to land even more cash symbols for bigger win potential.
When this round starts, the Wheel of Fortune is launched, which can award further respins or double-valued cash prizes, for increased win potential.
Naughty Nik is the newest creation in Wizard Games’ slots offering, joining fellow festive hit Santa’s Fortune and classic Joker Diamond in the supplier’s ever-expanding portfolio.
Gameplay of Naughty Nik by Wizard Games
What they say:
Joey Hurtado, Managing Director at Wizard Games, said: “Not everyone can make it onto the nice list at Christmas and it’s with that in mind that we created Naughty Nik, a slot that sees Santa get a bad-boy makeover.”
“Yuletide is time to party hard for our bad Santa, who hits the festivities with attitude. We are delighted with our fresh take on a Christmas slot and are sure that players will respond well to it.”
Play Naughty Nik here:
Buffalo Power: Christmas
Buffalo Power: Christmas is Playson’s holiday-themed edition of the popular 2020 release, Buffalo Power: Hold and Win. This revamped title extends the festivities with fresh and vibrant visuals, allowing fans of the original to celebrate the holiday period in style.
Players are greeted by a beautiful snow-themed backdrop, with the reels now showcasing Christmas decorations and the well-known Buffalo character exhibiting a timely Santa outfit.
In keeping with a winning recipe, this festive slot includes the same math, features and gameplay as the original release. If players land three Scatters, they’ll trigger eight Free Spins and all wins with Stacked Wild x2 symbols will be doubled.
Elevating the fun is the title’s Bonus Game, which is launched by six or more Bonus symbols. This captivating mode delivers a favourable x2 multiplier when the whole game field is filled with symbols.
Those in search of more Christmas surprises will need to collect Power symbols, which are required to claim the game’s four jackpots, including the Grand Jackpot worth a mouth-watering x500 bets.
Gameplay of Buffalo Power: Christmas by Playson
What they say:
Nikolay Illiustrov, Playson Head of Games said: “This festive-themed title gives slots enthusiasts the chance to celebrate Christmas by participating in their favourite hobby.”
“Our Hold and Win titles guarantee an enchanting casino experience, and we’re always happy to extend this impressive collection. Additionally, by enhancing an extremely popular title, we’re giving players a thrilling prospect.”
Play Playson slots here:
Joker Max: Hit 'n' Roll Xmas Edition
Kalamba Games has sprinkled a generous dose of seasonal joy on one of its most popular games from a much-loved franchise in its latest release Joker Max: Hit ‘n’ Roll Xmas Edition.
The new slot includes the very high volatility that the series is known for, along with numerous tweaks and improvements such as the inclusion of the Hit ‘n’ Roll bonus wheel feature.
Both Cashpots and Free Spins meters build throughout base gameplay, increasing potential cashpots prizes and the number of starting Free Spins respectively. Landing three Hit ‘n’ Roll symbols triggers a prize wheel.
Spinning the wheel can award different outcomes including winning one of six Cashpots, Free Spins, which are available in different variants or an instant cash prize. Free Spins are split into three types with 2x, 3x or 5x Wild Multipliers being attached throughout the round.
Joker Max: Hit ‘n’ Roll Xmas Edition also contains HyperBonus, which allows players to instantly buy the Hit ‘n’ Roll feature with two options available, they can either win Cashpots or the Free Spins round, or a fixed cash prize can be won in place of these.
Gameplay of Joker Max: Hit 'n' Roll Xmas Edition by Kalamba Games
What they say:
Alex Cohen, COO and Co-Founder at Kalamba Games, said: “Joker Max is always a fantastic title to work with and it lends itself perfectly to a Christmas overhaul.”
“The additions to play are the ideal festive present to our fans and we’ve no doubt that they’ll welcome Joker Max: Hit ‘n’ Roll Xmas Edition just as much as they have with all the other entries in our classic series.”
Play Kalamba slots here:
Cave of Xmas
BF Games’ hardworking Goblin is back, this time celebrating Christmas by planning to excavate gold from under a massive hill of snow in Cave of Xmas.
The 5x3 Christmas adventure features a Nitro Counter over the reels, which any single, double or triple Nitro symbol adds to. The Persistent Wild feature is activated when it has three symbols, immediately upping the win potential, making for a very Merry Christmas!
If they’re very lucky, players can get a Full House when they trigger the Persistent Wild mode on all five reels. This ends the feature and resets the counter to zero and awards the player a whopping 200x multiplier.
- Name:
- Cave of Xmas
- Developer:
- BF Games
- RTP:
- 96.04%
- Max payout:
- 500x stake
- Volatility:
- High
- Reels:
- 5
- Win lines:
- 30
- Theme:
- Christmas
- Release date:
- 1st Dec 2022
Scatter Symbols appear as Treasure Chests and materialise one at a time on the reels. Landing three, four or five scatters triggers 15, 20 or 25 free spins, respectively.
Any Nitro symbols that land on the reels during free spins are counted on the meter up to 15, gifting players the Grand Reward of 500x – Christmas is a time for giving, after all! Meanwhile, the explode feature could also be triggered at any time, blasting wild symbols in all directions. This is the third BF Games slot to feature the Goblin and it would be a safe bet to assume we’ll meet him again!
What they say:
Piotr Saluda, Product Owner at BF Games, said: “The Goblin has a very unusual approach to celebrating Christmas so it’s unlikely players will experience anything quite like this during the holidays.”
“It’s always a lot of fun checking in with the industrious Goblin and imagining what he gets up to. Doing so during the festive season has resulted in a deeply engaging title that has seen impressive uptake. We can’t wait to catch up with him again soon!”
Play BF Games' slots here:
Christmas Krampus
Who said Christmas time had to be all about holiday cheer? Certainly not Light & Wonder! The famed developer has sidelined good old Santa Claus in favour of Krampus, a frightening half-goat, half-demon monster known for punishing misbehaving children at Christmastime.
This unsettling high volatility 5-reel, 10 payline slot can see players win a host of festive cash prizes by way of Krampus Walking Wilds, Free Spins and Respins.
Whenever three or more of Krampus’ clawed hands appear on the game reels, up to 10 free spins are triggered. During these free spins, a special Krampus symbol is activated that acts as a wild, substituting for all symbols.
- Name:
- Christmas Krampus
- Developer:
- Light & Wonder
- RTP:
- 96.00%
- Max payout:
- 2,000x stake
- Volatility:
- Medium-High
- Reels:
- 5
- Win lines:
- 10
- Theme:
- Christmas
- Release date:
- 13th Dec 2022
Krampus will make his way across the game reels from right to left, stealing any presents he sees as he goes, adding to an overall prize total that appears to the left of the game screen.
If you’re not after the traditional Christmas slot experience this season, you would be hard-pressed to find a more engaging title than Light & Wonder’s Christmas Krampus.
What they say:
Rob Procter – VP Game Development at Light & Wonder, said: “Naturally, Christmas is everyone’s favourite time of year as it’s filled to the brim with festive cheer! However, this time we’re sprinkling a healthy dose of fear onto proceedings with this dark Christmas release.”
“Those brave players who aren’t afraid of Krampus will undoubtedly find themselves smiling at the plethora of great wins that come gift-wrapped courtesy of great bonus features and mechanics.”
Play Christmas Krampus here:
Disclaimer: It's worth noting that any bonus buy options mentioned will not be available to UK players. These were banned in the UK in 2019.