Cave of Xmas Review
Most Christmas-themed slots include Santa or elves, so it’s unusual to meet a goblin distributing festive magic. But BF Games likes to do things a little differently, and who are we to argue?
The big question is whether the slot delivers in terms of entertainment and prize potential, so we were keen to check it out.
Design
As soon as the game launches, you just know you’re in for a treat! Set against a frosty background, the game symbols are bright and colourful, with playing card icons given a Christmas bauble makeover.
There’s an atmospheric soundtrack complete with a Christmas poem about the goblins which all adds to the magic.
Gameplay
During base gameplay every nitro bomb is collected above the reel it lands on. When each meter reaches 3 it activates a Persistent Wild Reel, which stays in place for 3 further spins. If any more Persistent Wilds are created during that time, all counters reset to 3.
Land 3, 4 or 5 treasure chest Scatters to activate 10, 15 or 20 free games respectively. Throughout the bonus round a Grand Nitro Meter is suspended above the reels, collecting the values of all nitro bombs on the grid.
Once the counter reaches 3 it can randomly activate the Exploding Wilds modifier. Every nitro bomb collected is returned onto the reels as an Exploding Wild, which can deliver some big payouts.
Win Potential
Most of the game symbols won’t return your bet even for landing five-of-a-kind combos across a payline, so multiple wins are needed to pull ahead. The exceptions are the Christmas presents, which top the main symbol paytable, and the Wild goblin, which along with the Scatter is the top-paying icon.
Fill the reels with 5 persistent Wilds and you’ll trigger an automatic Full House payout worth 200x your stake, after which all Nitro values return to 0. But the biggest wins come courtesy of the Grand Nitro Meter which sits above the reels during the free spins bonus round. If the counter reaches 15 the game’s top payout is triggered, paying out the Grand Reward worth 500x your stake.
Although it’s not a feature that’s available to UK players, some jurisdictions allow players to Buy the Bonus. You can purchase 10 free games for 50x the bet, 15 free games for 50x the bet or 20 free spins for 130x the bet.
Our Verdict
Goblins aren’t the most obvious choice for a festive-themed slot, but somehow BF Games have made it work. This is a fun and engaging game with some interesting and entertaining features.
Our only real complaint is that the maximum payout is very low, coming in at just 500x your stake. But if you’re looking for an engaging game that puts a whole new spin on the Christmas narrative, Caves of Xmas is definitely worth a look.
Marianne's interest in slots was sparked by a win on a one-arm bandit at an old-fashioned seaside arcade. These days she's turned her back on classic games, and has made it her mission to track down the most exciting slots offering innovative bonus features - and a great soundtrack!
Learn more about Marianne here