Hot Hot Honey Review
Honey can refer to the sweet and sticky product created in a beehive, or it’s a term that can be applied to a pretty young woman. Armadillo Studios has decided to combine both meanings in a slot like no other that we’ve come across.
We’re all for innovation, but what we really want to know is, does Hot Hot Honey deliver up a fun and entertaining gaming session?
Design
There’s a lot to take in when you first launch Hot Hot Honey, with a beehive multiplier up in the top right corner and four Jackpot prizes along the top of the reels. There’s a row of symbols below the reels too, so you know straight away that this game isn’t going to play out quite like other slots.
Game symbols are well-designed with some fun animations, and a jazzy soundtrack plays out in the background to help things along. The game looks inviting and fun, with those jackpot payouts acting as an extra incentive to take it for a spin.
Gameplay
Hot Hot Honey isn’t like most slot games, so it requires some explanation before you get started. There are no paylines, as wins are awarded on a Scatter Pays mechanic, with five or more matching symbols needed anywhere on the reels to activate the Raging Respins feature.
Matching symbols are held in place on the reels, while the other symbols undergo a respin. If any new matching symbols land, they’re also held in place and a further respin is awarded. Fill a reel with the same character symbol and +2 is added to the multiplier, the symbols on the reel disappear, the reels move along one place and a new reel of symbols is introduced. Matching up non-character symbols on the reels adds +1 to the multiplier, which resets at the end of the respin feature.
Trail Bonus
Land three or more bonus symbols to activate the Trail Bonus. Each spin reveals a number of petals indicating how many steps along the trail the character should take. Landing on a prize awards that amount, but look out for the various modifiers along the way.
- Go Back Bee: the player moves backwards instead of forwards on the next spin.
- Mystery Prize: a prize is awarded between 50x – 500x the stake.
- Heart: gives protection from the Ninja Spider.
- Ninja Spider: the Trail Bonus ends unless the player has collected a heart.
- Super Wings: the number of moves is doubled, with all prizes awarded on that stretch of the Trail, instead of just the one that the player lands on.
- Grand Prizepot: reach the end of the Trail without being attacked by the Ninja Spider to receive an additional award of 1.000x the bet, in addition to all other prizes won along the way.
Free Spins
Land three or more free spin Scatters to receive the same number of free spins. One symbol is chosen to appear more frequently throughout the feature, increasing the likelihood of activating Raging Respins. The prizepot and multiplier keep increasing throughout the free spins, which could lead to big prize payouts.
Win potential
Playing card symbols take their usual place at the bottom of the paytable, followed by honey dippers, flowers and the three female bee characters. Base game wins are unlikely to boost your overall balance by much, at least until the Raging Respins and multipliers start to come into play, which is when the game really starts to get going!
Prizepot symbols are collected during respins, with a counter above the reels showing how many you have. Collecting 10, 20, 30 or 40 awards the relevant jackpot prize as shown above the reels, with the following payouts:
- Mini: 20x
- Minor: 50x
- Major: 200x
- Mega: 500x
The RTP is slightly above the industry standard, but the volatility is on the high side, so you’ll need good bankroll management to make the most of your gaming session.
Our Verdict
We weren’t quite sure what to make of Hot Hot Honey when we first launched the game, as its mechanics are so unusual. Once we’d explored it for a whole it all started to become clear, and we really started to enjoy ourselves!
The overall theme is more than slightly weird, especially when your bee character gets zapped by a Ninja Spider along the Trail Bonus. But weird is good, provided that gameplay is interesting with some decent winning potential, and on that score, Hot Hot Honey delivers.
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