Halls of Odin: Slot Overview
Odin is not only one of the main gods of Norse mythology, but a mighty regular in the online gambling scene. He and his son Thor can be found battling through a number of slots from the classic Thunderstruck II from the gambling days of yore up to something more modern like this here game, we’re reviewing today. Titled Halls of Odin, it’s designed by Hacksaw Gaming associates Backseat Gaming, and sees the studio pair Norse mythology with a return to some of the mechanics showcased in Commander of Tridents, such as Mystery Nudge Gates, but in a slimmer, streamlined form.
There might be talk of fury and gods later on but Halls of Odin is held in a not-unpleasant place that actually looks quite peaceful. A green tinge hangs over a quaint Viking-like settlement in the base game, before getting a red-hued makeover during the bonus round, like a changing traffic light. Players are on their own in this one; you don’t get a glimpse of the god in this game, so instead of a thundering, masculine, cracking vibe, Halls of Odin has a more peaceful atmosphere, much like Backseat Gaming’s previous Norse-themed slot, Home of Thor. Nothing wrong with that, and the pleasant environment makes this place seem well and truly under Odin’s protection.
That doesn’t mean much when it comes to the actual gambling, though, and the game’s play area has been set up in a standard Hacksaw Gaming family manner with a 5×4 matrix evaluating winning combinations along 14 paylines. At 5 out of 5, Halls of Odin is a highly volatile slot that accepts bets of 10c to $/€50 per spin, and has a highest of two official RTP configurations of 96.1%.
Chunks of rock with 10-A on them are Halls of Odin’s low pays, awarding 1x to 2.5x the bet for a 5-of-a-kind winning line. Then there’s ravens, axes, helms, and golden wolves as the high pays awarding up to 5x to 25x the bet. Wilds appear on all reels to substitute any regular paying symbols. If a 5 OAK wild line hits, it is also worth 25x the bet.
Halls of Odin: Slot Features
Halls of Odin’s extras are Mystery Nudge Gates, a Coin feature, a global multiplier, Odin’s Trial and Fury of the Gods bonus rounds, as well as feature buys.
Mystery Nudge Gates
Mystery Nudge Gates are fully stacked symbols that nudge up or down when landing. Each Mystery Nudge Gate that lands increases the global multiplier by +1. In addition, each position they nudge over also increases the global multiplier by +1. After a gate covers its reel, it reveals any pay symbols, wilds, or Eye symbols. Eye symbols reveal Coins or special symbols. When more than one gate is on the grid, they all reveal matching symbols.
Coin Feature
When Eyes are revealed by gates, they open to reveal Coins, FS scatters, or Collector symbols. FS scatters only appear like this in bonus rounds and grant an extra 1, 2, or 3 free spins. Coins come in three types and add their prize to the total win for the spin. Bronze Coins are worth 1x-5x, Silver Coins are 10x-50x, and Gold Coins may be worth 100x-1,000x. Moreover, Collector symbols collect all cash prizes and the values of other Collector symbols before respinning only the cash prize positions. Collected Collector symbols keep their value.
Global Multiplier
The global multiplier starts at x1 and increases when Mystery Nudge Gates land and nudge as described above. During bonus games, the global multiplier is persistent for the duration of the feature.
Odin’s Trial
Odin’s Trial’s 10 free spins are triggered by landing 3 scatters in the base game. The base game mechanics are followed, plus there is an increased chance of landing Mystery Nudge Gates. Also, Mystery Nudge Gates become sticky and reveal pay symbols, wilds, or Eyes on each spin.
Fury of the Gods
Hitting 4 scatters in the base game triggers 10 free Fury of the Gods spins. The rules are the same as Odin’s Trial, except Mystery Nudge Gates cannot reveal low pay symbols.
Feature Buys
The feature buy section allows players to activate BonusHunt FeatureSpins for 2x the bet to make each spin three times more likely to trigger a bonus or Runic FeatureSpins at 50x, which guarantee at least two Mystery Nudge Gates on each spin. Odin’s Trial may be bought for 100x or Fury of the Gods for 200x.
Halls of Odin: Slot Verdict
Due to a similarity in some of the features and gameplay, Halls of Odin could be considered a relative of Commander of Tridents, a slot Backseat Gaming released in 2023, with another deity in the driver’s seat and nudging Gates driving the action. However, where Commander of Tridents was something of a Mystery Museum wannabe, Halls of Odin trims down and simplifies the process, making a game that might not be clearly a better choice as such, but one which is arguably easier to track and enjoy.
Coins were one of the main instigators of thrills during the review, and they have two helpers making them so. One is the Collector symbol sucking in Coins and other Collector values, causing emptied positions to spin again and drop some more values onto the reels. The other is the global multiplier, that thankfully, multiplies Coin and Collector values, which makes an enormous difference. Indeed, the best results during testing were achieved by Coin collection and multiplication. Mystery Nudge Gates revealing pay symbols was a lot more hit or miss. For instance, there are trade-offs when reaching the Fury of the Gods bonus, where Mystery Nudge Gates only reveal high-paying symbols. It’s not like Commander of Tridents, where three or more Mystery Gates in view pay from any position, ‘book of’ style, so connecting stacks of revealed high pays with matching symbols on other reels into a decent win could be tricky.
Or, the opposite might occur since Halls of Odin’s 15,000x max win is reachable in all game modes. Sure, some of the gameplay feels rehashed, and the theme could have been imbued with extra hammer-wielding bombast, but Backseat Gaming has collated everything into a tidily designed package that’s easy to play.
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