Introduction to Big Catch Xmas
Big Catch Xmas is a casino slot from Avatar UX that imbues one of the provider's earlier releases with a festive vibe. Following the general trend around the end of the year, the creators reused the math model from Big Catch Craze and switched the visuals to match the atmosphere of the upcoming holidays. And so, instead of a classic fisherman, we board the boat with Santa himself to cast a net into the water and pull out some great cash prizes. To help you bag the rewards, Father Christmas may randomly throw the snare to cover as many positions as possible, and, needless to say, the bigger the net, the more fish can be caught inside of it. Also, with at least five prize symbols in view, you'll trigger respins to pack the grid with more fish to boost the chances of yielding profits. Throughout the bonus round, the net can be upgraded progressively for a chance to cover the entire grid and keep landing those prizes until you hit the max win of 10,000x the bet.
Theme, Gameplay & Payouts
Big Catch Xmas is a video slot from Avatar UX with 5 reels, 4 rows, and 20 paylines. In the bet selection panel, you can choose your active stake from multiple options, starting from a Min.bet of 0.1 up to a Max.bet of 300. With the game's default RTP of 96.02%, you can expect steady long-term returns, although two lower variants of 94.01% and 90.49% are also available for operators, so be sure to check your version before playing. Wins might be less frequent but more valuable due to high volatility, while the top prize from a single spin may reach 10,000x the bet. The base hit frequency is 26.74%.
If you were ever wondering how Santa spends his free time after the busy period of distributing presents, Big Catch Xmas brings one possibility. On a picturesque, wintery morning, surrounded by majestic mountains and snowy forests, he rocks gently on a small boat floating in the middle of a shimmering lake. Dressed in his classic red and white outfit and holding a fishing rod, Santa gazes peacefully at the water, waiting for something to nibble on his bait. The atmosphere here is exceptionally peaceful and relaxing, allowing us to take a breather and enjoy the natural surroundings. If you're ready for some chilled-out fishing, you can start the game on any modern device, whether you play on a desktop, a smartphone, or a tablet.
The paytable is divided into two groups of symbols, which award payouts whenever you match 3 of them on neighbouring reels, starting from the leftmost one, while covering any of the active paylines. The low-paying icons are tiles with traditional playing card royal emblems, including J, Q, K, and A. They award between 1x and 4x the bet for matching 5 in a combination. A fishing rod, a bait, a tackle box, a basket with fish and a golden fish represent the high-paying symbols. Those bring payouts from 6x to 10x the bet when 5 combine on a payline. Bonus symbols appear as Santa himself holding a fish.
Special Features & Slot Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Big Catch Xmas?
You can win up to 10,000x the bet.
What features are available in the slot Big Catch Xmas?
The features are The Fisherman’s Net, Sticky Fish Respins, Free Spins, and Feature Buy & Ante Bet.
The Fisherman's Net
High-value fish symbols not only award payouts when you form them into winning paylines, but they also carry cash prizes worth between 0.4x and 500x the bet. To win them, you must wait for Santa (the fisherman) to throw a net onto the grid. Any fish caught within its range will pay the displayed values immediately. The net can appear in different sizes, ranging from 2x2 to 5x4.
Sticky Fish Respins
Whenever five or more fish symbols appear on the grid at the same time, a respin will be awarded. All fish stay sticky, and any new ones landing grant another respin. The sequence continues until no new fish appear on the board. After the last respin, the Fisherman's Net feature activates for a chance to catch the prizes.
Free Spins
With 3, 4, or 5 Bonus symbols scored in a single base game spin, you'll trigger 7, 10, or 12 free spins, respectively. During the round, the net's size can be progressively increased by landing more Bonus symbols, and its current shape will be displayed next to the grid. Each Bonus symbol also grants one extra spin.
All fish landing throughout free spins are sticky, and a new variant with a multiplier can also appear. When it drops, it multiplies the values of all fish in view by the displayed figure.
Feature Buy & Ante Bet
You can boost your base game spins or proceed straight to the bonus round if they're willing to pay a certain buy-in price that scales with the active bet.
1.5x = Ante Bet with a doubled chance of triggering free spins.
10x = guaranteed trigger of the Fisherman's Net.
25x = guaranteed trigger of Sticky Respins.
75x = Trigger the Bonus with 7 free spins.
500x = Trigger the Bonus Max with 12 free spins.
Final Thoughts on Big Catch Xmas
Big Catch Xmas is a Christmas reskin of Big Catch Craze, and that pretty much sums the game up. Like every year before December, providers flood the casino lobbies with festive clones of their well-performing releases, and Avatar UX follows suit. With minimal effort, the studio produced a holiday-themed alternative to its fishing slot, replacing a regular fisherman with Santa and throwing in some merry decorations for good measure. The environment you'll be casting your net in hasn't changed all that much either, only now some time has passed, and the season has advanced from autumn to winter. It's still a relatively pleasant spot with a semi-realistic touch and a picturesque view spanning behind the reels, but ultimately, it's the same image just with a snowy filter.
All statistics and gameplay have remained the same, so your main task in the base game will revolve around landing as many fish as possible, either in single spins or through respins, and hoping for Santa to grab the net and throw it onto the grid. In the bonus round, the net's size grows with every Bonus symbol scored for increased chances of securing the rewards, which become sticky until collected. There are also a few bonus buy options to fast-track the action to the most profitable parts of the game, if you have a wallet for it.
Big Catch Xmas makes little effort to diversify itself from the original release, making it a rather forgettable holiday title.
