Introduction to Henry 8th Calves of Steel
Henry 8th Calves of Steel is a casino slot from Kitsune Studios featuring one of England’s most famous, or maybe infamous, kings. He was born in 1491, became king in 1509, and ruled until his death in 1547. He’s best known for having six wives, and two of them were executed. Henry VIII was loyal to the Catholic church, but it all changed when the Pope refused to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon because he had no surviving male heir. He then separated the Church of England from the authority of Rome and made himself its head.
However, none of this is of interest in this game. Kitsune Studios has instead focused on the king's enormous Calves, which we don’t know if he actually had. They help him walk across the reels as a stacked Wild Symbol, covering all positions of a reel.
Theme, Gameplay, and Payouts
Henry 8th Calves of Steel is a video slot from Kitsune Studios with 5 reels, 5 rows, and 19 paylines. The Min.bet is 0.1, while the Max.bet is 100. The game’s default RTP is 96.32%, but a 94.19% version is also available. Henry 8th Calves of Steel has mid-high volatility and a max win capped at 10,000x the bet. The hit frequency is 26.2%.
The game is set in a grand medieval room, maybe even in a castle. In the middle of the screen, behind the five reels, runs a corridor. To the left are tables full of food like pig heads and what seems to be a dolphin with a duck in its mouth. To the sides of the reels are two marble pillars, and to the right of them stands the game’s main character: Henry VIII. He’s dressed in white tights and a big red coat. To make a win, you need to land 3 or more matching symbols on one of the 19 paylines going left to right, starting on the first reel to the left. The game is available on mobile phones, tablets, and desktop computers.
The lower-paying symbols in Henry 8th Calves of Steel are masks, jars, books, hats, and brushes. They pay between 1x and 1.5x the bet for wins of 5 symbols. The higher-paying symbols are five women in medieval clothes, which we assume are five of Henry’s six wives. They pay between 3x and 10x the bet for wins of 5 symbols. The Wild Symbol and the Walking Wild Symbol substitute all symbols except the FS Scatter Symbol.
Special Features & Slot Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Henry 8th Calves of Steel?
You can win up to 10,000x the bet.
What features are available in the slot Henry 8th Calves of Steel?
The features are Walking Wild Symbol, Respins, FS Scatter Symbols, Run Before You Can Walk, Run This Way, and Feature Buy.
Walking Wild Symbol
The Walking Wild is a special symbol that expands into a stacked Wild covering all five positions on a reel. It can only appear on reels 2 to 5, and only one Walking Wild can land on each reel. However, several Walking Wild symbols can be active at the same time on different reels.
Walking Wild symbols are available in every game mode and can start with multipliers between 1x and 100x. If a Walking Wild lands only partly visible, it nudges down until it fills the entire reel. Every nudge increases its multiplier by +1.
After every spin, each Walking Wild moves one reel to the left during the respins, whether it was part of a winning combination or not. Every Walking Wild has its own multiplier, and if more than one is included in the same win, their multipliers are added together before being applied to the payout.
Respins
Whenever one or more Walking Wild symbols remain on the reels after a spin, a respin sequence begins. During the respins, the Walking Wild symbols stay on the grid while all other symbols are removed and replaced. Each Walking Wild then moves one reel to the left after every respin.
The respins continue until all Walking Wild symbols have moved off the reels. New Walking Wild symbols can also appear during the respin sequence, extending the action.
FS Scatter Symbols
FS Scatter symbols are collected throughout the entire spin sequence, including all respins. The total number of collected Scatters determines whether a bonus feature starts once the respins have finished.
Landing 3 FS Scatter symbols at the same time in the base game triggers the Run Before You Can Walk bonus and awards 8 free spins, with a chance to upgrade to the Run This Way bonus. Landing 4 FS Scatter symbols at once triggers the Run This Way bonus immediately and awards 8 free spins.
Run Before You Can Walk
This bonus uses the same mechanics as the base game, but Walking Wild symbols have a higher chance of appearing. A Global Multiplier is built up whenever Walking Wild symbols leave the reels, but it is not active during this bonus.
Landing 2 or 3 Scatter Symbols in the feature awards 2 or 3 extra spins. If you’re lucky to collect 4 Scatters, the feature is upgraded to Run This Way.
Run This Way
This bonus works much like Run Before You Can Walk, but with one important difference: the Global Multiplier is always active. Whenever a Walking Wild leaves the reels, its multiplier is added to the Global Multiplier. Every win is then multiplied by the combined value of all Walking Wild multipliers and the Global Multiplier.
You can also earn extra spins by landing Scatter Symbols in the same way as in the Run This Way feature.
Feature Buy
You can purchase the features for preset costs. The Bonus Hunt Feature Spin increases your chances of triggering the Free Spins five times and costs 3x the bet. The Walking Wild Feature Spins, which guarantees at least one Walking Wild Symbol costs 50x the bet, while the Run Before You Can Walk feature sets you back 100x the bet. The Run This Way feature costs 300x the bet.
Final Thoughts on Henry 8th Calves of Steel
It took a while for us to realize that Henry 8th Calves of Steel is all about the famous king’s calves. There are many rumors about the medieval ruler, but no one probably thinks of his calves when they hear his name. At least not until now, when Kitsune Studios has turned the king into a notorious walking machine. Instead of focusing on royal politics or dramatic history lessons, Kitsune Studios gives us a king proudly showing off legendary calves while marching across the reels. It’s silly and unexpected, but also quite fun in its ridiculousness.
King Henry, with his Walking Wild feature, is the big star of the show, both in the base game and the free spins. It’s quite entertaining to watch giant stacked Wilds stroll from reel to reel while their multipliers grow, especially when several of them are active at the same time. The respin sequences can last longer than expected, and every new Walking Wild feels like another guest arriving at Henry’s royal feast. The free spin features also add some variety, with the upgraded Run This Way bonus offering the best chance to build huge multipliers and chase the game's maximum win of 10,000x the bet.
We can't complain about the RTP of 96.32%, and the game is memorable in some ways, though it probably won’t become a classic. We can’t think of any other slot that features the king, but Push Gaming has made Henry the Ape, which might be a tribute to the English ruler.
Henry 8th Calves of Steel from Kitsune Studios is a funny, creative slot that proves you don't need dragons or ancient treasures to stand out.
