Introduction to Massive Xmas Staxx
Massive Xmas Staxx is a casino slot from Snowborn Games that has arrived just in time to go head-to-head with all the other festive slots on the market. Christmas is a season that's notoriously good at getting people to spend a bit too much, so a festive slot is a very natural thing to have. You're going to get all the trappings of the season in there, really, lots of glowing lights, lots of shiny presents and a Christmas tree which is probably already dropping needles all over your carpet. Snowborn have done a series of slots based on the stacking mechanic previously with titles such as Massive Gold Power Staxx, so you may recognize the concept. There's Xmas Spins, Blizzard Spins, a random Bonus with 4 jackpots and a Buy Bonus for the ones who just want to get on with it. The max win is 5,200x the bet, so Santa's not exactly going to be handing out the biggest sack of presents in the world, but there is still something to unwrap.
Theme, Gameplay & Payouts
Massive Xmas Staxx is a video slot from Snowborn Games with 5 reels, 3 rows and 20 paylines. The Min.bet is 0.2 and the Max.bet is 40. The RTP comes in four versions: 96%, 94.2%, 92.2% and 90.2%, so it is worth checking which one your casino runs. Volatility is medium, the max win is 5,200x the bet, and the hit frequency lands at 26.92%.
The game looks like a little Christmas machine rolling through space. The reels are in a shiny gold and red frame on top of little train wheels with a string of festive lights across the top and a Booster dome in the middle. The four jackpots (Mini, Minor, Major and Mega) are all hanging above the reels, with the Mega jackpot being a very attractive 5,000x the bet. There's a Collect panel to the right, and the Buy Bonus button is right next to it. You win by landing 3 or more matching symbols on a payline from left to right. All wins must start on the leftmost reel, and you can play on mobile phones, tablets and desktops.
The lower-paying symbols in Massive Xmas Staxx are J, Q, K and A. They award between 1x and 2.4x the bet for a 5-of-a-kind win. The higher-paying symbols are cherries, bells, chocolate boxes and snow lights, and they pay between 7x and 15x the bet for a complete winline. The Wild Symbol substitutes for all the mentioned symbols, but it cannot replace the special symbols: Xmas Spins, Gold Bar, Collect, 1UP, Staxx, Blizzard, Blank and Prize symbols.
Special Features & Slot Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Massive Xmas Staxx?
You can win up to 5,200x the bet.
What features are available in the slot Massive Xmas Staxx?
The features are Wild Symbols, Collect Wins, Xmas Booster Feature, Blizzard Spins Feature, Xmas Spins Feature, Bonus Feature and Buy Bonus.
Wild Symbols
The Wild Symbol can land on any reel in the base game, in Xmas Spins and in Blizzard Spins (including Blizzard Collect). It can substitute for any symbol except Xmas Spins, the Gold Bar, Collect, 1UP, Staxx, Blizzard, Blank and Prize symbols.
Collect Wins
The Collect symbol can only land on reel 5 in the base game, Xmas Spins and Blizzard Spins (including Blizzard Collect). When it does, it triggers Collect Wins and pays out the total value of all Gold Bar and Staxx symbols on the reels.
Gold Bar and Staxx symbols on reels 1 to 4 have values ranging from 0.2x to 10x the bet. A Staxx symbol in the top or middle row will drop to the bottom row and expand vertically to reveal 3 to 8 additional symbols, each of which pays out a cash prize (which is added to the total). The final symbol revealed will be a cash prize, a 1UP, or a jackpot. In the base game, this means a cash prize, a 1UP or the Mini, Minor or Major jackpot. In Xmas Spins, it's a cash prize, a 1UP or the Mini or Minor jackpot. In Blizzard Spins, you can only get a cash prize or the Mini or Minor jackpot.
Xmas Booster Feature
The Xmas Booster multiplies your Collect Wins in the base game, Xmas Spins and Blizzard Spins (doesn't work on payline wins). In the base game, it increases by one step each time a 1UP lands (starts at 1x and goes up to a maximum of 10x). In Xmas Spins, it increases when 1UPs land and the more 1UPs you get, the higher the multiplier. The levels available in Xmas Spins are 1x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 10x, 20x and 50x.
In Blizzard Spins, it increases when you reach the next Blizzard stage, and the levels are 1x, 3x, 5x, 10x, 20x and 50x. In the base game and Xmas Spins, 1UPs can land on any reel. Once the booster has been used in a Collect Win, it resets.
Blizzard Spins Feature
Blizzard Spins can be triggered in the base game by collecting a Blizzard symbol on all 5 reels. You start with 5 spins and the Xmas Booster at 1x. There are 6 Blizzard stages in total, and each stage comes with a higher multiplier. 3 Blizzard symbols will take you to the next stage, which gives you 5 extra spins and a bigger booster.
If you run out of spins without having collected 3 Blizzard symbols, then Blizzard Collect comes into play. You will then continue to spin at your current multiplier until a Collect Wins feature is triggered. Your total payout will be the sum of all the wins during that feature (so all the wins from the feature, including the Blizzard Collect, the payline wins and the Collect wins).
Blizzard symbols can appear on any reel in the base game and during the Blizzard Spins. The spins are free, and neither the Bonus nor the Xmas Spins can be triggered during the feature.
Xmas Spins Feature
Xmas Spins is triggered in the base game by landing 3 Xmas Spins Scatter Symbols on reels 1, 3 and 5. You get 10 spins to start with, and the Xmas Booster starts at 1x and can go up to 50x. Each time the trail reaches a new multiplier level, you get 3 extra spins. Payline wins and Xmas Booster wins are both added to your Total Win after each spin (although again, the booster doesn't touch the payline wins).
The feature ends when you've run out of spins, and your total payout is the sum of all your payline and Collect wins. Neither the Bonus nor the Blizzard Spins can be triggered during the Xmas Spins feature.
Bonus Feature
The Bonus is triggered at random in the base game when a Gold Bar lands. You start with 3 bonus spins, and the grid is filled with two types of symbols (Gold Bar and Prize symbols), which can land on any of the reels. Any new symbol that appears will reset your spins back to 3. Gold Bar symbols remain in place until the end of the Bonus feature.
Prize symbols for the Mini, Minor, Major and Mega jackpots are held in a meter attached to each prize. The first two symbols for any given prize are removed once they've been collected. The third symbol for that prize is the one that wins it, and it stays on the reels until the feature is over. The fixed wins are 10x the bet for Mini, 20x for Minor, 100x for Major and 5,000x for Mega. The feature ends when you've used up your spins, or there are no more landing positions, and you win the Mega jackpot by filling the entire grid.
At the end of it all, you get paid the total of all the Gold Bar values plus any prizes you've won. Neither Xmas Spins nor Blizzard Spins can be triggered during the feature. The collection animation is just that, it's purely for show and has no impact on what prizes you get.
Feature Buy
Buy Bonus allows you to skip the wait and buy your way into either the Xmas Spins or the Blizzard Spins. Xmas Spins is 60x your bet, and Blizzard Spins is 100x your bet.
Final Thoughts on Massive Xmas Staxx
After spending a good time with the demo of Massive Xmas Staxx, we’ve got to say that it felt oddly familiar. The booster climbing, the Collect symbol waiting patiently on reel 5, and the Staxx dropping down to reveal stack prizes are all things we’ve already seen. When comparing the game to Massive Gold Power Staxx, we realized that this is a so-called reskin. The RTP, max in, and all other stats are identical. The features and all their mechanics are also the same. The only thing that has changed is that the spacy theme has been replaced (or pimped up) to a spacy Christmas theme.
The original mechanics work, and the festive look is kind of cheerful, though it could have used more Christmas trees and snow, and less space. The 1UP and Collect combo kept us engaged, and the Blizzard Spins gave us a few tense moments when we were one Blizzard symbol short of the next stage. The base game also runs at a comfortable pace with medium volatility and wins on about every fourth spin, although we had some spinning sessions where it felt like Santa forgot our address.
A max win of 5,200x is not going to make anyone quit their job, but it is, of course, a welcome addition to any player’s account. If you’ve played the original, you won’t find anything new here. However, if you haven’t tried the series, you may find it worth trying out a few Christmas spins.
Massive Xmas Staxx from Snowborn Games does what it promises. It looks alright, and will hopefully put you in a holiday mood. Just don’t expect a brand new Christmas miracle.
