Dead or Alive pokie review

If you’ve finished watching Westworld and still need your western fix, this incredibly popular title by NetEnt — Dead or Alive — may just be worth getting off your horse for. If you haven’t seen the HBO series and you just want a real money slots game with a good cowboy theme, then perhaps Dead or Alive is right up your alley. If you’re a high roller, you may not want to give it a shot.

Where to play Dead or Alive online

Format of Net Entertainment’s Dead or Alive

Net Entertainment is the king of video pokies, and while you are forgiven if you thought Dead or Alive is a classic pokie due to the nine paylines the 5 reels featuring unique video animations will quickly make you see it’s not.

The reels are set on the backdrop direct from an animated western film with a stormy sky threatening to pour down on the dusty town. With just the name to run with and opening the reels alone we can tell the theme is a based on the Wild Wild West before we turn up the volume and spin the reels. NetEnt has also gotten crafty with the paylines hanging small numbers on the sides of the reels which show the bet lines when you hover your mouse over them. These paylines are all fixed.

The bet buttons and wager adjusters are all located under the reels still, but NetEnt has crafted the graphics so it appears as if they’ve been painted onto a fence. The bet size can be adjusted from 0.01 to 0.50, while the bet level can be increased from one, to two, three and four. This sees a minimum bet of $0.09 and a maximum bet of $18 – perfect for the low roller.

AutoPlay and MaxBet buttons are both available and there’s even a ‘Feature Preview’ option so you don’t have to spend a cent before experiencing the bonus round on Dead or Alive. Click on it and it will show you a quick automated clip of what happens when you trigger the bonus rounds.

Dead or Alive symbols

The symbols have been designed around the cowboy theme featuring the low paying symbols appearing to be reminiscent of badges – the 10, J, Q, K and A are all metallic with a colourful glow.

The middle paying symbols include the whiskey shots, the cowboy boots and the cowboy hat, while the top paying symbols are represented by the holster with a gun and the sheriff’s badge.

Both Wild and Scatter symbols are present, with the Wild, which is the wanted poster, paying the most and substitutes for all symbols except the Scatter – which is the crossed guns with three triggering the Free Spins feature. The Wild can also appear Sticky in the Free Spins.

All symbols require at least three of a kind to trigger a payout, except the Scatter which only needs two. The highest win per bet line pays and for more information you can click the ‘i’ to view the paytable.

Dead or Alive bonus features

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Since this is quite a simple pokie, the bonus features aren’t overly complex. There’s just a Free Spins feature with a special Wild to keep things exciting. While it doesn’t sound like much, this is perfect for those new to the online pokies realm or for those who don’t like the big antics multi-level bonus pokies offer.

When you spin at least three Scatter symbols you will trigger the Free Spins feature and here you will be awarded with 12 Free Spins and a 2x multiplier. The Wilds will turn Sticky and remain for the entirety of the Free Spins. If you do get one or more Sticky Wilds you will be awarded five free spins. You can also re-trigger the free spins, but only once.

Audio and graphics of Dead or Alive by NetEnt

We briefly touched on the graphics above – NetEnt has always done a great job when it comes to creating stunning pokies. The animations bring the reels to life and offer a new gaming experience, not just bright lights flashing at you. There isn’t too much going on to drain your Internet data and cause every site to crash which is a plus if you have an already slow Internet connection.

The audio is quite good when the reels are stationary with the sounds of the Wild West, but there is the mechanical sound we hear at land-based casinos. This is a bit of a drawback, but if you’re one for making a land-based experience from the comfort of your home you might just enjoy this. You can also mute the audio if you prefer no sounds at all.

Dead or Alive – Our thoughts

When writing our Dead or Alive review we quickly fell in love with the theme – a Wild West theme done well in terms of the graphics is quite appealing. We do wish there was more to the title than just a Free Spins feature, especially since it has just 12 Free Spins and a 2x multiplier, though the ability to easily score five extra Free Spins is nice. You can also re-trigger the spins; we just didn’t manage to unfortunately, but we did win 776 coins.

We love multi-level bonus rounds so we are somewhat bias. But this title is very simplistic and great for someone looking for an entertaining title without ruining the bankroll.