If we were an online gambling company, and we’d seen some of the publicity about the industry, addiction, debt and damage we’re not sure that we would be calling a game “Blood Suckers”!
However, we’re not, and NetEnt know far more about what works with players than we do we suspect. That know-how has seen them become one of the biggest names in the online video slot world, with hundreds of games to their name, and a massively successful platform business that sees them running a large network of what are effectively NetEnt casinos.
That market power is no doubt linked to the success of their titles, but NetEnt also do a great job with aesthetics, gameplay, and mathematics. Players aren’t stupid, and Starburst and Gonzo’s Quest – both from this company – seem to be permanent fixtures in the UK slot players top 10. They’re both classics, despite being very old in slot terms.
This game, dating back to 2013 has spawned a sequel, so without seeing the figures, we’ll guess that the original Blood Suckers game must have been doing at least decent business for NetEnt.
Both games are additions to the popular horror genre, this one featuring a vampire who looks like he owes more than a little to Nosferatu, star of one of the greatest (and creepiest) ever silent films. It had a nice look and feel and, best of all, a 98% theoretical return to player, which is eye-catching.
Should you put down your stake, hammer, cross and holy water and cross to the dark side though?
Let’s take a look in this Blood Suckers slot review.
Standing out like a stake through the heart is the RTP. The figure of 98% is very high, and up there towards the RTP players at online casino sites can expect from Blackjack games, the world’s most popular card gambling game. However, RTP is a long-term measure and not a reflection of how your game will go in any particular session.
The variance or volatility of the game is rated as low, and that helps explain some of the other figures. A low variance game is more likely – but not guaranteed to – offer players more regular smaller prizes. They’re quite unusual to see – most games are medium – and the top prize here, at 50,730 coins is relatively low, coming from a relatively low betting ceiling of between 0.01 and 0.5 coins.
The game is laid out in the usual way on a 5-reel by a 3-row grid, with 25 pay-lines across the reels, that are marked up at the side of the screen and can be checked in the paytable.
Your gaming experience on desktops, mobiles and tablets is delivered via JavaScript and HTML5, so if your machine supports those you’re good to go.
To Transylvania then!
These controls will be familiar to any slot player, and particularly to anyone who’s played a NetEnt game or two.
The spin button is big, green, and central. It is flanked by a max bet, and coin value control to the right, and a bet lines and bet level control to the left, with windows underneath each button showing the levels, and your balance.
The Bet window, showing your current total wager, is at the far left, and the win window is to the far right.
There’s another set of figures in the game frame, along with the settings, sound, help and an Autospin button.
The most unusual button is the “feature preview” control to the bottom right of the screen. The paytable button is in the reel frame.
On mobile screens, it’s all cut down to an expanding spin button with Autospin options, with the rest of your decisions made via a three-line menus button.
Behind the paytable button, you’ll find a completely unique set of symbols, with no boring playing cards.
From the bottom, they are: garlic paying 2, 15, and 75-times stake for three, four, or five symbols. A crossbow pays the same. The holy bible pays 5, 25, and 100-times stake. The flask pays 5, 50, and 100-times stake. The young woman pays 10, 50, and 125-times stake. Nosferatu pays 15, 75, and 250, as does the aristocrat, with the count himself paying 50, 100, and 500-times stake.
The scatter – a bride – pays 2, 4, 25, and 100-times stake for two, three, four, and five. The wild (Dracula biting a neck) – sitting in for everything but the bonus and scatter – pay 5, 200, 2,000, and 7,500-times stake.
The bonus symbol – a stake and hammer – pays nothing, but triggers one of the:
The bride scatter triggers a free spins round. Three symbols equal 10 free spins, with another 10 added for each symbol.
The Bonus symbol triggers a second bonus game. This is a pick-and-win game, with ranks of coffins waiting for you to hammer your stakes into them to identify valuable vampires.
A fixed 25 pay lines may not sound appealing, but this classic slot game has a lot going for it including a 98% RTP which means this game is going to keep you entertained for a good amount of time. This game can provide colossal wins for those fortunate enough to strike it lucky but you’ll not find it on many Casino’s free spins offers because of the high RTP.
There are two bonus features in the Blood Suckers slot game. The first is a “Choose Game” bonus round and the second a free spins feature. The bonus is triggered when you get 3 or more consecutive stake and hammer symbols on the reels. If you get 3 or more scatters then you’ll get ten free spins during which all wins are tripled. You can also win more free spins in this round. If you get four symbols, then you’ll win 25x your stake, and five will get you 100x your stake.
3 or more Hammer symbols mean we are off to the gloomy crypt and into the ancient burial chamber where you need to open coffins to find the vampires and kill them, if you manage to be unlucky and open a coffin full of bats then the bonus game ends. You’ve got twelve coffins to choose from, and when a vampire appears, it will be slain by a stake skewering it through the middle in gory fashion.
All of the big wins in this game will come in the free spins feature round so that’s really what you are looking for and the reason why you play the game. There’s a maximum 900x stake on offer here.
Blood Suckers slot is a high variance game so don’t be expecting to trigger the free spins bonus round very often but when you do you’ll be sure to score a big win. In that respect, this game is a bit like Piggy Riches Slots where you have constant small wins and are looking to hit the bonus feature round. This is an entertaining slots game although if I were picky, you could say that the graphics were not up to the normal exemplary Net Ent standard. It’s made up for though by the high RTP of 98%.
Blood Suckers slot really is an excellent and high-quality addition to the NetEnt stable that we’re not surprised has maintained its consistent popularity and spawned another popular sequel.
A word of thanks to the designers of this game. They’ve really put some work in here, and developed a game that has depth, atmosphere and style. Truly, this game is atmospheric and spooky, and while you might not need to have a strong stomach to play it, it does as much as you can expect a slot game to do to conjure up the atmosphere of a classic horror flick.
And, after thanking the people who made it look and sound so good, we’ll give even bigger thanks to the mathematicians and programmers who allow this vamp to spurt out at 98% RTP. Generosity like that earns its rewards.
The fact that the game plays really well too adds to its attractions, and we think players who love it will stick around to enjoy a long-term romance with one of the best vampire games we’ve ever seen.