Behind the Scenes on Slot Reviews

Interview with Aisley and Jade

This week at Hideous Slots, we had a real clash of the titans – I managed to round up two of our most talented writers, Aisley and Jade, for a quick Q&A session.

I asked them questions about life, love, and the future. Pffft… just joking, we spoke about slots, slots and more slots!

We wanted to give our beloved community of players a quick insight into how our reviewers tackle writing about their favourite slots.

We're finding out how these two rate online slots, how they hone their process, what each writer looks for, whether they have ever misjudged a new release, and what their guilty pleasures are when it comes to features.

Gareth: What’s your process when writing a new review, and how do you rate it? Do you play it first, study the specs, or just read the label?

Aisley: There are a few different steps before I begin writing a new review. Firstly, I'll check the game sheet and see how the stats of the release look – are there RTP options that are high enough, what is the minimum bet, how big is the max win, etc.

The majority of upcoming releases we look at can easily cover these bases, so this is a formality more than anything.

After that, I play the game – I'll never review any slot without having had a chance to play it myself. My time spent playing the game is for me to understand it, experience the features, and know what it would feel like to play with my own money, but my verdict and score itself are not influenced by factors like how much of the balance I won or lost.

When it comes to rating a game, this can vary depending on the game in question. If it’s a sequel, I score it by how I feel it stands out as a single game, but also as a sequel. For all other games, I judge them in their own right, trying not to be swayed by how other websites will score or how other providers may have done things differently.

Jade: First, I like to check out its stats, read a little about it, and check out some screenshots if provided.

Next, I like to play it. 

Before I jump into a slot review, I like to understand the mechanics. It doesn’t take too long to get a feel for how it all pieces together, so a good play for 20 minutes or so usually leaves me in a great position to write about it.

Gareth: What makes a slot stand out for you? What do you look for first in a new release – graphics, mechanics, or something else?

Aisley: Graphics are a big part of it. It’s hard to ignore if you load up a new game and your first impression is one of disappointment. Likewise, it’s hard to ignore unique theming and a fun storyline – before I even press spin, I'm already entertained.

I know theming and art are important to our audience, but mechanics and features are really the most important thing. I understand and recognise that there’s a market for nearly every kind of game, so I'm looking at both how well the features have been implemented and also how unique they are.

It all kind of comes together into one experience with each part doing its bit to help things feel exciting, much like when you play a game with your own money.

Jade: I look at everything, including catchy titles, and their theme.

I love wild west and fishing slots as much as the next person, but I confess that I love something truly unique more.

Slots like Serial from Nolimit City with its unique horror/serial killer theme stand out to me. I think more studios should make an effort not to grab their market share of the generic theme hype, but make something unique.

I'm looking at how well the features have been implemented and also how unique they are.

Gareth: How do you strike a balance between being informative and entertaining when reviewing new online slots?

Aisley: It all depends on which part of the review you’re reading. At Hideous Slots, our approach is to be entertaining and give people something they will genuinely want to keep reading when we introduce the game or offer up our conclusion, but when we’re covering the game features, we try our best to just lay out the facts.

Some people will visit my review because they have a question about the bonus trigger or the base game feature, and I want them to be able to find the information they seek as quickly as possible, without having to wade through our jokes in the middle.

So, I keep it fun at the beginning and end and keep it as informative as possible in the middle.

Jade: I think it's about understanding your audience.

People come to read slot reviews for different reasons. Some want in-depth details about gameplay and stats, while others just want to get a quick feel for whether the game is fun or worth trying.

With my reviews, I try and use a mix of language that appeals to both types of player, offering up a creative and concise verdict on each game.

Gareth: Have you ever misjudged a slot when writing, thought it was rubbish, but players loved it?

Aisley: Of course! When reviewing games, I'm looking at them from an objective point of view and as an accomplishment for the studio. As a team of professionals building a product, how do I think they did, and how do I think players will respond?

For a real player playing with their own money, the experience is totally different. Some of the most interesting releases that I've scored pretty high haven't been well received by our community, whilst other releases that I give an average or low score to are consistently loved.

Jade: Yes! I was fairly sure that Lucky Clucks by Crazy Tooth Studio was a poor slot, but it was very well received by players.

Gareth: How do you keep it fresh when you get a list of games with the same feature, like Free Spins, Hold and Win or Megaways?

Aisley: It gets easier the longer you’ve been writing reviews. The more knowledge you build about games and features, the more you can reference when you write.

I might be reviewing the sixth Megaways game of the quarter so far, but if I can recommend some other titles to our readers and keep the introduction interesting, it will be read and (hopefully) enjoyed.

This is also where art and theming really help. As a reviewer, you don’t have a hard time describing a fairly boring feature if it’s done in a humorous or risky way.

Jade: I don't think it’s up to me to keep it fresh.

If a game is generic, a reskin or underwhelming, then I won’t dress it up to be something it’s not. My verdict is always an objective opinion of someone else’s game.

If I don’t feel like it’s fresh enough, then I'll call it out.

My verdict is always an objective opinion of someone else’s game.

Gareth:  What do you do when you have to write about a slot you dislike?

Aisley: I'm pretty good at being objective, so there hasn’t really been an experience where I've truly disliked a game.

I might find that I don’t love a game, but that’s a different scenario altogether – and one I ignore. I understand and appreciate that studios work hard on their games, and, naturally, I'm not going to love everything that comes my way.

I always try to remain professional and review the game with as much care and attention to detail as I would for a release that swept me off my feet the first time I saw it.

Jade: I try to keep in mind that there is a market for the game, even if it’s not to the tastes of our streaming community or more modern players.

If I dislike a game, I’ll critique it, but I try and think about who it might appeal to.

Gareth: What do you do when you hit the wall and get writer's block?

Aisley: This can be tough. I try to look at other titles I've reviewed for some inspiration in how I could talk about the theme or features – this is where having such an extensive website really helps.

I can also check our slot theme and slot series pages to see some similar games that we’ve reviewed or discussed, or use our community – setting up polls or asking our viewers in Discord for their opinions to really get the ball rolling again.

Jade: I take a bit of a break.

I always know what my feelings and thoughts are about a slot once I’ve played and reviewed it, but sometimes it can be hard to convey in a verdict.

A cup of tea usually gets me feeling fresh and ready to get back to it.

Gareth:  Is there a feature that could be considered a bit naff or uncool that you secretly love and everyone else thinks otherwise?

Aisley: Probably Megaways. It’s not that it’s considered uncool, but it definitely feels like a more dated mechanic now that we have progressed so much further – things like xHole and xGod sometimes make other features feel so much safer.

That said, I think there’s a reason Megaways was always so popular, and it still holds a place in my heart. The fact that 117,649 ways can land in the base game and trigger some absolutely huge wins is still one of the most exciting ways to trigger a big win – in my opinion, at least.

Jade: I think Hold & Win style slots can be really cool, but they’re like Marmite to players.

It really needs to have great features, like those seen in Money Train and Fire in the Hole – Hold & Win slots with twists and turns everywhere.

Gareth: If you could tell a game provider one thing from a copywriter’s point of view, what would it be?

Aisley: Definitely to set up your game information in an easily read and well-organised way – and include all of the information!

There’s nothing I include in our reviews that I don’t think at least some players would want to know themselves, like the bonus buy RTP or what the Ante Bet specifically does.

You’d be surprised how often we struggle to find this information.

Jade: First impressions matter.

Many neglect the visual and audio elements of a slot, but sometimes it’s what makes a game. I like to think from the perspective of a player, and if I would stick around if I loaded up the game for real in a casino.

It’s a crowded market, and you really need to craft something not just mechanically excellent, but artistically great too.

Gareth: Which slot do you think is the perfect slot, and why? 

Aisley: Oh, that’s definitely a hard one to answer.

I think it really depends on what you mean by perfect, so here's a few options.

• The perfect sequel – Money Train 4
• The perfect simple game – Big Bass Splash
• The perfect game for new players – The Goonies
• The perfect all-rounder – Holy Hand Grenade

Still, these are just my opinions. Does perfection really exist? Probably not.

Jade: I don’t think it exists.

Some are quite ideal in theory, but each slot has advantages and drawbacks, like trade-offs that offer extreme potential but extreme volatility, or lower volatility but underwhelming potential.

The perfect slot from a player's point of view would be one with 100%+ RTP, but that wouldn’t be very great for the provider or the casino.