With more than 90% of the ocean still unexplored, we really have no way of knowing what lies beneath the surface. On the one hand, there might be terrifying, deadly monsters, but on the other there might be some unexpected treasure.
As far as Hacksaw Gaming are concerned, they think the best of both worlds might be under there – treasure with a side of terror, so they're sending a few divers down to scout things out. In similar fashion to Cursed Seas, Hacksaw Gaming are inviting us below the surface, in Beast Below.
With RTP options up to 96.29% (96.32% feature buy), this highly (4/5) volatile release can produce wins up to 10,000x bet.
We're at sea today, with an image traditionally employed in the Big Bass series. At the top we can see above the water, which has a boat with a large anchor and some sort of octopus floating on it, and large black rocks to either side.
Most of the screen, however, shows us what lies beneath – and in this case it's murky waters, dark seaweed, small fish and a variety of water beasts including anglerfish, sharks and pufferfish. There's plenty here to set a scene of terror, with a foreboding soundtrack coming in to tie it all together.
Beast Below Base Features
Taking place across 5 reels, wins are formed on Beast Below by matching at least 3 symbols on adjacent reels, beginning with the leftmost reel, across 1 of 14 fixed win lines. Symbols available begin with non premiums, with 10s, Js, Qs, Ks and As, awarding wins between 0.10 and 0.30x bet for 3 of a kind matches, increasing to values between 2 and 3x bet for 5 of a kind wins.
At the premium end we have a variety of sea beasts, awarding wins between 0.50 and 1.50x bet for 3 of a kind matches, increasing to values between 5 and 10x bet for 5 of a kind wins.
Finally, gold anchors act as Wild symbols and substitute for all symbols except FS Scatter symbols, awarding wins of 20x bet for 5 of a kind matches.
Expanding Sirens
Things are kept fairly simple in Beast Below, with only one feature to look out for in the base game – Expanding Sirens. Siren symbols are Wild symbols which substitute for all symbols except FS Scatter symbols.
When they land in view, they expand upward to the top of the reel they have landed upon.
Each expanded Siren will reveal a multiplier.
This multiplier will be applied to all wins the Siren is part of. If more than one Siren is involved in a winning combination, their values will be added together before being applied to the win.
Only one Siren can appear on each reel.
There are 2 Sirens – the yellow and the pink. In the base game, only the Yellow Siren can appear, with possible multipliers of 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, 9x, 10x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 50x, 100x, or 200x.
Beast Below Bonus
Land 3 FS Scatter symbols to trigger The Sirens' Call Bonus Game, with 10 free spins awarded. During this Bonus Game, there is a higher chance of landing Sirens.
Pink Sirens can now also land in view.
Yellow Sirens continue to work as they do in the base game, but Pink Sirens will remain on the reels, nudging up one position for each subsequent spin until they are removed.
Pink Sirens will reveal multipliers of 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, 9x, 10x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 50x, 100x, or 200x.
If more than one of either colour Siren is involved in a winning combination, their values will be added together before being applied to the win. Only one Siren can appear on each reel.
Land 2 or 3 FS Scatter symbols during the Bonus Game to trigger an additional +2 or +4 spins respectively.
Super Bonus
Land 4 FS Scatter symbols to trigger the Down Below Bonus Game, with 10 free spins awarded. During this Bonus Game, a new symbols is introduced – the Diver symbol.
When a Diver lands in view, it will expand to cover the entire reel it has landed upon. It will also act as a Wild symbol and substitute for all symbols except FS Scatter symbols.
It is possible to land up to 3 Divers at any one time.
Divers will reveal a multiplier when they land in view. Possible multiplier values are 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, 9x, 10x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 50x, 100x, or 200x.
This multiplier will be applied to all wins the Diver is part of. If more than one Diver is involved in a winning combination, their values will be added together before being applied to the win.
When Divers land they will have 3 Oxygen Charges. At the start of each spin, Divers will move to a new reel, their Oxygen Charge will be depleted by 1 and they will reveal a new multiplier.
When a Diver's Oxygen reaches 0 it is removed from the reels at the end of the spin.
Land 2 or 3 FS Scatter symbols during the Bonus Game to trigger an additional +2 or +4 spins respectively.
Buy Bonus
Players in appropriate regions can take advantage of the following Buy Bonus options:
- Bonus Hunt FeatureSpins (5x more likely to trigger a bonus) – 3x bet (96.29% RTP)
- Siren FeatureSpins (2 Sirens guaranteed) – 50x bet (96.32% RTP)
- The Sirens' Call Bonus Game – 120x bet (96.27% RTP)
- Down Below Bonus Game – 200x bet (96.31% RTP)
The volatility for all Buy Bonus options is very high, with the exception of Down Below Bonus Game, which is rated high. The RTP options above are based upon the 96.29% RTP setting.
The maximum win available in Beast Below is 10,000x bet. If the sum of a single game round exceeds this, the game round will end and 10,000x bet will be awarded.
First Impression
Beast Below is a standard Hacksaw Gaming affair – from audiovisuals to mechanics and volatility, it's clear who you're dealing with when you open this game. In many ways, things are quite similar in this release to Cursed Seas, in both theme and features.
In the base game, expanding Sirens carry the weight, offering multipliers up to 200x to keep players entertained until a Bonus Game lands.
When we move into either Bonus Game though, things get more exciting, with a higher possibility of landing Sirens in The Sirens' Call, and new pink Sirens, which remain on the reels for longer than their yellow counterpart. In Down Below, players won't see Sirens, but they will now see Divers, acting as full reel Wild symbols, remaining on the reels for 3 spins and revealing the same multipliers up to 200x.
In either instance, when the right combinations land wins are possible up to 10,000x bet.
Finally, maths is highly (4/5) volatile, and RTP options are available up to 96.29% (96.32% feature buy), so as always it's worth checking this.
If you've been a fan of Hacksaw Gaming so far, there's nothing to say you won't like Beast Below. If you haven't been convinced but you're a fan of Wild reels working with large multipliers, this one could still be for you.
*The screenshots taken of games reviewed on this site are taken from Demo Play, as reviews are often written before games are released for real play.
