Deadwood RIP

Welcome to Deadwood…home to rattlesnakes, outlaws, X-Nudges, X-Splits, X-Bets and volatility so high it would have the late Edda Star turning in her shallow grave.  Calling this the “Wild West” would bring absolutely no vigilante justice to Nolimit City’s outlandish sequel to the great Deadwood, as they tighten the gallows with their exciting, new release of Deadwood RIP.  A provider infamous for feature-frenzied, volatility-pushing and theming often to the edge of sanity, Nolimit City are no strangers to releasing sequels to their back catalogue of classics; Tombstone No Mercy, Fire in the Hole 2 and Punk Toilet springing to mind.  Surely it was only a matter of “when” and not “if” we would be seeing the lawless streets of Deadwood get an extreme reboot.

If it is one thing that Nolimit City know how to do, it is a Western.  We don’t need to remind fans of the classic likes of Tombstone, Bounty Hunters and Tombstone RIP; all seeing above-the-law characters tackling big wins, one spin at a time.  But what if you were to combine features from all of these greats into one big heap of crazy, gun-slinging, multiplying, wild-dropping lunacy; an idea very much suited to a late night lock-in down the local saloon.  It is a question asked by few but, lucky for us, Nolimit City seem to have got it covered.

Deadwood RIP Base Game Play

Stepping away from what the game does for just a moment, how does it look?  Well firstly, the dark contrast of colours are back.  Certainly not as popping as the original Deadwood, the stark colour scheme certainly matches the violent, dangerous theme being presented to us.  This style has worked very well in the past with games of a more sinister underlay such as Jingle Balls but the addition of pastel-style vibrancy is a noticeable progression in the “RIP” series.  Graphically, Deadwood RIP is on par and, let’s face it, it needed to be.  So much can happen within the game grid at any one time, sharp, crisp graphics are key to keeping tabs on exactly what is happening in front of your eyes.  The way the symbols are shot during win spins and the premium symbols killed during the shootout is a nice touch.

Deadwood RIP is played on a 5-reel game grid with a row setup in 3-4-4-4-2 format.  The fifth reel is the odd one out, containing special features and properties:

• All symbols, when fully landed, will count as double symbols
• no low-paying symbols are present on the reel
• Gunslinger symbols and Hog Me Tight scatter symbols are available inside the base game and Redemption free spins
• During Salvation free spins, only the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol is present

The game offers a blanket 384 ways to win, however the addition of splits features can see this increase on a spin by spin basis.  Highly volatile, Deadwood RIP offers an RTP of 96.09% and an eye-watering max win potential of 100,000x bet.

Set for release to UK casinos on 4th June 2024, let’s check out the vast showdown of in-game play, features and bonuses on display with Deadwood RIP.

Deadwood RIP contains plenty of in-game features such as the Shootout Feature

Deadwood RIP Base Features

A win will occur by matching at least 3 paying symbols from left to right, regardless of their positions on each reel.  Occasionally, a stacked wild symbol will land on any of the middle 3 reels.  If this occurs, it will continuously nudge up or down the reel until it is in full view.  With every nudge, the multiplier within the wild will increase by +1.  Any win that connects with a wild in play will be multiplied by the value of the wild.  Wilds substitute for any paying symbol and act slightly differently between the base game and the bonus free spins, which we will get to shortly.

Low paying symbols are the usual 10, J, Q, K, A we are all familiar with and have a payout value of 0.10x-0.20x for 3 matching symbols up to 1.00x-1.20x for 5 matching symbols.

Premium “Gunslinger” symbols are the bandits, having a payout value of 0.30x-0.50x for 3 matching symbols up to 1.50x-3.50x for 5 matching symbols.  Nolimit City have brought back some of our classic characters of old including the infamous Edda Star, Skinny Joe and El Gordo which is a great added touch for fans of Tombstone RIP.

A new and somewhat controversial feature mechanic has been included in Deadwood RIP known elusively as xRIP.  Should the player match symbols inside the base game or bonus rounds where their total payout win value is lower than the base bet value, the xRIP feature is triggered and no win will be paid out for that spin  *Cue passing Tumble Weed*  If that doesn’t scream out high volatility then I honestly don’t know what will.  Either way, it’s best if you aim to match more than a handful of low paying symbols if you want paying for the pleasure.

Land 2 Scatters to trigger the Reel Split Wilds feature

xNudge Wilds

As mentioned, a stacked wild symbol may land at any time on the middle 3 reels.  If this occurs, the wild will nudge up or down the screen until a full symbol is present inside the reel.  With each nudge, the multiplier value of the wild increases by +1.  Inside the base game, if multiple xNudge wilds land together and connect to a win, their values will be added up and the total multiplier value will be multiplied against the win.  Inside the bonus free spins, multiple landed xNudge Wilds will multiply with each other to create the total win multiplier.

xSplit Wilds

Should 2 Diamondback Scatter symbols be landed, the Reel Split Wild will be activated.  Once landed, it will split itself and any other symbol on that reel into 2 and double all symbols within the reel.  This can only be activated on the middle 3 reels.  Landing the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol on reel 5 will act as a wild 2 symbols high.  Once landed, it will cut all symbols to the left on the middle rows.

Should an xNudge Wild be split at any point, the multiplier inside the wild shall be doubled.

Quick Draw

It is possible, on any random spin, to land a revolver symbol on reel 1.  The revolver may contain anywhere between 3 and 6 bullets.  Once landed, the Quick Draw feature will be activated and shots fired at symbols currently landed on the screen.  The number of shots will depend on how many bullets are in the revolver.  Each shot will double the multiplier on the symbol that is hit.

Shootout

Landing a Sheriff Badge symbol on both reels 2 and 4 on the same spin will activate the Shootout feature.  Similar to Deadwood, all low pay symbols shall be removed on the middle 3 reels and replaced with wilds.

Scatter

The Scatter symbols in Deadwood RIP are shown as Diamondback Rattlesnakes and can land only on reels 2, 3 and 4 during the base game.  Landing 3 Diamondback Scatter symbols will activate 5 Redemption free spins.  Should 3 scatters be landed on reels 2, 3 and 4 and also the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol on reel 5, 6 Salvation free spins will be awarded.

If 2 Diamondback scatter symbols are landed, they will become Reel Split Wilds.

If the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol lands on reel 5 without activating Salvation spins, symbols to the left will be split on the middle row, as mention previous, and the scatter acts as a wild.

Inside the Free Spins Bonus rounds, landing 3 RIP Scatter symbols will retrigger the bonus.

3 Scatters awards the Redemption Free Spins with building multipliers

Deadwood RIP Redemption Bonus Free Spins

Landing 3 Diamondback Scatter symbols will activate 5 free Redemption Spins.

The bonus plays out similar to the base game, however much like the Gunslinger bonus on the original Deadwood, the multiplier value on xNudge Wilds will remain throughout.  The key difference here is that any additional xNudge Wilds that land will multiply the current multiplier by its own value, with the potential to create large total multipliers over the course of the bonus round.

Landing 3 RIP Scatters will retrigger the bonus, awarding an extra 5 free spins.

It is possible to upgrade the bonus to Salvation free spins should the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol land at any point on reel 5.  Should this occur, 1 additional free spin shall be awarded.

Deadwood RIP Salvation Bonus Free Spins

Landing 3 Diamondback Scatter Symbols along with the Hog Me Tight scatter symbol in the base game will activate 6 free Salvation Spins.

As with the Redemption Spins, any mutliplier gained from xNudge Wilds will remain throughout the free spins and any further xNudge Wilds will multiply the total multiplier by its own value.

During Salvation Free Spins, the Hog Me Tight Scatter symbol will remain on reel 5 and will act as a wild and also split all symbols to the left on the middle row every spin.

Landing 3 RIP Scatters will retrigger the bonus, awarding 6 extra spins.

Land or upgrade to Salvation Free Spins for a building multipliers and row splits

xBets and Bonus Buys

For those it applies to, Deadwood RIP offers the chance to pay for 2 types of xBets and 4 bonus buy options.

xBet1 – At the cost of 2.5x bet, you are able to guarantee a Diamondback Scatter symbol on reel 2.  This more than doubles your chance of triggering Redemption and Salvation Spins.  RTP 96.13%

xBet2 – At the cost of 15x bet, a guaranteed Diamondback Scatter symbol will land on reels 2 and 3.  The chance of triggering Redemption and Salvation Spins will be more than 10 times likely.  RTP 96.18%

Redemption Spins – At the cost of 80x bet.  RTP 96.18%

Salvation Spins – At the cost of 1,500x bet.  RTP 96.24%

Lucky Draw 80/20 – At the cost of 364x bet.  RTP 96.13%

Lucky Draw 50/50 – At the cost of 790x bet.  RTP 96.23%

Pros and Cons of Deadwood RIP

• A great combination of past greats
• Excellent graphics and game play
• Plenty of features to keep it exciting
• Huge max win potential of 100,000x bet
• Extremely volatile
• Use of xRIP feature means no payout on wins less than base bet

Games Similar to Deadwood RIP

• Deadwood
• Tombstone RIP
• Tombstone No Mercy
• Bounty Hunters

First Impression of Deadwood RIP

Deadwood the First was a fantastic game.  A lot of providers choose to quit while they are ahead after a big hitter is released so as not to taint the original with a reskin that doesn’t quite make the grade.  Not Nolimit City.  Known for being a bit “away from the norm” and always pushing boundaries of acceptance to the absolute limit, it was never in doubt to many that we would see a follow on.  Has good, ol’ fashioned Western justice been done?

Certainly, enough has changed from the classic original to warrant Deadwood RIP.  The core has been kept, such as the Shootout feature and building-multiplier xNudge Wilds which were great, notable features in Deadwood.  But has too much changed?  Additions of the Quick Draw feature, Hog Me Tight scatter, xSplits and Reel Split Wilds to name a few have all morphed together to create a real “Spaghetti” to the Western and quite often you can be found scratching the top of your cowboy hat in wonder of where that last win came from.  More features aren’t necessarily a bad thing and must be included to move a game forward, anyone who is a fan of Tombstone RIP will very much relate to this game, yet the simplicity of Deadwood brought with it a certain charm.  You knew what you wanted and when you wanted it; as simple as a walk into the dying sunset.

All that aside, Nolimit City have created a great game, no less.  Excellent mechanics, enough to keep you guessing and interested, sharp graphics and anyone who particularly enjoys the gorier side of life will particularly like the animations throughout.  If none of that Wagons your Wheel then surely chasing down that impressive max win potential of 100,000x is enough to spark some interest.

To end on a slightly sour note, the inclusion of the xRIP Feature (very loose term) is not something I personally want to see more of.  It sometimes feels like someone has pushed your head into a cactus when you see matching symbols but no return.  Yes they may be small returns but they’re sometimes what keep you spinning and it all adds up.

Nolimit City tend to set the bar when it comes to the extreme and, once again the bar has been raised with Deadwood RIP.  Any lover of the provider and their vast catalogue of all things Western will play this game and most likely come back for more.  It’s exciting, it’s brutal and it certainly has its quirks.  Anyone that takes on these outlaws can certainly be expecting the chance for a Fistful of Dollars.

*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.