Jump into the arcade style of the 1980s in Xpander online slots from Hacksaw Gaming. Based on the Hoppers first seen in the Hop ‘N’ Pop slot, the Xpander video slot brings a multiplier overlay to increase group wins up to 128x in value. Along with wilds and special symbols that increase the multiplier and expand the size of the Hopper. Get ready for cascading retro online slot action and a free spins bonus for ever-increasing wins up to 10,000x your bet.
96.25%
7x7
Cluster pays
High
Review of Xpander Online Slot
Jump into the arcade style of the 1980s in Xpander online slots from Hacksaw Gaming. Based on the Hoppers first seen in the Hop ‘N’ Pop slot, the Xpander video slot brings a multiplier overlay to increase group wins up to 128x in bet. Along with wilds and special symbols that increase the multiplier and expand the size of the Hopper. Get ready for cascading retro online slot action and a free spins bonus for ever-increasing wins up to 10,000x your bet. Xpander is a 7×7 cascading grid online slot with clustered payouts and RTP of 96.25%. Wins are awarded for connecting five or more matching symbols horizontally or vertically to form a cluster. You can get in on the highly volatile action from $0.20 to $100 per spin.
In online slot Xpander, developer Hacksaw Gaming has chosen a retro-futuristic theme. Depending on how you play, you may find a blue and purple background of unremarkable tall buildings behind a panel. Game development studio Hacksaw isn’t always known for its highly detailed artwork, yet it knows how to squeeze the most out of what it does.
Still, Xpander isn’t the most exciting slot from an audio-visual standpoint. Perhaps because the grid is covered in old-school fruit symbols from classic slots and they don’t match the theme. In a way, it almost feels like a fusion of Hop’N Pop and Cubes 2 slots. The smooth, synthwave-inspired soundtrack takes the game even further back to the 80’s with a windy timbre that is not overly energetic, but picks up steam when things go well during the free spins.
Xpander slot basic features
Appearance is not the main attraction of Hacksaw games, but their mathematical model. The combination of features provides most of its gameplay. Pocketz slots can be a good alternative to Candy Crush for players who want sharper games on your smartphone with the possibility of potential rewards. Using a cluster payout system, wins occur when 5 or more symbols link horizontally or vertically anywhere on the playing field. The symbols used in the Xpander slot machine go in the following order, from smallest to largest: cherries, lemons, grapes, watermelons, bells, horseshoes, sevens and diamonds. The optimal result is to collect groups of 15 or more of the same symbols, which results in payouts of 20 to 80 times your bet. There is also a wild symbol that substitutes for all other symbols except the scatter.
Additional features
Xpander is an offshoot of an earlier game called Hop’N’Pop, which uses a similar hopper function in both stages of the game. The two earlier slots are not the same, as Hacksaw has made some changes to the hopper operation in the Xpander slot. However both slots share the same concept. The first added feature is the drop feature, which removes winning groupings from the grid. This allows new or existing symbols to flip to empty cells, which can cause a grouping to win again. The flip continues until new winning combinations appear on the panel.
The Hopper feature consists of a x2 multiplier icon placed on top of the regular symbols. Initially it has a size of 1×1 and moves to a new position between free or paid spins. If it is placed on top of a symbol that is part of a winning cluster, the payout of the cluster is multiplied by the current value of the Hopper. There are also several symbols in the game that increase the size and value of the Hopper multiplier. Double Up symbols appear anywhere and double the current multiplier up to a maximum of x128. More than one Double Up symbol can appear at the same time.
Keep an eye on the green arrow, which is a growth symbol. When it lands, a collection occurs. Every 3 Grow symbols collected in a roll-up sequence increases the cell size from 1×1 to 2×2, 3×3 and then 4×4. Each time the multiplier increases in size, players also receive a re-spin. The hopper symbol resets the size and value between pay spins.
A spin of at least 3 scatter symbols in the base game activates the free spins feature. In this feature the value or size of the multiplier is never reset, although both features have the same 128x limits and 4×4 size. When the round starts, players receive 5 free spins and a spin of 1UP symbols adds +1 free spin.
Conclusion
Developer Hacksaw Gaming was quick to release another memorable slot with the Hopper concept to follow the success of the previous Hop’n’Pop slot. Although the two online slots are similar, the Xpander slot offers something that neither Hop’n’Pop nor many other slots released before it have. It is a multiplier symbol that increases in both size and value when it jumps to new positions. The jumper is reminiscent of the Gargantoon Wild multiplier from the Reactoonz 2 online slot. However, the Xpander video slot uses a simpler system and hitting the maximum win level at 128x will make the most savvy player sweat.
Hacksaw has changed the mathematical calculations of the game, so that there would be a decent amount of flips to extend the bonus round during the review. But don’t expect too much, the multiplier only goes up a few levels. The 1UP symbols are quite numerous.
But, when the Xpander slot “wakes up,” the action on the playing field is good enough to distract from the poor visuals and sleepy soundtrack. Xpander is not a “powerful” Hacksaw slot, but few players will complain about the 10,000x it offers. Overall, Xpander is a well-made online slot game that embodies everything the Pocketz series is known for. You can try Xpander slot in demo mode for free on this page or play it for real money at the best Hacksaw casinos.