Release the Kraken

Release the Kraken Casinos

Release the Kraken by Pragmatic Play dives deep into maritime folklore, bringing to life the legendary Kraken—a massive, squid-like creature that has been haunting sailors’ tales for centuries. While modern readers might recognize it from stories like Moby Dick and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, the Kraken’s roots stretch even further back to Norse mythology. Pragmatic Play has used this mythical creature as the inspiration for a slot that can be just as rewarding as it is terrifying, especially if you find yourself on the wrong end of a losing streak.

Visually, Release the Kraken is one of the more impressive games from Pragmatic Play.

Release the Kraken: How does it play?

Set against the backdrop of a sunken galleon resting at the bottom of the ocean, the 5-reel, 4-row transparent grid floats in a haunting yet stunning underwater world. Players can bet anywhere between 10 p/c to €/£/$100 per spin by choosing between 1-10 coins per line, with coin values ranging from 0.01 to 0.50. On the volatility scale, this slot scores a solid 4 out of 5 lightning bolts, meaning it can deliver some hefty wins, but watch out—it can still be quite volatile. The game boasts a respectable default RTP of 96.5%, adding a solid foundation for players hoping to reel in some big wins.

The paytable is divided into low and high-paying symbols. Low-value symbols consist of the usual card royals (J to A), which are a bit dull compared to the theme. However, the high-paying symbols are much more fitting, featuring four cartoonish sea creatures: a green fish, a blue fish, a turtle, and a shark, all reminiscent of the characters from Finding Nemo.

The game’s logo serves as the most valuable regular symbol, paying out 25x your stake for landing five-of-a-kind. The standard wild, which can substitute for any symbol except the Bonus, Free Spins, or Chest Bonus symbols, is worth the same payout.

While the base game doesn’t offer much in terms of standout features, aside from its oceanic theme, Release the Kraken really comes to life in the bonus rounds, where additional wilds and other exciting elements are triggered. Overall, while the theme is unique, you might feel a sense of déjà vu if you’re familiar with other Pragmatic Play slots—at least until the Kraken truly awakens in the bonus features!

Release the Kraken: Slot Features

Release the Kraken really unleashes its full potential when the features kick in, and the Kraken itself makes an appearance. These bonuses can either be triggered at random or activated by specific symbols, and they’re where the real excitement (and big wins) lie. Let’s dive into the Random Spin features first, where three tentacles pop up with a “Pick Me” sign, inviting players to unlock one of three modifiers:

• Kraken Lockin Wilds: This feature introduces extra Kraken Wilds. Three chests appear on the reels, and you get to open them one by one. You’ll hope to reveal “More Wilds” to add extra wilds to the reels. If you get “Continue Spinning,” the game keeps going with no changes, while “All Wins x2 and Collect” doubles your win and ends the feature. “Collect” stops the feature and pays out your winnings.
• Colossal Kraken Wilds: This modifier drops a massive 3×4 Kraken Wild on the reels. While it can cover up to 12 reel positions, it might not—sometimes it only covers the top or bottom of the reels. Either way, it guarantees a wild appearance.
• Infectious Kraken Wilds: This adds at least one Infectious Kraken Wild to the reels. Once it lands, it spreads its wild magic by turning adjacent symbols into wilds as well, boosting your chances for a big win.

These special wilds from the Random Spin features substitute for all symbols except the Bonus, Free Spins, and Chest Bonus symbols, giving you some serious potential for wild-filled wins.

Key symbols

Now let’s talk about those key symbols. If you land bonus symbols on reels 1 and 3, plus a Chest Bonus on reel 5, you’ll trigger the Sunken Treasure Bonus. In this feature, three chests appear on-screen for you to open, revealing cash prizes. There’s no fixed number of picks, and you can keep opening chests until you find one that says “Collect,” ending the feature and awarding your cash.

Roaming Kraken Free Spins

The crown jewel of Release the Kraken is the Roaming Kraken Free Spins. This feature is triggered by landing Bonus symbols on reels 1 and 3 along with a Free Spins symbol on reel 5. Instead of a preset number of spins, you’ll be greeted by a screen of chests that reveal +1, +2, or +3 free spins. While it’s technically possible to rack up several spins, most of the time, you’ll likely end up with the standard 10 spins (based on our tests). You’ll keep picking chests until you hit the dreaded “Collect,” ending the picking phase.

During the Roaming Kraken Free Spins, the game ups the ante with 40 paylines instead of the base game’s 20. Plus, there’s a win multiplier that starts at x1, and every time a wild symbol lands, it stays on the reels, roams around, and increases the multiplier by +1 with each new wild. This feature can really ramp up the excitement—and your potential payouts—especially when those roaming wilds start to multiply your wins!

Release the Kraken: Slot Verdict

If you enjoy cracking open chests to reveal treasure, Release the Kraken is right up your alley! The game is all about uncovering the hidden rewards within those chests. Oddly enough, during our gameplay, we consistently got to open four chests in any feature before hitting the inevitable ‘Collect’ on the fifth. Whether it was during the Kraken Free Spins or the Sunken Treasure bonus, the fifth pick always seemed to end the fun. Could it just be coincidence? Maybe. But after a while, the predictability became amusing—and oddly, four really felt like the magic number.

We also spotted another pattern during the Roaming Kraken Free Spins. Across about 30+ features we played, if no wild landed on the first spin, one almost always appeared on the second. While that could also be random, it happened so often that the predictability began to dampen the thrill. Part of the joy in slots is the unpredictability, but here, certain things started to feel too “on schedule.”

In terms of gameplay, Release the Kraken seems to follow a similar math model to other recent Pragmatic Play releases, such as Hercules & Pegasus. Both games trigger features in similar ways and play out with the same volatile and somewhat whimsical feel. There’s potential to win up to 10,000 times your stake, but as with many highly volatile slots, your experience can swing wildly. You could be reeling in huge Kraken Wins one moment, and the next, you might feel like you’re getting dragged under by the game’s more ruthless side.