Slot Description
Tasty Treats opens on a 6x4 grid layout that follows the cluster pays system for payouts. As per this payout mechanic, connecting 5 or more symbols vertically and/or horizontally dishes out winning amounts. But before wins come wager, and the ones in this game are pretty standard: the minimum bet is 0.20 coins, while the maximum bet size is 100 coins per spin. The slot's winning potential is impressive as it can deliver up to 10,000x the stake.
Tasty Treats RTP is 96.21%, which, even though is not the best from Hacksaw, does the job of keeping the stat above the industry average. The slot's volatility gets more attention since it is rated 5 out of 5 by the game provider and interpreted as highly volatile. Slots with high volatility do not offer frequent payouts but provide better chances to hit large wins. Another notable specification about this sugar-filled game is its hit frequency of 24%, which is good enough for a high-variance slot.
Our initial impression of Tasty Treats wasn't that great. While the vibrant and popping colors work out for most games, we didn't find anything extraordinary or unique about Tasty Treats. Math-wise, the stats and the paytable looked good enough with an eye-catching max-win prize. But there's hope the slot hides something worthwhile behind its simplicity. So, let's delve deeper to analyze the game from all aspects.
Theme, Design, and Sound
Tasty Treats takes you into the colorful saccharine world where everything is made from and designed after candies. Bubbles occupy a major part of the game, and their presence is also made evident in the visuals as they keep floating next to the grid even when the reels are not moving. Although a rainbow sits in the background and multiple colors are at play, the pink tone dominates the slot's color palette. This again goes to show how closely Hacksaw is following the candy-themed slots of competitors and trying to imitate their success formula.
A giant fluffy monster also resides in this world, feeding on all the sugary stuff. You can see it during the bonus game. And in some instances, the monster might also pull out its hand to snatch sweets from the reels. The monster’s roar was well executed and we enjoyed it from an auditory point of view. But other than that, the switch from base game to free spins wasn't very visually impactful and didn’t showcase much distinction between the two segments.
Even though the background score is jaunty but, then again, offers nothing exceptional to the ears. It goes even louder during free games, and we preferred keeping it on mute. All in all, the slot's aesthetics are simple and speak very little of Hacksaw's creative potential we have seen in the past.
Symbols and Payouts
The slot's paytable is full of delightful sweets divided into 5 types of candies and 5 baked treats. Candies are low-paying, offering 20x the stake for landing a +15 cluster of identical symbols. As for the premium baked treats, they offer 50x to 60x the stake when 15 or more matching symbols connect in a cluster.
There's also a wild that substitutes for all symbols except Free Spins scatters. Also, keep an eye on bubbles since they are wild and might also come with overlaying multipliers.
Features and Bonuses
Tasty Treats has only one bonus feature but has a special bubble modifier that might pump your wins during the base game and the bonus round.
Collapse Feature
When a winning cluster hits, symbols from that cluster get removed, and the remaining ones drop down from the top. Meanwhile, a new set of random symbols fall from the top to fill the empty positions. If this leads to a new winning cluster, the entire collapse process repeats. Through the help of the collapse mechanic, players can net multiple wins from the same spin.
Bubble Boosters
Look out for the bubbles, as they might randomly float across the reels. With each spin or collapse, there's a possibility to get 1-5 bubbles over the grid. Bubbles might come in 1x1, 2x2, or 3x3 size, which implies they can hold a minimum of 1 feature symbol and a maximum of 9 feature symbols each. These bubbles may either have multipliers or serve as wild symbols. If the bubble multiplier lands on a winning cluster, its value gets multiplied by the win amount.
The multiplier values of bubbles start from x2 and go up to x200. Suppose multiple bubbles are part of a winning combination. In that case, their values add-up first before getting multiplied by the win amount.
Monster Hand
The Monster Hand feature might trigger randomly on any spin and remove symbols from the reels to create space for new ones. The monster hand might take all symbols from either the first 3 columns, the last 3 ones, or from the entire grid.
Free Spins
Hitting at least 3 FS scatter symbols in the base game triggers the Free Spins feature. The triggering scatters reveal individual numbers, which adds up to reveal the total number of free spins won. You can win anywhere between 6 to 15 free spins from the triggering scatters. The free games offer higher chances of landing more bubbles compared to the base game. Also, landing another scatter retriggers the feature to give you extra spins.
Buy Bonus
Paying 129x the stake in the Buy Bonus menu triggers the bonus feature instantly without playing the base game. However, the buy bonus feature might not be available in some jurisdictions.
About the Game Provider
Hacksaw's career trajectory is still in its nascent stage, and yet the game provider has achieved so much in such a short span. The company was founded only in 2017, and within a few years, Hacksaw has built a portfolio of over 120 casino games. The game provider began their operations with scratchcards but soon moved to producing online slots. And it is for Hacksaw Gaming slots that the game provider is widely recognized today.
What has made Hacksaw so popular is the creativity they use in their slot design and gameplay mechanics. As of now, Hacksaw has released over 60 slot titles, which are available in more than 20 regulated markets. Also, Hacksaw is licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority and the UK Gambling Commission, which adds another layer of trust to the brand.
