300 Shields Mighty Ways
By SG Digital
300 Shields Mighty Ways from Light and Wonder (formerly SG Digital) is a long-awaited sequel to the original 300 Shields game from 2014. Whilst retaining the high volatility engine of the original where huge wins can be achieved thanks to big multipliers and re-triggering free spins, this version has a few upgrades. The Mighty Ways are expanding reels that accompany avalanche wins, creating up to 262,144 win ways. And the maximum payout has been significantly improved to 30,000x to compete with modern high variance slots.
| Game Name | 300 Shields Mighty Ways |
|---|---|
| Developer | SG Digital |
| Theme(s) | Action, Ancient Greece, History |
| Release Date | September 2022 |
| Rows | 3 to 8 |
| Reels | 6 |
| Paylines | Up to 262.144 |
| Volatility | High |
| RTP Rate | 95.99% | 93.99% | 90.0% |
| Max Win | 30,000x |
| Min Bet | £0.20 |
| Format | 6-Reel, Win Ways |
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Review Scorecard
What Our Reviewer Says …
A modern-take on a stone cold classic high risk slot - play if you dare!
What We Like
- Avalanche Wins give you Expanding Reels
- Massive multipliers up to 300x
- Classic high variance slot theme
- Super Free Games GUARANTEES 300x
- Collect shields for more free spins
What We Didn't Like
- Very hard to score big wins
Theme and Design
300 Shields Mighty Ways is set against the backdrop of rolling wheat fields, lakes and mountains. The same pastoral setting that greeted you in the original. Meanwhile, the bonus round takes you to the scene of the epic battle between Spartans and Persians where the pale blue sky of the base game transforms into a suitably dark, thunderous one.
And with a grand, orchestral soundtrack the mood is most definitely epic here, reflecting the volatile nature of this game. Look out as well for the sword slashing noise and bleeding affects that accompany winlines as the expanding reels function kicks in after every win. It’s very effective. If you were looking for a game with comparable warrior atmosphere, Hacksaw's Gladiator Legends would be about the closest.
RTP and Variance
300 Shields Mighty Ways has three available RTP settings: 95.99%, 93.99% or 90%. The optimum setting is just a touch under average but good enough. However, which setting your casino chooses is at their discretion. We checked the RTP settings at four popular slot sites in the UK. This is what we found:
- Casumo (independent) – 95.99% RTP
- BacanaPlay (Skill on Net) – 93.99% RTP
- Barz Casino (White Hat Gaming) – 93.99% RTP
- Dream Vegas (White Hat Gaming) – 93.99% RTP
- All British Casino (L and L Europe) – 93.99% RTP
Based on our research, for the best return to player we recommend that you play at Casumo.
Like the original, 300 Shields Mighty Ways is a high variance slot. It will rarely pay out the big money, but when it does it can unleash some huge win sequences. Big multipliers of up to 300x will help trigger these events.
Maximum Win
The top win in 300 Shields Mighty Ways is 30,000x which is significantly higher than the 10,000x put out there as the top payout in its predecessor. This reflects the changing times in the slot world where maximum wins of 30,000 or more are now commonplace.
Symbols and Paytable
300 Shields is a 6 reel by 3 rows slot with potential to expand to 8 rows high on every reel. This is a win ways game so you only need to land identical symbols on adjacent reels from left to right – the position on the reel that the symbols lands does not matter.
The maximum number of lines in play is therefore 262,144 (8x8x8x8x8x8).
The paytable symbols will be familiar to anyone who has played the previous incarnations of 300 Shields. Low payers are the cards 9 through to Ace. They will earn you a win of 0.5x to 0.9x for six on a payline.
The five premiums are represented by the instruments of war – the arrow, the the sword, the warrior helmet, the archer and the ship. The archer pays out up to 10x for six on a payline.
You should keep an eye out as well for the Warrior Wild, responsible for all the best wins in this game. He lands on reels 2 to 5 and subs in for all other symbols to form wins. Crucially, he also comes with multipliers in the free spins round.
Finally, Shield Scatters are required to unlock the bonus round – they can land anywhere on the grid at any time.
Features and Gameplay
What makes this game tick is the Mighty Ways mechanic which is a clever variation on the expanding reels trend first seen in Big Time Gaming’s Megaways™ engine. In this instance it is a mix of expanding reels and avalanche wins. So, after any winning spin, the winning symbols are all removed from the reels. Reels involved in this process then expand by two rows, up to a maximum of 8 rows high. If all 6 reels reach 8 rows high then you get 262,144 paylines active.
Free Spins and Multipliers
If you want to see the good stuff in 300 Shields Mighty Ways then you will need to unlock the bonus round. This is where simple mechanics can produce phenomenal results.
As ever, Shield Scatters are key – you ‘ll need 3, 4 or 5 to get you 5, 7 or 10 free plays.
By default, ALL wins that utilise a Warrior Wild are subject to a 2x multiplier in the free spins rounds. And crucially you can keep unlocking more spins AND increasing your multipliers simply by landing more Shield Scatters.
So, if you collect 2 Shield Scatters then you get 5 more spins with a 5x multiplier applied to all wins that include a Warrior Wild. If you collect 6 Shield Scatters, then that gets you 5 more spins, but now with a 25x multiplier for your Wild wins. And collecting 12 Shield Scatters gets you 5 more games again, but this time with a mind blowing 300x multiplier on Wild wins.
Super Free Spins
There is also a Super Free Spins round in 300 Shields Mighty Ways. This can be unlocked by landing 6 Shield Scatters. The difference here is that EVERY Wild win now has a 300x multiplier applied to it from the start of the round. And of course, landing 2, 6 or 12 scatters gets you another 5 spins each time.
Final Verdict
Based on a little bit of searching around, it seems that the original 300 Shields game is no longer available at most casinos in the UK. Therefore, if you want to get your fix of warrior wild mayhem then the Mighty Ways versions is your only option now. But that is no bad thing because Light and Wonder’s upgrades make the first version kind of obsolete. After all, why would you play a 300 Shields game with a much lower maximum win, a lower RTP, and without the thrill of the expanding reels mechanic in the base game?
Pleasingly, the developer has also retained all the epic qualities of the first 300 Shields – the brooding atmosphere through sound and visuals is totally aligned with the highly volatile nature of the gameplay. And the mechanics are as simple and effective here as they were first time round. Indeed, after playing the complex feature-packed games produced by Nolimit City its good for any high variance fan to get back to basics and just hit a slot where your only goal is to unlock free spins then keep aiming to land more Scatters and more Wild wins.
In conclusion, Light and Wonder have produced a sequel that is every bit as good as the original and much more, bringing the 300 Shields brand into the modern age whilst losing none of its thrilling style and gameplay.
Testing Notes
Test spins and results analysis by Mark Wadie.
Results from 100 spins on 300 Shields MightyWays for real money at Casumo.
- Stake Size: £0.2
- Start balance £1,005.18
- End balance: £1,001.25
- Hit Rate: 12% (12 winning spins in 100)
- Biggest Win: 24.05x
- Bonus Round: 0
300 Shields MightyWays has the same fine sense of drama as the original slot thanks to the orchestral score and the sword slashes and crimson blood visuals with each winning combination. However, like its predecessor, it’s also very tight! The win rate here was just 12% - that’s only 12 spins in 100 producing a win of any kind. On the flipside, when they did arrive, most created a decent run of cascades and reel expansions. So, the best win was a 24.05x with 36,864 win ways in play and 8 rows on reel 1. And that’s only a small taste of what the game can do.
I wasn’t surprised that I didn’t trigger free spins in just 100 plays – it may take 100s to do that, making it all the more exciting when it does go off.
Take aways? This is an excellent sequel, but only for those who enjoy really risky, high volatility slots play.
Keep reading our review to find out more about the game.
Who Made 300 Shields Mighty Ways?
- Name: SG Digital
- UK License: 41115
- Total Games: Over 2,000
- Known For: Huge aggregated catalogue of slots from many big names
- Popular Slots: Rainbow Riches, Raging Rhino Megaways, Battleship Direct Hit
