Frank’s Farm Review

From Hacksaw Gaming

Fun on the farm with sloth, Frank, in this scatter pays grid slot where market multipliers of up to 10x stick during win cascades. Boost their value in the Order Rush bonus round and accumulate progressive wins with Diner Dash. A lower variance than we normally expect from Hacksaw and 5,000x top win!

OUR RATING:

Score
8.0

Name:  Frank’s Farm

Developer:  Hacksaw Gaming

Paylines:  Scatter Pays

Reels:  6

Rows:  6

RTP:  94.36%

Variance:  Medium (3/5)

Top Payout:  5,000x

Jackpot:  No

Release Date:  January 2023

Features:  Free Spins, Market Multipliers, Diner Dash, Order Rush

About This Slot

They might be better known for their highly volatile slots output like the recent Alpha Eagle or famous Hand of Anubis slot, but Hacksaw have also produced some worthwhile games in the medium variance range too. And Frank’s Farm is one of those, mixing clever features interwoven with an upbeat theme and still having the potential to knock up some nice wins where combining multipliers and progressive wins are available in base games and bonus rounds respectively.

Frank’s Farm arrived in the last week of January 2023, providing a much-needed change of pace after the horror-fest that is Rotten. It takes place against a cartoon, Farmville style backdrop viewed from overhead, with a lazy sloth called Frank (naturally) running the show. He sits outside his farm building to the left of a 6×6 grid, sucking on a straw whilst the action unfolds.

It’s all cheery and fun and a scatter pays game mechanic makes a nice change from the standard 5×4, fixed payline style we usually see from Hacksaw.

You can check out our highlights video from our session at Casumo here including a Order Rush Free Spins round with multiple Market Multipliers.

RTP, Variance and Top Payout

Whilst the RTP for Frank’s Farm is variable depending on country and operator– from 88.25% to 96.31% – most UK slot sites we have looked at opt for the 94.36% setting. That is how we found it at Casumo where we tested the game. The variance is lower than most Hacksaw games at a medium (3/5) making this a more relaxing slot than many others in their catalogue. The top payout is dialled down as well but still enticing at 5,000x.

Spins start at 10p per play.

Symbols and Graphics

Remember, this is a Scatter Pays game with wins triggered when 8 or more identical symbols land ANYWHERE on the 6×6 grid. So, no paylines.

Low payers are the cards, 10 through to Ace, with wins of 15x up to 25x for 15 or more identical symbols landing at once. High payers are the farm animals – bees, fish, hens, pigs and cows. Bees pay a handsome 37.5x for 15 or more whilst the top paying cow triggers a massive 75x when 15 or more drop at the same time.

There are NO wilds in the game.

What We Like

  Sticky multipliers during each cascade
  Order Rush increases multiplier value
  Balanced payout model
  FS trigger extra free spins

What We Don't Like

  Low RTP for UK - 94.36%

Gameplay and Features

There is a nice mix multipliers and clever bonus round features at Frank’s Farm to help you on your way to scoring those bigger wins. Here is how they work.

Cascades Follow EVERY Win

After any winning spin, the winning symbols drop off the reels to be replaced by new ones. These cascades keep coming until no more wins are triggered.

Boost Your Wins With Market Multipliers

The simplest of features – these multipliers may drop at any time onto the reels. When they do, their value is applied to any win from the same spin. Where more than one is in play, then the two values are multiplied together.

Market Multipliers can be valued anywhere from 2x to 10x.

Order Rush Bonus Game – Complete Orders To Earn Bigger Multipliers

The first free spins round is triggered by landing 3 FS scatters. You get 10 spins but landing one more scatter during the round gets you another spin each time. During your spins you are tasked with completing orders which means collecting sets of between 10 and 24 symbols.

That might sound easy, but it’s going to get progressively harder to complete orders because each time you complete one, the next order will have more symbols to collect, AND every THREE orders, the number of symbol sets to complete goes up by one TOO.

The toughest order will be THREE sets of 24 symbols! So you have to be on your toes at this point landing as many of the required symbols as possible before your spins run out.

And what is this all for? With each order you complete the minimum value of the Market Multipliers goes up by 1x giving you better chances of scoring bigger wins.

Double Down On Your Wins With Diner Dash Bonus Game 

If you land FOUR FS symbols on one spin then you unlock Diner Dash with 10 FS. Once again, one more is unlocked for each FS that lands in the round.

Now, every time a Diner symbol lands it sticks on the grid. Each diner is then added to a chart next to the reels and every win is now allocated to a diner when it triggers. Then, when the round ends, all the allocated wins are collected from the diners, added together and paid out.

 

More Games Like Frank’s Farm Slot

Pug Life by Hacksaw GamingIf you enjoy the cutesiness of Frank’s Farm then we also recommend Pug Life from this studio. It runs at around the same variance, though in our tests it felt higher. And just like Frank’s Farm it utilises a whole lot of multipliers to drive up wins. Treat bowls trigger multipliers of up to 200x and in the free spins round they stick throughout, with potentially great results. Pug Life also has a higher top win than Frank’s Farm at 7,500x.

Fat Rabbit by Push Gaming – If you are looking for something more volatile with a farming theme then you could always try Push Gaming’s popular Fat Rabbit slot. This game runs on a Look out for the rabbit symbol that moves position during the free spins round, consuming carrots as he goes and increasing in size up to a possible 5×5. Its fun stuff and Fat Rabbit has a better top payout than Frank’s Farm at 10,223x.

Where to Frank’s Farm Slot – Further Recommendations

Play OJOWe recommend playing Hacksaw games at Play OJO, a Skill on Net site. OJO has over 4,000 games on its books and that makes it one of the best slot sites for choice of games. And … every free spins offer at OJO has no win limit and no wagering requirements attached to it. You can deposit as little as £10 here to get started.

CasumoOur other favourite slot site right now is Casumo and it makes a great destination for playing Hacksaw games. They have over 2,900 games in their catalogue and lots of added features to keep your slots play interesting. These include reel races every hour with £1,000s in prizes, a level-ups and loyalty program with bonuses and free spins, and a downloadable app.

Our Verdict

Frank’s Farm is a fun ride with regular, balanced payouts that stretch your balance out further than most Hacksaw games. I really enjoyed the clever mix of multipliers and cascades unlocking some OK wins in the free spins round in the 80x to 100x range.

The basic bonus round is fun, particularly when you get a few market multipliers on the grid at one time and land several consecutive cascades. Here you can see the win total clocking up further and further as more scatter pays events drop. In the Order Rush, initially at least, we could fulfil orders and push up the market multiplier values quite quickly. However, as the orders got tougher, we quickly ran out of spins. And of course, it’s one thing to complete an order, but you still need to land market multipliers to benefit! You can see evidence of all this on our highlights video at the top of this review.

So, a nice respite from Hacksaw’s usual dark and hard-nosed brand of slot and one that will open this clever and innovatite slot studio up to a wider audience.

Score
8.0

Good

Hacksaw show once again that they aren't just about the horror show high variance mayhem. Fun, laid back entertainment with good potential.