Hooligan Hustle

Hooligan Hustle Slot Review

NOTE: Screenshots on this page were taken whilst we played this game for real money at Casumo Casino

Game Scorecard

How We Review Slot Games

We test and rate all slot games across 5 criteria, assigning a score out of 10 for each and an overall score that is an average of the 5. To build an accurate assessment of each game we gather information from the supplier and play in real play or demo mode. Find out more.

Overall Score

7.6

Game Information

  • Name: Hooligan Hustle
  • Game Suppplier: Play n Go
  • Release Date: December 2021
  • RTP: 96.27%, 94.27%, 91.25%, 87.27%, 84.24%
  • Variance: High
  • Maximum Win: 10,000x
  • Progressive Jackpot: No
  • Minimum Stake: £0.10
  • Reels: 5
  • Rows: 3
  • Paylines: Up to 248,832
  • Features: Wilds Reels, Synchronised Reels, Multipliers, Free Spins, Rumble Row Modifiers

About Hooligan Hustle

Are slots now imitating real life? Following on from the hooliganism outside Wembley Stadium during last summer’s Euro 2020 final, Play n Go are bringing out a light-hearted take on the perennial story of football hooliganism, and all with a cheeky, cartoon vibe. Gangs supporting rival clubs have been at each other’s throats for decades and this sub-culture has been the subject of numerous movies, books and songs over the years. So why not now a video slot game, eh?

Looking at the theme, artwork and features it looks like Play n Go have been taking inspiration from one of their up and coming rivals, No Limit City, too. Coming across much like a Punk Rocker, or a San Quentin xWays with its lairy protagonists and splitting cell feature, Hooligan Hustle is both humorous and bolshie, managing to side-step any seriousness with its carefree, scrappy atmosphere. It also reminds us of the slots produced by NLC due to its high volatility which is up there with some of Play n Go’s most fearsome slots of recent years.

The action all takes place on a 5-reel and 3 row set-up of symbols for a traditional layout, while the paylines start out as a classic 243 but can extend up to a massive 248,832 when the Split Symbols feature is activated. More on that in a moment.

What We Liked

  • Original and tongue-in-cheek theme
  • Up to 248,832 ways to win
  • Customisable Free Spins round
  • Synchronising reels feature
  • Decent top payout

What We Didn't like

  • Sensitive players may dislike the theme
  • Super-high variance too much for some

About The Developer

  • Name: Play n Go
  • Established: 1997
  • UK License: Remote 021725-R-304911-020
  • Total Games: 200 +
  • Known For: Grid slots, high variance slots, huge range of themes, styles and maths models
  • Popular Slots: Book of Dead, Reactoonz 1 and 2, Troll Hunters 2, Rise of Olympus

RTP and Variance 7/10

What is RTP?

RTP (Return to Player) refers to the amount a game will pay out in cash prizes expressed as a percentage of all the money wagered on that game. For example, a 96% RTP means a game will pay out £96 for every £100 wagered. This is an average number and will vary from one session to the next.  Read more here.

What is Variance?

Variance refers to how far a game will deviate from its RTP over time. High variance games deviate a lot and produce uneven win distributions and unexpected windfalls. Low variance games provide a more stable and even distribution of wins. Read more here.

Let’s get into the maths then and your RTP for Hooligan Hustle is a fairly average 96.27%. No surprises there then. Meanwhile, with the volatility level so high this is a risky game to play and you can expect some strong variations in payouts that will leave you very frustrated at times. However, with a minimum bet of 10p its still approachable for those with smaller budgets to wager. Just bear in mind that you can burn through your balance in no time on Hooligan Hustle.

The maximum payout of 10,000x is based on a probability level of 1 in 12 million so the odds are of course very much against you there. However, prizes of 1,000x + may drop from time to time if you manage to get lucky with the correct mix of modifiers and splitting cells.

Paytable 8/10

The symbols in Hooligan Hustle include the 4 angry looking hooligan protagonists who can award from 1.4x to 2x stake for 5 of a kind. The other symbols include some make-shift weapons of hooliganism, such as crowbars, knuckledusters, beer glasses, bricks and terrifying spiked clubs. These lower paying symbols can award 0.3 to 0.5x stake for 5 of a kind.

The Wild symbol for the game is a traffic cone, which can substitute for all the other symbols to create more potential winning combinations. There are also Scatter symbols to trigger the Free Spins bonus feature, along with Question Marks for the Mystery Symbols Transformation feature.

Gameplay & Features 8/10

Features in Hooligan Hustle are fairly run of the mill including Wilds and Multiplier Wilds. The game offers something a bit different in the free spins round however where you can pick from 3 options with varying degrees of risk and reward.

Rumble Row Modifiers

Along the top of the reels lies the Rumble Row. This contains a series of Modifiers to boost your gameplay and potentially your payouts. On any spin, the Rumble Reel Modifiers can be activated to modify the reel directly below it. The Modifiers are as follows:

  • Wild Reel – Stacked Wilds will land to cover the entire reel with Wild Symbols
  • Double Trouble – 2 reels are synchronised to contain all the same symbols
  • Multiplier – 2x Multipliers are applied to all payouts

Split Symbols

Symbols can randomly split during any spin. The split feature applies to all instances of the same symbol across the reels. This can work to increase the win ways up to a huge 248,832 in total.

Mystery Symbol Transformations

Question marks are the Mystery Symbols that appear on wooden crates and these can transform into the same symbol on a given spin to create more combinations across the reels.

Free Spins

Landing 3 Scatters activates the Free Spins round. When this occurs, you can pick from 3 Free Spins options, all suitably named after various types of anti-social behaviour. These Free Spins options have varying levels of risk-to-reward potential, depending on how lucky you feel:

  • Lairy! – 10 Free Spins + 2 Rumble Row Modifiers
  • Riot! – 5 Free Spins + 3 Rumble Row Modifiers
  • Anarchy! – 1 Free Spin + 4 Rumble Row Modifiers

Our Verdict 7.6/10

Hooligan Hustle is an interesting slot that can appeal to all types of players, not only those with a fondness for rebellion and law-breaking. The cartoon graphics soften the aggressive theme and add a thick dose of humour, taking it miles away from the darkness found in No Limit City’s criminal-themed San Quentin xWays, a slot that may well have partly inspired it.

There are some basics here that you will find in thousands of other games on the market right now, but Play n Go have created an original theme to house them in and set up some interesting combinations as well as one or two quirks to the gameplay to make it Hooligan Hustle worth a spin. Firstly, boosting 243 paylines up to a massive 248,832 with the Split Symbols feature gives the player plenty to think about and some serious on-screen mayhem when a significant number of icons split on one spin. Also, the Rumble Row Modifiers have the potential to massively affect your rewards – those who love Big Time Gaming slots with locked reels will get a kick from this one too.

And finally, we particularly like the fact that you can choose your own risk level for the Free Spins round – and if you are feeing particularly lucky then the Anarchy! Free Spins can offer a satisfyingly turbulent ride.

So, if you like the idea of a cartoon street fight with high volatility, interesting features and bags of attitude, check out the action on 16th December when Play n Go release this disorderly spinner at any of the best slot sites in our list.

 

Useful Resources

Play n Go Game List

Slots Variance Guide