Vikings Slot Review

Vikings Slot Overview

As a long-time slots player and a fan of the TV series, I warmed to NetEnt's Vikings straight away. The game is a branded video slot released on 22 November 2018, built around Ragnar Lothbrok and his crew. Vikings starts on a 5x3 grid with 243 ways to win, but during the main bonus it stretches to 7x5 with 78,125 ways, so the game feels very different once the action kicks off.

Instead of wild symbols, Vikings relies on stacked character symbols, Hotspot triggers and the Shield Wall mechanic to generate big hits. The headline feature is Raid Spins, which shifts play to a wider 7-reel battlefield with three Hotspots. The maths model leans towards high volatility, backed by an RTP around 96.05% and a maximum win of 10,000 times your stake, so the slot can swing hard in both directions.

Vikings Slot Information

On Vikings you spin a 5x3 grid in the base game with 243 ways to win; wins land when three or more matching symbols hit on adjacent reels starting from the left. Bets begin at 20p and can go up to £100 a spin in some versions, though many UK sites cap it lower. Hit frequency sits around 18%, so you do not get constant wins, but the better ones can be sizeable.

The default RTP version most sites use is 96.05%, though there are lower settings around 94.4% in certain jurisdictions, so I always check the paytable screen. Volatility is on the higher side of medium-high, and the slot can pay up to 10,000x your total bet from a single spin. Autoplay and Quick Spin are available outside the UK, and the HTML5 build runs smoothly on desktop, tablet and mobile.

Theme, Audio + Symbols in Vikings

When Vikings loads you are dropped straight into Kattegat, with a snow-covered shoreline, ravens and a longship rocking in the distance. NetEnt have lifted the main cast from the series, so Ragnar, Lagertha, Bjorn and Floki all appear on the reels. The soundtrack feels ominous and heroic, with drums, chants and snippets of character voices that kick in when key features such as Shield Wall or Raid Spins trigger.

The low-value symbols are metal playing card royals, 10 through A, splashed with blood. In the standard pay table, hitting five of any of them across the reels pays around 0.5x your stake, rising to 1x or 2x if you manage six or seven in the expanded grid. They keep the smaller base game hits ticking over, but the real money sits with the stacked Viking character symbols and the logo.

The four Viking faces all pay the same in the line pays: landing five of Floki, Bjorn, Lagertha or Ragnar gives 1x your bet, while seven-of-a-kind on the expanded reels pays 1.4x. The golden Vikings 'V' logo is the standard top symbol, awarding 2.5x for five and 3.5x for seven. You also have the bloodied Raid Spins shield and the plain shield mystery symbol, which drive the main bonus mechanics.

Symbols and Paytable

Symbol	Quantity	Payout
	Scatter
	27	x10000
	26	x9000
	25	x8500
	24	x7500
	23	x5500
	22	x4000
	21	x3000
	20	x2000
	19	x1400
	18	x700
	17	x350
	16	x300
	15	x243
	14	x162
	13	x108
	12	x72
	11	x48
	10	x32
	9	x16
	8	x8
	7	x4
	6	x2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	Scatter
	27	x10000
	26	x9000
	25	x8500
	24	x7500
	23	x5500
	22	x4000
	21	x3000
	20	x2000
	19	x1400
	18	x700
	17	x350
	16	x300
	15	x243
	14	x162
	13	x108
	12	x72
	11	x48
	10	x32
	9	x16
	8	x8
	7	x4
	6	x2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	Scatter
	27	x10000
	26	x9000
	25	x8500
	24	x7500
	23	x5500
	22	x4000
	21	x3000
	20	x2000
	19	x1400
	18	x700
	17	x350
	16	x300
	15	x243
	14	x162
	13	x108
	12	x72
	11	x48
	10	x32
	9	x16
	8	x8
	7	x4
	6	x2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	Scatter
	27	x10000
	26	x9000
	25	x8500
	24	x7500
	23	x5500
	22	x4000
	21	x3000
	20	x2000
	19	x1400
	18	x700
	17	x350
	16	x300
	15	x243
	14	x162
	13	x108
	12	x72
	11	x48
	10	x32
	9	x16
	8	x8
	7	x4
	6	x2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	7	x3.5
	6	x3
	5	x2.5
	4	x2
	3	x1.5
	7	x1.4
	6	x1.2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	7	x1.4
	6	x1.2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	7	x1.4
	6	x1.2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	7	x1.4
	6	x1.2
	5	x1
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.3
	7	x1
	6	x0.8
	5	x0.5
	4	x0.2
	3	x0.1
	7	x1
	6	x0.8
	5	x0.5
	4	x0.2
	3	x0.1
	7	x1
	6	x0.8
	5	x0.5
	4	x0.2
	3	x0.1
	7	x1
	6	x0.8
	5	x0.5
	4	x0.2
	3	x0.1
	7	x1
	6	x0.8
	5	x0.5
	4	x0.2
	3	x0.1
	Scatter

Vikings Slot Features

Vikings does not use a conventional wild, so the base game leans heavily on the Hotspot feature. Reel three is surrounded by a crackling electric field; whenever a Viking symbol lands fully stacked there, every other Viking on the screen transforms into that same character. At that point Scatter Pays apply, so all visible Vikings pay, even if they are not on adjacent reels, which can throw out some eye-watering totals.

The Scatter Pays table starts at 0.3x for three Viking symbols and climbs all the way to 10,000x if you ever manage to fill the grid with 27 matching Vikings. Alongside Hotspot you have the Shield Wall feature, a block of mystery shields that drops randomly in both the base game and Raid Spins. The block covers either 3x2 or 5x2 positions and then flips to reveal a single high-paying symbol.

Raid Spins in Vikings

Raid Spins is the free spins round in Vikings and the point where the slot really shows its fangs. Land three Raid Spins shield symbols on the middle reels and you receive seven spins on an expanded 7x5 layout with 78,125 ways to win. Reels three, four and five each hold a Hotspot, so any fully stacked Viking landing there turns every Viking symbol on the screen into the same character.

Vikings Expert Verdict

Having played Vikings quite a bit, I see it as a slot that is all about big set pieces rather than constant small nudges. The base game can feel icy, but when Hotspot or Shield Wall land in sync the screen can light up fast. The branded theme has been handled well, with strong artwork and audio that still holds up years after release, so fans of the series should feel at home.

From a gambling perspective, Vikings suits players who are comfortable riding out long, quiet stretches in search of that one explosive Raid Spins round. The 10,000x potential is genuine, but it relies on hitting a stacked Viking in a Hotspot with plenty of matching symbols already in view. If you prefer steadier, low-volatility play this one may feel punishing, yet for high-risk sessions it remains a favourite in my rotation.

Screenshots