Holiday Ride

Pragmatic Play's Holiday Ride serves up a slice of Italian summer, bringing Rome's charm to the reels. Released in July 2023, this high-volatility slot actually has an interesting backstory – it's a strategic rebrand of their earlier release Via Del Corso, aimed at capturing summer holiday nostalgia.

The Story Behind the Scooter

Holiday Ride isn't just another vacation-themed slot – it's part of Pragmatic Play's strategy to make their games more accessible to broader audiences. The game features a charming cartoon art style that captures Rome's essence without falling into tired tourist clichés. The protagonist is a backpacker exploring the Eternal City, accompanied by a buzzing bee mascot that triggers the bonus features.

Technical Framework

The game operates on a classic 5×3 grid with 25 fixed paylines. The betting range accommodates both casual players and high rollers, spanning from €0.25 to €125 per spin. With the Ante Bet feature activated, this can stretch to €175, though this comes with strategic implications we'll explore later.

The theoretical return to player (RTP) sits at 96.56%, though players should note this comes with adjustable ranges – a detail that deserves attention when choosing where to play. Combined with high volatility, this creates a mathematical model that favors patient players with adequate bankroll management skills.

Symbols and Payouts: Beyond the Expected

Rather than the usual arbitrary symbol hierarchy, Holiday Ride's paytable tells a coherent story. The highest-paying regular symbol, the Tourist, awards 30x stake for five of a kind. The Colosseum stamp follows at 20x, while the yellow Taxi offers 12x. These values might seem modest, but they work in concert with the game's multiplier system to create meaningful wins.

The red Vespa serves as the wild symbol, and it's here where the game shows its mechanical sophistication. Beyond substituting for other symbols, it can create its own winning combinations worth up to 40x stake. More importantly, each wild carries a random multiplier of 2x, 3x, or 5x.

Innovative Features: The Roman Road to Rewards

The game's standout feature is its multiplicative wild system. When multiple wilds contribute to a win, their multipliers add together rather than multiply – a design choice that balances potential and volatility. This creates opportunities for substantial base game wins without relying solely on bonus features.

The free spins round reveals itself through three Bee scatter symbols on reels 1, 3, and 5. Instead of a fixed number of spins, players interact with nine firework crates, each revealing between 1-3 spins. This interactive element adds anticipation and can award anywhere from 9 to 27 free spins.

During free spins, the wild multipliers evolve into sticky roaming wilds. They persist throughout the feature but change position each spin, creating a dynamic and unpredictable bonus round. This roaming mechanic ensures no two bonus sessions play out quite the same way.

Strategic Considerations

The Ante Bet feature warrants special attention. For a 40% increase in stake, it doubles the chance of triggering the bonus round. For players focused on bonus hunting, this represents a strategic option worth considering, especially given the potential for multiple sticky multiplier wilds during free spins.

Non-UK players have access to a Bonus Buy option priced at 100x stake. While expensive, it guarantees immediate bonus round access and might appeal to players seeking to evaluate the game's full potential quickly.

Visual Design

The game's visual design deserves particular praise for its restraint. Rather than overwhelming players with flashy animations, it opts for clean, readable graphics that maintain their charm over extended play sessions. The Colosseum backdrop provides context without distracting from the gameplay, while the symbol designs strike a balance between thematic relevance and clear visibility.

Holiday Ride achieves something remarkable – it makes familiar mechanics feel fresh through thoughtful implementation and cohesive design. While the 5,000x maximum win potential might seem conservative for a high-volatility slot, the frequent interaction of multiplier wilds creates an engaging base game experience that doesn't solely rely on bonus rounds for entertainment. The game particularly suits players who appreciate methodical gameplay with clear mathematics behind it. The multiplier system creates genuine strategic choices, especially regarding the Ante Bet feature, while the roaming wilds in free spins generate memorable moments without relying on excessive complexity.