Stampede Gold

Stampede Gold is an African safari-themed video slot developed by Betsoft. The game takes place on the vast savannas of Africa, with a backdrop showcasing the expansive grasslands and acacia trees iconic to the region. The reels are populated by majestic African wildlife, including elephants, leopards, eagles, zebras, and giraffes, alongside stylized wooden card symbols from 9 to A.

This slot is a sequel to Betsoft's original Stampede game, building on its predecessor's wildlife theme while introducing new features. The main focus is on the elephant, which serves as both the highest-paying regular symbol and the special Golden Elephant that can upgrade other symbols during bonus rounds.

Core Game Mechanics

Stampede Gold is played on a 5×4 grid with 1,024 ways to win. The game uses a pays-both-ways mechanic, allowing winning combinations to form from left to right and right to left. Players can place bets ranging from $0.60 to $24 per spin.

The slot features high volatility, with a default RTP of 96.62% (though operators can choose lower settings of 94.56% or 92.58%). The maximum potential win is 10,127x the bet. The hit frequency in the base game is 29.41%, while during free spins it increases to 41.78%.

Wild symbols appear on reels 2, 3, and 4, substituting for all symbols except scatters. These wilds can carry multiplier values of 1x, 2x, or 3x, which are applied to any wins they contribute to. When multiple wild multipliers are part of the same win, their values are multiplied together before being applied to the win.

Bonus Features

The Free Spins feature is triggered by landing 3 or more scatter symbols (represented by the purple acacia tree) anywhere on the reels. 3, 4, or 5 scatters award 8, 15, or 20 free spins respectively, along with an instant payout of 4x, 20x, or 40x the bet. The feature can be retriggered by landing 2 or more scatters during free spins, awarding 5, 8, 15, or 20 additional spins.

During free spins, all wild multipliers are upgraded to either 2x or 3x, increasing the potential for bigger wins.

The Golden Elephant is a special symbol that can appear during free spins. Each Golden Elephant that lands is collected in a meter that can hold up to 15 symbols. As more Golden Elephants are collected, they trigger upgrades to other high-paying symbols:

• 0-3 Golden Elephants: No change
• 4-6 Golden Elephants: Leopard upgrades to Elephant
• 7-12 Golden Elephants: Eagle upgrades to Elephant
• 13-14 Golden Elephants: Zebra upgrades to Elephant
• 15 Golden Elephants: Giraffe upgrades to Elephant

This progressive upgrade system can lead to substantial wins, especially when combined with the enhanced wild multipliers.

Players have the option to instantly access the Free Spins bonus round through the Buy Feature. For 42.5x the current bet, players are guaranteed to trigger between 8 and 20 free spins.

A notable aspect of Stampede Gold is its integration of symbol upgrades with multiplier wilds during the free spins feature. The combination of collecting Golden Elephants to upgrade symbols, alongside the guaranteed 2x or 3x wild multipliers, creates a highly volatile and potentially lucrative bonus round. This synergy between features adds depth to the gameplay and can result in impressive win multiplications, especially if players manage to upgrade multiple symbol types to the high-paying elephant.