Dead Man’s Broadside

Dead Man's Broadside Slot

There's something rather appealing about the romanticised world of pirates. A life of adventure on the high seas, treasure chests overflowing with gold, rum by the barrel, and the freedom to do pretty much whatever you please. At least until the Royal Navy catches up and introduces you to the less glamorous side of maritime law. Hacksaw associates Backseat Gaming is the latest developer to hoist the Jolly Roger with Dead Man's Broadside, a pirate-themed slot where the cannons are loaded with multiplier zones capable of reaching x1,024. That's a serious amount of firepower, and with a 15,000x maximum payout, there's a sizeable treasure to be had if everything falls into place. The question is whether this particular vessel has anything new to offer or is simply another pirate ship sailing in circles.

Pirates are hardly an endangered species in the online slot world, and the industry has produced enough treasure-hunting adventures to keep an entire fleet occupied. Dead Man's Broadside doesn't attempt to reinvent the theme, sticking with naval warfare, cannonballs and the familiar trappings of swashbuckling life. Backseat Gaming has nevertheless put together a polished-looking production, with smooth graphics and an appropriately combative atmosphere. It's a perfectly respectable setting, even if the sight of another pirate-themed slot isn't likely to have anyone falling out of their chair with excitement.

The action takes place on a 6x5 scatter pays grid, where eight or more matching symbols anywhere in view award a win. Winning symbols disappear through Cascades, allowing fresh symbols to tumble into the gaps and potentially create further combinations. Bets range from 0.20 to 100 per spin, and the default RTP is 96.01%, with lower configurations of 94.01%, 92.01% and 90.01% also available. The max payout is 15,000x the bet, and independent game listings classify the volatility as very high.

Rather than relying on ordinary wild multipliers, Dead Man's Broadside introduces Multiplier Zones covering areas of 2x2, 3x3, 4x4 or the entire grid. Each position within a zone receives a multiplier ranging from x2 to x1,024, with applicable values added together when the positions contribute to a winning combination. Overlapping zones combine their multipliers on shared positions, potentially producing some rather outrageous numbers. It's a concept that brings Sugar Rush to mind, though Backseat Gaming's use of different-sized areas gives the system its own particular flavour.

Wild Blocks add 2x2 groups of wilds to the grid, while Upgrade symbols transform all instances of a randomly selected low-paying symbol into the same premium symbol. Both can help produce winning combinations, which is precisely what those multiplier zones need to earn their keep.

The Free Spins features come in three sizes. Landing 3, 4 or 5 Scatters awards Cannon Strike with 10 spins, Dead Man's Fury with 20, or Final Broadside with 30, respectively. All three increase the appearance of cannonball symbols and, crucially, allow Multiplier Zones to remain active throughout the bonus. Wild Blocks are also guaranteed to participate in winning combinations during Free Spins. The mechanics don't change between the three rounds, but the additional spins provide more opportunities for multiplier zones to accumulate and overlap.

An extensive Feature Buy menu rounds things off, offering Bonus Boost for 2x the bet, Scatter Spins for 50x, and direct access to the three Free Spins rounds for 150x, 400x and 1,000x, respectively. There's also a Mystery Bonus costing 310x. Spending 1,000x the bet before a single bonus spin has taken place is certainly one way of demonstrating confidence in a pirate's ability to find treasure.

What makes Dead Man's Broadside interesting is the way its multiplier system can transform an otherwise ordinary winning combination into something far more substantial. A large zone is attractive enough on its own, but the possibility of overlapping multipliers, particularly during a bonus where they remain active, is where the game starts to develop some genuine menace. The 15,000x maximum also gives the system a worthwhile target, even if the most spectacular multiplier values will presumably be exceptionally difficult to put to productive use.

There is, however, a slightly disappointing lack of ambition elsewhere. Backseat Gaming has taken a proven formula, dressed it in pirate clothing, and added a few supporting features without venturing particularly far beyond the established blueprint. The three Free Spins rounds are essentially the same experience with different durations, and the whole business of persistent multiplier positions is hardly an unexplored frontier. The developer has made some worthwhile adjustments, but the result feels more like a variation on an existing idea than a genuinely new adventure.

Still, originality isn't everything, and there's a certain satisfaction in seeing a familiar concept handled with a little extra firepower. Dead Man's Broadside has an attractive multiplier system, a substantial maximum payout, and enough moving parts to keep the action interesting when the Cascades get going. The pirate setting might be old enough to have barnacles growing on it, but the gameplay has some bite. Whether that's enough to make the game stand out in a sea crowded with treasure-hunting competitors is another question entirely. There's gold aboard this ship, all right, but it hasn't exactly discovered a new continent.