If you're someone who dreams of exploring mountains, then the Himalayas are probably on your list! This famous mountain range stretches across several countries and is home to some of the highest peaks in the world, including the mighty Mount Everest. While not a super common theme for online slots, Pragmatic Play’s Himalayan Wild is here to change that! This game takes players on an epic adventure through the snow-covered mountains, where you’ll encounter wild animals and experience a unique Free Respins feature.
Himalayan Wild lets you explore the world's most famous mountain range, without needing to be a pro mountain climber. Instead of scaling Everest's 8,847 meters, you’ll aim for huge wins, with a max payout of up to 10,000 times your bet. You’ll be in the company of majestic creatures from Asia, all while unlocking exciting features like Free Respins. So, bundle up—it’s time to hunt for big rewards in the mountains!
Fun fact: Did you know that the Himalayas are still growing? These giant mountains get about 5 millimeters taller yearly, thanks to the tectonic plates pushing them up!
Base game
In Himalayan Wild, you play on a 5-reel, 3-row grid with 5 paylines. That means you win when matching symbols land from the left to the right across these paylines. While there aren’t many paylines, the game has high volatility, so you can win big, though the prizes don’t come easily. The RTP (return to player) is 96.51%, which is pretty good, and you can bet anywhere from 25 cents up to $250 per spin.
On the reels, you’ll find 9 different symbols. The lower-paying ones are playing card symbols (10 through Ace), and they give you a minimum of 1x to 1.4x your stake. The higher-paying symbols include birds, wolves, buffalo, and bears, and these can pay anywhere from 0.2x to 300x your bet. One cool feature of this game is that even landing just one premium symbol on the first reel can get you a 0.2x return—something you won’t see in most other slots!
The best symbols can pay up to 300 times your bet if you land 5 of a kind! There are also Wild symbols, which help you by replacing other symbols to make winning combinations. The Wilds show up on reels 3, 4, and 5.
If you’re lucky enough to land 5 bonus symbols, you’ll win up to 4 times your bet!
Himalayan Wild Hit Frequency
The hit frequency in the main game of Himalayan Wild is 1 in 3.52, something giving a player quite a good chance to get wins during regular gameplay. The main game's Free Spins are far less frequent, however, at a frequency of 1 in 109.85, making those bonus rounds highly eagerly awaited for better rewards. Though the big wins targeting players have a mark of 1 in 40,337, hitting over 1,000 times your stake, the maximum win is so very rare, occurring once in every 9,097,644, thus giving players an exciting challenge for possibly life-changing rewards.
Free Respins Feature
The most attractive feature in Himalayan Wild is the Free Respins in-game feature. Every time you hit a winning combination that includes one or more Wilds and doesn't include any Bonus symbols, you are awarded the Free Respins feature. If you manage to land several combinations of a win with Wilds in one spin, each of them awards you Free Respins played one after another..
During this round, the Bonus symbol turns into a Money symbol, and its value matches the payout of the winning combination that triggered the feature. This is called the Repeat value because you can win it multiple times as long as the Money symbols keep landing. The round starts with 3 respins, and every time a Money symbol hits, you win its value, and the respins reset back to 3.
While in Free Respins, you also have a chance to win static jackpots. There are three: Minor (30x your bet), Major (100x), and Mega (1,000x). To win these, you need to land a Jackpot symbol on the first reel along with a Minor, Major, or Mega symbol on the last reel.
Max Win
The maximum you can win in the game is capped at 10,000x your bet. If your total win reaches that amount during the Free Respins, the round ends immediately, and all remaining respins are forfeited.
Feature Buy
If you don’t want to wait for the Free Respins to trigger naturally, you can buy your way in. There are two options:
Pay 100x your bet to trigger Free Respins with a random paying symbol at a 96.50% RTP.
Pay 300x your bet to trigger Free Respins with a random high-paying symbol, also at a 96.50% RTP.
Summary
Himalayan Wild is a high-volatility slot that offers players an exciting journey through the majestic mountain range, with chances for big wins thanks to the Free Respins feature and static jackpots. While the game has only 5 paylines, it makes up for it with its unique features, like the ability to win the same prize multiple times during Free Respins and the chance to hit one of the three jackpots. The option to buy the feature adds more control for players who want to jump straight into the action. With a max win of 10,000x your bet and a stunning mountain backdrop, this slot offers a thrilling mix of risk and reward.
Fun Fact: Few people realize that the Himalayas are a home for several of the world's most endangered and rare species, such as the elusive snow leopard, the red panda, and the Himalayan tahr. Its unique biodiversity varies from lush valleys to snow-covered peaks, making it one of the prime areas in the world for conservation.
