Life & Death Slot Overview

Life & Death is a casino slot from Hacksaw Gaming, encouraging players to ponder on one of life's unanswerable questions, "What happens after we die?". Is reincarnation a thing, and we'll get to experience the world again as a different being? Are Christians right about heaven and hell? Or none of the beliefs are correct, and the light just goes out to never return or transform into something else? The atmosphere of this somber release will present the creators' presumption of what the answer may be, and the vision might not be entirely encouraging. We'll take a peek into a dreary mausoleum housing a 6x5 playing grid guarded by two hooded spirits. Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse will act as Wild symbols that expand along the entire reel and also bring multipliers up to 200x. So, it's not all that grim in the end, especially considering that a lucky bonus round can net you a payday of 15,000x the bet. It's time to gaze into the afterlife and be judged by the tormented spirits!

Base Game view of a 6x5 grid on a backdrop of a monochromatic mausoleum with two hooded ghosts on either side.
Base Game

Life & Death is a video slot from Hacksaw Gaming with 6 reels, 5 rows, and 19 paylines. Players can choose their stake from a range of options, starting from a Min.bet of 0.10 up to a Max.bet of 100. The game offers a default RTP of 96.36%, with several lower variants available to the operators, including 94.26%, 92.33%, and 88.24%. The math profile comes with high volatility and a max win capped at 15,000x the bet. The expected base hit frequency sits at a rate of 27%.

Wandering through the mystical realm of the dead sounds like a challenging task, so it's always good to bring along a bunch of reliable features that may prove invaluable when searching for big wins. The features of Life & Death are Wild Multipliers & Expanding Wild Reels, Devastation Bonus, Reckoning Bonus, and Feature Buy.

Life & Death Slot Information

The grim sanctuary in which we end up could send chills down the spines of the bravest souls. Ominous chanting interrupted by occasional sounds of deadly bells resonates across empty, grey halls where only ghosts dare to wander. It's best not to look at the darkest corners of this temple and focus on the playing grid sitting in the middle. Its transparent background still allows us to gaze down a corridor that sinks somewhere in the darkness deeper into the mausoleum. The reels are populated mostly with monochromatic symbols, and the only colors we'll witness are the ones crowning the middle columns, indicating each of the four horsemen. To form a winning combination, at least 3 matching icons must align on any of the active paylines while using neighboring reels, starting from the leftmost one. Players can step into the underworld while using any modern device, whether it's a desktop, a smartphone, or a tablet.

Low-paying symbols appear as royal letters and numbers, including 10, J, Q, K, and A. Those award between 3x and 10x the bet for a 6-of-a-kind hit. High-paying symbols depict an eye inside a heart, a chalice, a sun face, a hand with an eye, and a three-faced head. They bring payouts ranging from 15x to 50x the bet for matching six in a combination. Additional special symbols in the game include Wilds represented by four skeletal heads, and Scatters in the form of a banner adorned with letters "FS" and flanked by two horse heads.

Life & Death Slot Features

What is the max win in the slot Life & Death?

You can win up to 15,000x the bet.

What features are available in the slot Life & Death?

The features are Wild Multipliers & Expanding Wild Reels, Devastation Bonus, Reckoning Bonus, and Feature Buy.

Devastation Bonus in progress, showing reel 2 and 3 filled with matching Expanded Wilds with multipliers.
Devastation Bonus

Wild Multipliers & Expanding Wild Reels

Four Wild Multiplier icons can appear on reels 2 through 5, each one on its assigned column marked by a specific color: blue, red, yellow, and teal. Whenever more than one contributes to the same winning combination, their multipliers will be added together before being applied to the win. Additionally, when participating in a combo, Wild Multipliers expand to cover the reel entirely if they land on their respective reel marked with a matching color. Depending on which horseman lands, it will award a multiplier from a different range.

Blue Pestilence = linked to reel 2, awards multipliers of 2x, 3x, or 4.

Red War = linked to reel 3, awards multipliers of 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, or 9x.

Yellow Famine = linked to reel 4, awards multipliers of 10x, 15x, 20x, or 25x.

Green Death = linked to reel 5, awards multipliers of 30x, 40x, 50x, 75x, 100x, or 200x.

Devastation Bonus

Landing 3 Scatters takes us to the first of two bonus rounds. 10 free spins are awarded, and the mechanics will stay the same as in the base game; only the frequency of landing Wild Multipliers will be increased. Achieving 2 or 3 Scatters in the same spin awards 2 or 4 extra spins, respectively.

Reckoning Bonus

When 4 Scatters appear on the reels simultaneously, the enhanced bonus round will be activated. Players also receive 10 free spins, during which landing a Multiplier Wild on a matching reel will transform it into a Death Reel. For the remainder of the bonus, Multiplier Wilds associated with the activated Death Reel will expand regardless of whether they land on their respective column.

Feature Buy

The game offers several options to boost the chances of triggering the features or activate them instantly for a fixed price.

3x = Bonushunt Featurespins with a 5 times better chance to activate a bonus game.

60x = Four Horsemen Featurespins guaranteeing at least 3 Wild Multipliers.

100x = Devastation Bonus with 10 free spins.

200x = Reckoning Bonus with 10 free spins.

Reckoning Bonus in progress, showing reels 2, 3, and 5 filled with Expanding Wilds despite symbols not matching the reel color.
Reckoning Bonus

Life & Death Slot Conclusion

As Hacksaw's thrilling rollercoaster of casual and serious continues its ride, we get to experience another grim and gritty theme that can touch one's very soul. Talking about the afterlife in connection with some Ancient beliefs, like in Wings of Horus, is one thing, but seeing a setting packed with religious symbolism that surrounds our lives in the present hits somewhat closer to home. Life & Death cemetery atmosphere can genuinely put you in a catatonic state with its unicolor palette and martyr choirs. Luckily, there are Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse to brighten up the spirits, however preposterous that sounds. Still, they are the only elements bringing some color to the setting, organizing reels and Wilds into matching pairs that trigger the game's core feature. And when it does kick in, you can admire the absolutely stunning design of the horror riders on the vertically enlarged symbols.

Expanding Wilds and Multipliers have accompanied the studio's productions from its very beginnings, sometimes in more convoluted ways and, on other occasions, in a straightforward manner. Life & Death falls into the latter category, keeping things simple and visually consistent. Land a matching horseman on the reel marked with the same color, and the rider will fully expand (provided there's a chance to create a win), awarding a multiplier from its corresponding rage. More expansions equals more multipliers that will be added together if they partake in the same combination. The first bonus simply follows the base rules with an increased frequency of Wilds, but the second one introduces a nice boost that allows the apocalyptic demons to trigger their power regardless of the landing position if their corresponding reel has been transformed into a Death Reel. All in all, there's not much surprise in the mechanics, but it's a solid config with a respectable 15,000x max win, nevertheless.

Life & Death introduces a morbid afterlife atmosphere packed with religious references while operating on time-tested features with stable win potential.