Pile Em Up

At first glance, Pile 'Em Up, the new slot by Global Gaming, looks more like a Mario Bros game than a slot. The symbols appear and disappear from tubes, the graphics are definitely retro Nintendo style, and the symbols also look like the prizes that Mario and Luigi used to jump around collecting.

But this is still very much a slot game, with classic gameplay taking place on a 5 reel, 3 row grid. There are 20 paylines, and the betting range is between 0.20 and 30.

In keeping with the classic theme of the slot, the lower paying symbols are all fruit. There are blueberries, watermelons, lemons, and strawberries. These pay a maximum of between 1 x and 3.75 x your stake for a combination of 5.

Next, there are four gems, each with a different shape and colour, which pay out a max of between 12 x and 24 x the bet for 5 of a kind.

Wild Symbol

A box with a W in it acts as the Wild symbol. This stands in for all the regular symbols as well as giving some very nice payouts of its own, with a max of 111 x the bet for 5.

1UP Symbol

This looks a lot like the extra life symbol that pops up in Mario-style video games. Whenever it lands, it flies off to the Coin Booster on the left of the screen and increases its value by one.

Coin Symbol

These land anywhere on the reels and come with multiplier values ranging from 0.20 x to 50 x, attached. These values can be further increased by the Coin Booster, but to land these prizes, first, you need to trigger the Collect Feature.

Collect Symbol

The Collect Symbol is a horseshoe that can occur only on the fifth reel to activate the Collect Feature..

Scatter Symbol

A red flower acts as the Scatter, and you need three to activate the Free Spins. This can only land on reels 1, 3 and 5. Land three, and you'll also receive a payout of 1.5 x the bet.

Bonus Symbol

These heart-shaped purple gems also have the word Bonus written across them to avoid confusion. As these land on the reels, the heart at the bottom will light up and stay lit for several spins. If you light up all the hearts, the Heart Bonus is triggered.

Collect Feature

Although the coins don't give any payout directly in the base game, you still want to see as many as possible on the reels. Because when you land the Collect symbol, the Collect Feature is activated, and all the coins are, you guessed it, collected. The value of the Coin Booster is also applied to these before any money is paid out. The Booster resets to 1 x at the end of the feature.

Free Spins

Free Spins are triggered by landing a Scatter each on reels 1, 3 and 5. The gameplay during these is pretty much the same as in the base game, except there are a lot more coins, Collect symbols and Scatters on the reels. The bonus ends with one last spin of the 5th reel, and if the Collect symbol lands during this, all your winning from the Free Spins are boosted by the value of the Coin Booster.

Heart Bonus

Lighting up all the hearts at the bottom of the reels gets you into the Hearts Bonus. This starts with an empty grid, which you have three spins to fill. Any coin symbols that land will stick, and the other positions remain vacant. Every coin you land will also give you one more spin. Once you've filled all the positions or run out of spins, the feature ends, and the value of all the coins is increased by the value of the coin booster and paid out.

Global Gaming has developed a great slot that will trigger a wave of nostalgia for the '80s. So pull your dungarees and flat cap out of their mothballs and take it for a spin here at bwin. As well as reliving your childhood, you might also win some real cash prizes, something the Italian carpenters could never offer. Good Luck!