Hearts Highway

Hearts Highway: Slot Overview

As well as dismissing fads and conventionality while creating original gambling experiences, developer Push Gaming is also adept at taking common slot ideas and slinging them to the masses. One example of this was 10 Swords, a slot which took the instant prize win mechanics of a popular release like 9 Masks of Fire then added a bunch of bells and whistles to freshen the whole thing up. Hearts Highway continues this drive and is an offshoot of sorts of 10 Swords featuring one or two mechanical evolutions.

It's all good coming up with mechanical innovations, but they risk falling flat if they're presented in a drab and dreary way. No major issues in Hearts Highway, which, while it contains a lot of classical slot iconography, is presented in a 'far-flung future' giving 'cyborg patrons a taste of simpler times.' Push Gaming hasn't exactly hammered the cyborg angle, but Hearts Highway nevertheless has a haunting look and feel to it, reminiscent of artist Simon St?lenhag's (Tales from the Loop) work. Dreamy, futuristic yet relatable, misty; neatly done, in other words, as is the tone-perfect retro synth soundtrack. Hearts Highway is a 'classic slot' designed by a studio sitting near the top of the pack in terms of imaginative audiovisual production.

Managing to look both old and new, Hearts Highway's gaming grid utilises 5 reels, 3 rows of symbols, plus 20 paylines. Above it sits a list of prize values and the number of Heart symbols required to win them. To jump on board, gamblers have access to stake levels of 10 c to $/€100 per spin, the Push Bet, and a bonus buy. The Push Bet, when activated, ups the stake by 20%, increasing the chance of winning the feature by 74%. Kudos to Push's granularity there. A medium-high volatile machine, Hearts Highway has a default RTP of 96.43% or 96.95% when using the Push Bet.

Push Gaming rolls out the classics to fill Hearts Highway's paytable. The regular pay symbols are grapes, limes, watermelons, cherries, green BARs, red BARs, bells, and sevens. Hitting a line of 5 OAK pays 3.5 to 30 times the bet. The diamond is wild and is present on all reels. It has the same values as the 7 symbol when making wild wins, or it may be used to replace any regular pay symbol.

Hearts Highway: Slot Features

Hearts Highway might be a scatter symbol instant prize win game, but it's one with a lot more going on than usual. Its features are Red Heart symbol wins, Slot Machine symbols, a Heart Slot feature, free spins, free spins Heart Slot feature, and a bonus buy.

Red Heart Symbol & Slot Machine Symbol

Red Hearts are instant win bet multiplier symbols. They appear in the base game and in free spins. Hitting 4 or more of them anywhere on the reels awards a prize. The amount is 2x, 5x, 10x, 25x, 100x, 1,000x, or 10,000x when 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10 Red Hearts are in view. The Slot Machine symbol may appear on the leftmost or rightmost reels in the base game or in free spins. The Mini feature is triggered when a Slot Machine symbol lands at the same time as a Red Heart symbol. The Slot Machine then spins a 3-reel matrix with one symbol per reel, where the reels may land Red Heart symbols or duds. When the feature is complete, a prize may be awarded depending on the number of Heart symbols on the main reels and the number of Heart symbols which landed during the Mini feature.

Heart Slot Feature

When 2 Slot Machine symbols land on the leftmost and rightmost reel, the Heart Slot feature is triggered. It is played on a 6-reel matrix with one symbol per reel, landing Red Heart symbols, Double Red Heart symbols, or duds. When a Red Heart or Double Red Heart hits, it is held. The Heart Slot continues to spin until no new Red Heart or Double Red Hearts land. Then, a win evaluation takes place, awarding payouts depending on the number of Hearts on the main reels as well as the Heart Slot feature.

Free Spins

Hitting 3 scatter symbols triggers 10 free spins, while 4 scatters trigger 12 free spins + 1 Golden Heart above reel 2, 3, or 4. A 5 scatter trigger, meanwhile, grants 15 free spins + 3 Golden Hearts above reels 2, 3, or 4. Golden Heart symbols only appear in free spins on reels 2, 3, and 4, substituting for Red Hearts. When Golden Hearts hit, they are collected in the Golden Heart Meter above the associated reel; then, they're replaced by Red Hearts. When 3 Golden Hearts are collected by a meter, an additional free spin is awarded, and the reel below it is filled with locked Red Heart symbols for the rest of the feature.

Free Spins Heart Slot Feature

The free spins Heart Slot feature is played on a 6-reel matrix with one symbol per reel, capable of landing Red Hearts, Double Red Hearts, Golden Hearts, and duds. When anything but a dud lands, the symbol is held for the duration of the feature. The number of spins is unlimited but ends when no new Heart symbols land. Wins are then evaluated, where the amount won depends on the number of Hearts on the reels as well as on the Heart Slot feature. Any Golden Hearts awarded during the Heart Slot feature are randomly allocated to Golden Heart meters.

Bonus Buy

Players can buy free spins from the bonus buy for 75x the bet. Doing so awards a random number of scatter symbols and has an RTP of 96.69%.

Hearts Highway: Slot Verdict

Thanks to the explosion of 9 Masks of Fire and a vast number of similar slots, the gambling world is well acquainted with these sorts of scatter symbol instant prize win games. There's a hierarchy of quality within the sub-genre, and Hearts Highway manages to muscle its way to the upper segment. It's not like the be-all, end-all, this topic has a full stop to it now, but Hearts Highway is a solid example. The futuristic setting helps balance out what could have been a lesser, common classic slot event, and the tunes are neat. You don't feel like you're playing anything painfully antiquated, for sure.

The feature evolutions help out, too. The Slot Machine symbols' 'reels within reels' action adds a touch of suspense when they arrive on the scene and were apparently inspired by a Push Gaming trip to Las Vegas. Makes sense. If there's one thing Las Vegas has a lot of, it's slot machines. Shoot, they're right in the airport the moment you step off the plane, then pretty much never let up. Slot Machine symbols might not be so common in Hearts Highway, but they're a clever addition and might play a part in unlocking a higher prize value from the list. Collecting Golden Hearts in free spins might be useful, as well. The dream scenario is filling all 3 meters with Golden Hearts so that the middle three reels become smothered in locked Red Heart symbols. Nine Red Hearts on their own are worth 1,000x, and hitting just one more additional Red Heart would achieve Hearts Highway's 10,000x the bet max win.

In summation, Hearts Highway is a playable example of this type of gaming. The base game is busy, bonuses hit with satisfying frequency, and there's plenty here to entertain casual players, though gamblers who prefer Push Gaming's 'toothier' work may be harder to please.