Frightening Frankie

Frightening Frankie Review

In 1818, the English novelist Mary Shelley changed the horror theme for good by introducing Dr. Frankenstein and his Creature. At the same time, Halloween is usually a powerful catalyst for such energy and often awakens the imagination of iGaming providers for such stories and monsters. Frightening Frankie is this year’s endeavor of the renowned software supplier Reel Kingdom, and its release is expected in the last week of October.

Reel Kingdom is powered by Pragmatic Play, an industry leader in the creation of slots and other gambling products. The studio is known for some truly massive hits, including the Big Bass Bonanza series. In fact, Reel Kingdom has used some of the BBB mechanics for the Frightening Frankie main bonus round, but it has also added a twist.

But first thing first, so let’s start from the beginning! Frightening Frankie is played on a rather standard grid with 5 reels and 3 rows. You can use 20 paylines to collect regular cash rewards, and each combination starts from the leftmost reel. Below the Spin button, you’ll find Autoplay, Quickspin, and Turbo Spin features. Various sound controls are also available in the Settings menu.

Frightening Frankie lacks base game modifiers, but it’s loaded with two types of free spins, multipliers, and a low-paying symbol removal feature. Ante Bet and Bonus Buy are also available on the left side of the grid. Overall, the slot does not provide innovation, but the intriguing designs and audio-visuals make us look deeper under its skin.

Frightening Frankie Slot - Game Screen

Frightening Frankie is loaded with 9 regular and 3 special symbols. The main character in this story, Frankie, is the wild symbol that substitutes for all regulars and pays the highest prizes. If lined up, wilds award 2x, 4x, and 16x the bet for 3 to 5. Full Moon and Bolts pay from 0.60x to 4.80x, while Torch and House award between 0.40x and 3.20x the wager.

The low-valued symbols are A, K, Q, J, and 10, and each one pays 0.20x, 0.40x, and 1.60x. The betting range is as wide as usual for Reel Kingdom and Pragmatic Play slots. Stakes start from just €0.05 per spin and reach a solid €250 up to €500 via Ante Bet. All that suggests that strategies might work with the game!

The Frightening Frankie RTP ranges, but the highest rate is quite impressive - 96.53% and quite comparable with Big Bass Bonanza. The alternative RTPs are 95.53% and 94.53%, and I don’t recommend them, especially given the slot’s high levels of volatility. The Hit Frequency rate is good - 24.50% or 1 in 4.08 spins on average. Another point of intersection with the Fishing-themed slots is the relatively low maximum win - 2,800x the bet.

Frightening Frankie Features

Reel Kingdom rarely adds modifiers in the base game and Frightening Frankie makes no exception. However, the presence of wilds and the fact that many of the symbols land in stacks change the dynamics. Furthermore, the provider has added not one but two bonus rounds, which, if mixed, can significantly increase the payout potential.

Lightning Free Spins

Lightning Symbol is the key to the first Free Spins bonus. Whenever one lands during the base game or Monster Trail Free Spins, it will remove the lowest-paying symbol from the reels. If more than one land and every one that appears after that continues to remove low-valued symbols until A, K, Q, J, and 10 are gone.

During the base game, Lightning Free Spins starts with 2 to 6 free rounds selected randomly. If another Lightning Symbol hits after that, the feature will be retriggered, and a random number of 2 to 6 free spins will be added to the remaining balance. You can activate up to 5 retriggers!

If you land 3+ scatters during Lightning Free Spins, the second bonus minigame will be activated with the currently removed low pays. The remaining Lightning free rounds will be played after the second bonus ends. If you trigger this feature during the Monster Trail Free Spins, only the Symbol Removal feature will activate and no new free spins will be added.

Monster Trail Free Spins

Monster Trail Free Spins is the core bonus of the Frightening Frankie slot by Reel Kingdom. It starts during the base game, when you land 3, 4, or 5 scatters at the same time. They will award 10, 25, and 20 free spins respectively. If you land just 2 scatter symbols, a random feature may trigger and add extra scatters to trigger the bonus.

Monster Trail Free Spins starts with an x2 win multiplier and a new special symbol in play - Test Tube. Each one will be collected in a special meter on top of the reels. Every time you collect 7 Test Tubes, a batch of 10 free spins will be added to the remaining balance. Moreover, the Bonus Wheel on the right will activate!

It will award a random multiplier of x1, x2, x5, or x10 and will add it to the current multiplier value. There is no limit to it, but the bonus will end if you reach the win cap. As I already mentioned, the Lightning Symbol continues to be active during this bonus. The maximum of it is to remove the 5 low-valued symbols.

Frightening Frankie Slot – Free Spins Win Screen

Bonus Buy & Ante Bet

Ante Bet is a bonus bet, and it increases your chances to activate the Monster Trail minigame by adding extra scatters. However, it will also double the current bet without boosting the regular symbol wins. On the other hand, Bonus Buy guarantees 3, 4, or 5 scatters at a price of 100x the bet. Keep in mind that the bonus triggering frequency is comparably friendly - 1 in 56.78 spins on average.

Theme & Graphics

The Frankenstein slot theme is based on the original Gothic novel “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus” written by Mary Shelley. It was initially published in 1818 and revised by the author in 1831. The novel tells about Dr. Victor Frankenstein, who breathes life into a being sewn from different body parts. This creature or monster carries the doctor’s name in Frightening Frankie.

The story is long and intriguing, but very little of it can be seen in Reel Kingdom’s game. The eerie is perhaps the best part of the slot's audio-visuals, although the quality of graphics is high. The animation effects are slow and resemble low-budget movie performances. I’m confident that this is by choice and not a poor delivery of the provider. Frightening Frankie is fully compatible with mobiles and playable on Android and iOS.

Pros And Cons Of Frightening Frankie Slot

Our Verdict

Frightening Frankie is not exactly frightening, but closer to the Halloween vibe. The game is far from Mary Shelley’s work and closer to funnier interpretations done by comic authors. In terms of slot play, it is not bad at all! Reel Kingdom has used mechanics from several older games similar to Dr. Frankenstein’s approach.

We can see a variant of the Multiplier Trail from the BBB series and a feature that removes low symbols. The combination of these, especially on the highest-RTP version, creates an exciting combo. The max win could have been more impressive, but the probability of hitting it compensates - just 1 in 410,837 spins on average.

Surprisingly, the massive online slot library is missing legendary titles featuring the theme. Frankenstein by Microgaming, which is now known as Apricot, is one of the enticing releases. It is a 2025 game designed in portrait style and offering 50 lines, Buy Feature, jackpots, character features, and free spins.

Frankenslot's Monster, released by Betsoft in 2016, could also be a good choice. It comes with a payout rate of up to 96.83%, medium volatility, popular features, and a script closer to the original writing. In the end, Reel Kingdom fans won’t regret trying Frightening Frankie as it offers gameplay they are familiar with at least partially. The new elements and the way they are stitched together also deserve appreciation!