Santa Hopper

Santa Hopper Review

Santa Hopper is a vibrant online slot that comes as an early Xmas present by the British game maker Push Gaming. It is another title that the studio adorns with the label “Push Originals". It is also a sequel to a series and a game that all fans of the Cluster Pays mechanics will most certainly appreciate. I’ll completely unwrap this slot machine in the following lines, so brace yourself!

The “”Hopper” story began in 2021 when Push Gaming introduced a masterpiece with 50K win potential - Fire Hopper. Despite the massive success, the provider put aside the project to bring it back to life 4 years later. Dragon Hopper introduced some new mechanics and twists, but a significant reduction in the payout power. It was released earlier in 2025, and obviously, it was another success.

At first glance, Santa Hopper is not here to make waves, but it’s rather a gift from the provider for the upcoming Christmas holidays. The game features the same wide 7x7 matrix with symbol-matching mechanics. In other words, it is a Cluster Pays slot with cascading and collapsing reels. Push Gaming has added its branded Push Bet and several Bonus Buy options.

Santa Hopper mimics the original mechanics, but it’s rather a reskin of Dragon Hopper. So, if you have played the game earlier, you’ll be familiar with the gameplay. The core features are a Walking Wilds that spawns wilds with multipliers, instant cash prizes, and free spins. You can test them all with no risk via the Santa Hopper demo, or continue with my review!

Santa Hopper Slot - Reels Screen

Santa Hopper brings various payouts and the aim is to create Cluster Wins of at least 5 connected symbols of a kind. They must be adjacent to each other in a horizontal or vertical way. The wild symbols substitute for all the regulars, but not for the Chimney and Bonus scatters. The winning clusters will be removed, triggering collapsing reels and cascades. New symbols will appear from above to potentially extend the winning spree.

The regular symbols have 9 payout tiers from 5 to 17+ of a kind. The Christmas stocking tops the paytable with prizes from 1x to 50x the bet. Bells follow with payout between 0.80x and 40x, as well as Candies and Christmas trees - 0.30x to 10x, each. The low symbols in the game are various Xmas decorations, all awarding between 0.10x and 2x the wager.

The Santa Hopper RTP ranges just like in the previous two games, and the highest rate is comparable - 96.35%. The online slot is characterized by medium to high levels of volatility, so I recommend you skip the alternative versions - 94.35% and 85.37%. Bets vary from €0.10 to €100 per spin, and there are 25 stake levels in total. The Santa Hopper max win is 10,000x the bet.

Santa Hopper Features

Santa Hopper offers much more than just cluster wins and cascading reels! In fact, the game offers familiar features packed with festive vibes. I personally believe that the combination of modifiers in the Hopper series has been underestimated by the industry. It possesses far more entertainment power than other widespread mechanics. Still, it's up to you to decide, and here are all the details:

Wild Symbols

Santa Wild is a wild symbol that is sticky for the duration of the base game spin or the entire bonus round. Santa Wild appears with an associated multiplier of x1, x2, x3, x4, x5, or x10. It increases by x1 when Santa hops on a Chimney during the Santa Feature. Golden Present is also a wild symbol that can appear as a result of the Santa Feature.

The wild multipliers are applicable to the wins these symbols are part of. If more than one wild participates in the same cluster, the available multipliers are stacked and added to each other.

Chimney Symbol & Santa Feature

Chimney Symbols can land anywhere on the grid during all game stages, and if Santa is also on the reels, the Santa Feature will be triggered. Santa Wild will hop to the nearest Chimney and will leave a Golden Present Wild in its previous position. It will have Santa’s multiplier, while in its new position, Santa will get a boost of +1.

Santa Feature will continue for as long as Chimney Symbols are in view during the same spin or during cascades. Santa Wild is sticky and even if it participates in a win, it will stay in play. Golden Present Wilds disappear along with the cluster they participate in. If not used, they will be removed from the base game grid after the last payout.

Instant Prize Symbols

Just like in Dragon Hopper, instant prize symbols are in play here as well. Coins can land on any grid position during the base game. They have cash values of 1x, 2x, 5x, 10x, 25x, 50x, 100x, 250x, 500x, and 1,000x the bet. When 5 or more Coins create a cluster, all their values will be collected. Wilds contribute to such clusters and their multipliers are applicable to the total instant prize.

Jingle Drop Feature

Jingle Drop is a random feature that can trigger on any cascade or collapse that didn't result in a win. The feature will add 1 or 2 Mystic Symbols of 2x2, 3x3, or 4x4 sizes on the grid. They will break down into 1x1 symbols, which will be either the same random regular symbol or different Instant Prize Coins. In addition to them, the Mystic Symbols can reveal Santa Wild or bonus scatters.

Free Spins & Bubble Feature

Free Spins stars when you land 3, 4, or 5 scatters in view at the end of a base game spin. They award 6, 9, or 12 free spins, respectively, and will activate a new set of reels. Santa Wild, Golden Present Wilds, Chimneys, and Instant Prize Coins from the base game will be moved to the new grid in the same positions, keeping their current values.

In case the bonus is triggered without Santa Wild in view, it will be added before the first free spin with an initial multiplier of x2. If you had a Santa Wild with a multiplier of x1, it will become x2. During Free Spins, grid positions will respin and show either a blank, Coin, Chimney, or Extra Spin. The latter will award 1, 2, or 3 extra free spins and will transform into a Coin.

Bubble Feature is active during the Free Spins mode and will randomly add bubbles with values of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 500. Bubbles will be added to random positions and will nudge one position up per spin. They can move either diagonally or vertically.

Bubbles activate when they overlay Golden Present, Chimney, or Coin symbols. They will add or leave their values to the current multipliers of the aforementioned symbols. All potential clusters are evaluated at the end of the Free Spins minigame!

Santa Hopper Slot – Free Spins Gameplay Screen

Push Bet and Bonus Buy

Push Bet is the provider’s branded bonus bets, and in this particular case, there are 3 options for you to choose from. Keep in mind that neither of them guarantees a payout! Bonus Buy is also active in the jurisdictions where the feature isn’t prohibited. It offers a total of 4 options for those willing to skip waiting!

• Wild Santa - 2x the bet
• Scatter Symbol - 1.40x the bet
• Wild Santa & Scatter Symbol - 2.50x the bet

• Jingle Drop - 20x the bet (96.26%)
• Jingle Drop with Instant Prize - 75x the bet (96.38%)
• Random Bonus Symbol - 100x the bet (96.40%)
• Random Bonus Symbol with Chimney - 350x the bet (96.36%)

Theme & Graphics

Santa Hopper might have brought the Christmas vibe a little earlier this year, but I doubt fans will mind. The snowy backdrop feels particularly refreshing, just like the merry Xmas jingling and sounds. Push Gaming knows how to build a visually appealing slot compatible with all devices. The polished graphics and smooth animations are entirely up to par with the provider’s traditional performance.

Santa Hopper Free Play

Run the Santa Hopper free play mode via the demo link on this page! Test the slot game with zero risk and maximum pleasure, thanks to the numerous bet boosters and bonus buys. You can try your favorite gambling techniques and see whether the Dragon Hopper approach works here as well. SlotCatalog offers the most impressive library of free demo slots online!

Pros And Cons Of Santa Hopper Slot

Our Verdict

Santa Hopper brings back the energy of the innovative mechanics introduced by Push Gaming in 2021, but this time in a new festive outfit. Despite being a frank reskin, the game is as fascinating as usual when I try games by this provider. The lack of originality does not decrease the entertainment this slot form delivers, and I really like the walking, sticky Santa leaving more wilds with multipliers behind.

The Jingle Feature is well-implemented, and the suspense its suggested trigger brings is remarkable. At the same time, the Free Spins bonus feels a bit plain, given the rest of the mechanics. Perhaps an upgrade there would elevate the game to a new level. So, with Christmas nearby, Santa Hopper can be a fun way to spend some time relaxing.