The Great Herd

The Great Herd Review

Backseat Gaming, a young Maltese provider that got its start in 2023, knows it can’t just sit around doing nothing, which is why we sometimes see its new and interesting releases. And today we got our hands on The Great Herd, a 6-reel slot with 5 horizontal lines and a far-from-ordinary Scatter Pays mechanic that became available to the general public on June 30, 2026. And don’t confuse this with the usual Cluster Pays, where you create clusters of adjacent symbols. According to the developers’ concept, you simply need to have 8 or more matching symbols anywhere on the grid to win prizes, so there’s no requirement for them to be on paylines or adjacent to each other.

The Great Herd Slot - Reels Screen

Technically, this game looks quite promising, as it offers a respectable RTP of 96.01%, which is nearly in line with the market average. But as expected, the volatility here is quite high, so don’t expect Scatter-style combos to appear too often on the grid. The prize potential in terms of the maximum multiplier (which is x5,000 here) may seem modest. But everything changes when you learn about this game’s betting range. You can play a round with bets ranging from 0.10 to 1,000 euros. And if you decide to risk the max possible sum, you could theoretically win a prize of 5 million euros, which is certainly impressive.

Despite all the unusual elements described above, the symbol set here is based on a classic hierarchy. Thus, the ruby, blue diamond, green triangle, purple pentagon, and orange square are the lowest-value symbols that you’ll see more often than the others. The middle tier includes birds of prey and a wolf, which can bring you something more valuable. And at the top of the pyramid is the bear, which is the most interesting of the standard paying symbols. The provider has also added several special symbols, such as the Golden Bull and the Scatter Bonus, which spice up the base game and trigger bonus features.

The Great Herd Features

Essentially, Backseat offers gameplay centered around a combination of the base game with a cumulative multiplier and two differently powerful FS modes. You can also choose from four options to trigger the bonuses directly by purchasing them. This means you can adjust your strategy based on your bankroll.

Scatter Bonus

This symbol triggers the FS modes. It can only land once per reel, which is certainly a limitation. If you’re lucky enough to see three of these symbols on the grid at the same time, anywhere on the reels, you’ll enter Buffalo Ascension, where you’ll be rewarded with 15 FS. Here, you’ll have access to a persistent Tumble Multiplier that carries over between spins until it’s activated by the golden bull. When that happens, you’ll receive the accumulated bonus value added to the total multiplier.

The Great Herd Slot - Free Spins Win Screen

But sometimes you might see four Scatters on the grid at once, which triggers the Spirits of Buffalo feature. This is clearly a rarer and more powerful bonus round, with the Tumble Multiplier working even more to the player’s advantage. You receive 15 free attempts while benefiting from a persistent extra multiplier throughout the entire FS bonus. So the accumulated value carries over from round to round until the very end of the FS, allowing the multiplier to grow to impressive levels. What's more, you can extend any of these modes by +5 FS by landing at least 3 more Scatter Bonuses.

Tumble Multiplier

This feature is not active in the base game, so you’ll first have to wait for any FS mode to start. This multiplier begins in an inactive state, with each winning combination adding the number of icons involved to it. But without the Golden Bull, this accumulation won’t do you any good. And although it can be confused with the Wild, it actually acts as the trigger for the tumble multiplier. You can see only one bull in a given round. And it won’t have any effect if it lands on the grid without a winning combination having been formed.

Bonus Buy Features (CART)

The high volatility level in this game isn’t just about how often you see combos. It also affects the triggering of extras like FS modes, which don’t activate very often here. That’s why the provider has also offered you several options for purchasing bonuses in addition to triggering them organically, and we’ve listed them in the table below.

Theme & Graphics

The Great Herd transports players to the open prairies at sunset. So this is a game about the wilderness that resonates with many people. And to make things look more realistic, the studio did a great job of designing each symbol with attention to detail and creating animations that literally bring everything to life on the screen. It wouldn’t be accurate to say that The Great Herd sets the standard for graphics in casino games. Still, it looks modern and will therefore appeal to even the most demanding players. The provider hasn’t forgotten about mobile users either, so you can enjoy the game even on the go thanks to its excellent optimization.

The Great Herd Free Play

There are two reasons why you should definitely start with the risk-free mode for this game: high volatility and unusual mechanics. So, first, launch the free play version of The Great Herd, where you can use free credits instead of real money. Of course, you won’t be able to win anything here. But the The Great Herd demo will give you a full understanding of the mechanics and bonus features before you start placing real bets.

Pros & Cons of The Great Herd Slot

Our Verdict

The experts at SlotCatalog tested this game for quite some time, and overall, their impression of the slot remains positive, albeit with certain caveats. The actual volatility here does tend toward the high end, which is why periods without bonus features can drag on for quite a while. But this is typical for slots with accumulative multiplier mechanics, so it didn’t disappoint us. The same goes for the RTP of 96.01%, which appears to be a standard figure for the market.

The Tumble multiplier combined with the golden bull is undoubtedly the most intriguing part of The Great Herd. And this is exactly what makes the bonus rounds truly promising, as the player literally watches the winning potential grow while waiting for the coveted bull symbol to appear. Spirits of Buffalo appears particularly valuable in terms of mathematical potential compared to Buffalo Ascension, as the extra multiplier is retained throughout the entire round without resetting. However, organic triggers are so rare that you’ll find yourself reaching for the CART menu, where you’ll have to pay 300x your bet, which can be very expensive. So this game is better suited for patient gamblers who value the suspense of waiting for the multiplier to pay out more than frequent small wins. And we recommend trying out the demo version first, since it’s available right here on SlotCatalog.