Great Bear Demo Slot - Review for Canadians, Demo Play & Payout Info

Introduction

Head down to the woods today and hope for big surprises in this bear-themed slot from IGT. Play with 20 fixed paylines and a 5x3 grid, helped along by free spins with guaranteed wins and symbol upgrades. There’s a maximum win of 2,500x your stake up for grabs, along with a huge betting range of between 0.40 and 4,000 per spin.

Theme and Storyline

Like the Grizzly Gold slot, bears take centre stage in this game where you are transported into a forest settings where wildlife symbols adorn the reels. The icons include trout, wolves, lynx, eagles, owls, raccoons, rabbits, and mice, along with bear paw bonus scatter symbols and bear wilds.

Great Bear RTP and Variance

The theoretical return to player rate of this slot is up to 96.07%. This is very reasonable given that the average is around 96%. It should be noted, however, that this RTP is variable and we did see it as low as 89.02%. The game is also medium variance, which is another average choice which should suit all sorts of different players.

How to Play Great Bear

This choice of IGT slot demos is simple to play but here’s a few pointers to get you started:

1. Use the plus and minus symbols to set your total bet.
2. Relevant prize amounts are displayed in the win section beneath the reels.
3. Your balance is also displayed in its own box beneath the playing grid. Keep an eye on this and always play responsibly, especially if you choose to spin for real cash.
4. The symbol climb meter is shown on the left hand side of the reels. Read more about this in the bonus features section of this review.

Please play Great Bear responsibly by setting yourself an affordable and sensible budget for each play session. Never chase losses and insure you stick to your limits. When the fun stops, stop.

Great Bear Bet Sizes & Paytable Wins

Bet between 0.40 and 4,000 per spin in this hugely versatile, medium variance slot. There is a maximum prize of 2,500 the stake on offer and wins for between 3 and 5 matching symbols. The icons rise in value from the trout to the bear wild. The top 3 paying standard symbols are:

1. Wolf

2. Lynx

3. Eagle

Max-win 2,000x

Volatility Medium

RTP 96.07%

Great Bear Bonus Features

Great Bear has some interesting bonus features, including a Symbol Climb upgrade mechanic. This comes into play after wins and upgrades your winning icons to the next most valuable. The order of the symbols are shown at the side of your reels. This mechanism will upgrade all of the symbols of the same type, even those not involved in the original winning combination, and this can lead to more matches. If this happens, even more upgrades could be yours. Ultimately, you could get some seriously wild action if you climb right up the upgrade ladder.

On most occasions, if a new win isn’t formed then your Symbol Climb journey will end but, there is the chance that a random bonus will come into play. The Gift of the Great Bear can arrive to keep your climb going, although you will have had to have had at least 2 upgrades first. Even then, the feature is not guaranteed to kick in and so you will have to see if luck is on your side. 

Another random possibility is the Great Bear Multiplier. This can appear unexpectedly after spins which resulted in a 5-strong match of wild symbols. If this happens, the wilds on your third reel will take a spin in a bid to upgrade you to another level and double multipliers. This continues with multipliers of 3x, 5x, and 10x. Any multipliers will be applied once any upgrades end.

If you’re looking for a slot that has a free spins bonus in particular, look no further as Great Bear won’t disappoint. Best of all, in this game, the free spins have guaranteed wins. Land 3 scatter symbols on the central reels in the same spin to win 5 free spins with guaranteed wins. You actually get more spins but a spin will only count as one of your 5 if it contains a win. The feature ends when 5 winning spins have been completed and cannot be retriggered as you play. During the bonus, the Symbol Climb will continue and won’t reset between spins. 

Great Bear Review

There is lots to like about this IGT game, from the great betting range and average RTP to the crowd-pleasing medium volatility and decent maximum bet, which should suit most players. There is also a good choice of bonus features and the likes of wild multipliers, symbol climb upgrades, and guaranteed win spins are always going to be popular. There is a good balance between reward and risk and plenty of action to keep the entertainment levels high and the excitement rolling along.