Gates of Olympus review

Gates of Olympus is a Pragmatic Play slot released on 25 February 2021, with a Greek-mythology theme and Zeus presiding over the grid. It uses scatter pays instead of paylines, a tumble feature that clears winning symbols, and multiplier symbols that are added together at the end of each tumble sequence. It was named Game of the Year at the EGR Operator Awards 2021 and has since been followed by several sequels. This review explains how it plays, how the free spins work and what the numbers mean. Figures are as of September 2026.

How the game works

The grid is six reels by five rows. There are no paylines and no wild symbols: a win needs eight or more matching symbols anywhere on the grid. After a win, the winning symbols are removed and new ones drop into their places — the tumble feature — and this repeats for as long as new wins keep forming. A single paid spin can therefore pay out several times.

Multiplier symbols

Multiplier symbols can land on any spin, with values from 2x to 500x. They pay nothing on their own. When a tumble sequence ends, the values of every multiplier on the grid are added together and the total is applied to that sequence's win. If the sequence produced no win, the multipliers have no effect.

This is the centre of the design. Most spins pay little, and the large results come from several multipliers landing during a sequence that is already winning.

Free spins

Four, five or six scatter symbols trigger the free spins round and pay 3x, 5x or 100x the stake respectively, together with 15 free spins. Inside the round, multipliers are not discarded at the end of each tumble sequence. Instead, every multiplier that contributes to a win is added to a running total, and that total applies to every later win in the round. Three scatters landing during the feature award five more free spins, and there is no limit on retriggers.

The running total is why the bonus round varies so much. A round where multipliers arrive early can build a large total that boosts every win that follows; a round without early multipliers usually ends with a modest result.

Ante Bet and Bonus Buy

The Ante Bet option raises the cost of each spin by 25% and, in return, doubles the chance of triggering free spins. It changes how often the feature arrives, not what the feature pays once it starts.

Where it is available, Bonus Buy lets you buy the free spins round directly for 100x the stake. It is market-dependent — restricted or switched off in some jurisdictions — and it cannot be combined with Ante Bet.

RTP, volatility and max win

The default RTP is 96.50%. Pragmatic Play also supplies lower-RTP versions of the game at 95.51% and 94.50%, and each casino chooses which one to run. The only reliable way to know which version you are playing is to check the in-game information screen before you start.

Volatility is high. Expect long runs of small wins or none at all, with most of the game's return concentrated in occasional larger results, especially inside the free spins. The maximum win is capped at 5,000x the stake.

Bets run from 0.20 to 125 per spin, although casinos can set different limits. On a high-volatility game, a stake that allows for a long session is a more sensible choice than a large bet chasing the feature.

Sequels

The game's popularity has led to several follow-ups on the same engine: Gates of Olympus 1000, which raises the maximum win to 15,000x; Gates of Olympus Super Scatter, with a maximum win of 50,000x; and Gates of Olympus 2500. The core mechanics carry over, but the maths and the multiplier ranges differ, so treat each one as a separate game and check its own RTP and rules.

Verdict

Gates of Olympus is a simple game built around one idea: multipliers that add up across a tumble sequence and keep growing through the free spins. That makes it easy to learn and very swingy to play. It suits players who are comfortable with high volatility and long quiet stretches, and it is a poor fit for anyone who prefers frequent small wins. Check which RTP version your casino runs, set a budget before you start, and remember that no pattern or strategy changes the odds.