I’m playing Dead or Alive slot machine since it was released in 2009, and I can give an honest opinion about it. Let’s go through the details of this NetEnt legendary title and see what makes the slot so good, and is it worth playing today. This slot machine has achieved cult status since it’s release, and many people still play it regularly, let’s have a look why. In essence, Dead or Alive is a classic slot which was done so good that it went outside that classic scope, yet remained attractive to all classic slot game players. This is mostly due to the high quality theme and the innovative free spins game which was something new at the time. Even today, the free spins game in Dead or Alive feels fresh and is very fun to play. Also, the 96.80% theoretical return to player percentage beats most classic slots, and is a quality number even today. The game is played on a standard 5x3 board, but with only 9 paylines, which increases the variance a bit. The 9 paylines aren’t fixed so you can play only one payline for €0.01, making Dead or Alive a penny slot. The minimum to cover all paylines is €0.09 per spin, with a maximum possible bet per spin of €18. The maximum amount of money you can win on Dead or Alive slot is €54,000. As far as win frequency is concerned, you can expect to win slightly less than a third of your spins, and this slot is a bit difficult to play as it can withhold big wins from you for a long time. It is meant to be played in longer playing sessions. Main game and paytable After many years and many classic slots that depict a theme by just putting a few relevant symbols in the paytable, Dead or Alive was released as a full package where the background of the reels, the symbols and the free spins game all tell the same story. Sheriff Badge, Gun, Hats, Boots and Whiskey are the five high-value symbols while the remaining five are card symbols - so appropriate for a Wild West theme. The five main symbols pay from 200 to 1000 coins for five-of-a-kind, and Sheriff Badge is the best symbol in the game. Bonus features The free spins game is very fun to play, and every time it behaves and pays differently. You need to land three or more Scatters to trigger the bonus round, where you’ll get 12 free spins with all prizes doubled. There is one Sticky Wild on each reel, and each of those Wilds is different as it symbolizes one of the famous Wild West gunmen, including Jesse James and Billy the Kid. Whenever one of those five Wilds land on your reels they will stick until the end of the feature, and it’s possible to land more than one Wild on the same reel. If you’d happen to have one Wild on each of the five reels, you’ll get +5 extra free spins. The free spins game has high variance, and sometimes it will leave you without a decent win, while there’s the potential of winning a huge pile of cash if the Sticky Wilds accumulate on your reels. Conclusion Dead or Alive is one of the best slots ever made, because it gives the player a classic slot machine experience but then improves it in just about every possible area. The free spins game is very exciting and potentially very rewarding, and this is wrapped in an excellent theme that tells a story, plus you get a great theoretical payout. This is a high variance slot machine experience that many players just can’t get enough of. I definitely recommend playing it if you haven’t already, but only if you enjoy high variance slots.