Real screenshot from our demo test, 28 Oct 2026
Pragmatic PlayReleased 31 Jan 2020
Release the Kraken Demo & review
A low-volatility 20-line sea slot where tentacles can start one of three wild features on any spin, and free spins wilds lift a multiplier that never drops.
Written by Hampus GravePublished 29 Oct 2026
Play money · no sign-up · no deposit
- RTP
- 96.5%
- Volatility
- Low
- Max win
- 10,000x
- Grid
- 5x4
Play Release the Kraken for real at YEET
FluxPlays verdict
Our verdict
Yes for players who want a lively low-volatility lines game, less so for bonus buyers. Any base spin can bring a Kraken wild feature, and in free spins every wild that lands raises the multiplier for all the spins still to come. The drawback is length: a chest pick fixes the round before it starts, with no retrigger, so a bought round lives or dies on how early the wilds arrive.
Who it suits
Play this if…
- Low-volatility players who want action between bonuses: any spin can bring a Kraken wild feature
- Bonus chasers who enjoy a slow build: every wild adds to a multiplier that lasts to the final spin
- You like to learn a game in the demo: three separate wild features are easy to compare there
Skip this if…
- Bonus buyers who want long rounds: a chest pick sets the length, twelve spins at most, with no retrigger
- You want one feature to master: five separate mechanics share the reels
- Max-win hunters who need the cap spelled out: only the intro screen states it
Where to play Release the Kraken
Release the Kraken is available at these casinos we have tested and reviewed. How we test casinos
YEET
18+ · T&Cs apply
SafeCasino
FluxPlays score 7.5
Skrill withdrawal paid out in 18 hours in our test
400% up to €4,000 + 1,200 free spins
- 40x wagering
- min deposit €10
- 30 days
400% welcome package up to 4,000 over four deposits, each 100% up to 1,000 plus 300 free spins. 40x wagering on bonus and free spin winnings. Minimum 10 to activate, 200 for the full 300 spins. 30 day validity. Free spins run on Pragmatic Play games.
18+ · T&Cs apply · Offer checked 7 Oct 2026
Betlabel
FluxPlays score 7.0
E-wallet payout inside 24 hours in our test
200% up to €1,500 + 150 free spins
- 35x wagering
- min deposit €10
- 7 days
200% welcome package up to 1,500 plus 150 free spins over four deposits: 100% up to 300 + 30 FS, 50% up to 350 + 35 FS, 25% up to 400 + 40 FS, 25% up to 450 + 45 FS. 35x wagering, 7 day window. Minimum 10 first deposit, 15 thereafter. Crypto deposits are not bonus eligible.
18+ · T&Cs apply · Offer checked 7 Oct 2026
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Release the Kraken: Full Review
In Release the Kraken, every wild that lands in free spins raises the win multiplier for every spin that follows and then keeps roaming the reels. Pragmatic Play released this 20-line, low-volatility slot in January 2020, before its sequel and Megaways versions. The base game is busier than most: any spin can call up one of three Kraken wild features. It suits players who want regular action at a low volatility.
Release the Kraken game information
- Provider
- Pragmatic Play
- Release date
- 31 January 2020
- Grid
- 5 x 4 (reels x rows)
- How it pays
- Lines 20 (40 in free spins)
- RTP
- 96.50%
- Volatility
- Low
- Max win
- 10,000x the bet
- Bet range
- $0.20 to $240
- Bonus buy
- Free Spins 100x, up to 12 spins by chest pick
How Release the Kraken works
Wins pay on 20 fixed lines in the base game and 40 in free spins, from the leftmost reel on a 5x4 grid. The bubble wild substitutes for all symbols but the three bonus symbols, and it pays like the top symbol, the Release the Kraken anchor crate.
| Symbol (pays at $1) | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchor crate, wild | $2.50 | $10.00 | $25.00 |
| Shark | $2.00 | $5.00 | $12.50 |
| Turtle | $2.00 | $4.00 | $10.00 |
| Blue fish | $1.00 | $3.00 | $7.50 |
| Yellow fish | $1.00 | $3.00 | $5.00 |
| A, K | $0.50 | $1.00 | $4.00 |
| Q, J | $0.25 | $0.50 | $2.00 |
How the features connect:
- Any base spin can show three tentacles. Picking one starts a random wild feature: Locking, Colossal or Infectious Kraken Wilds.
- A Bonus symbol on reels 1 and 3 with a Chest Bonus symbol on reel 5 starts the Sunken Treasure Bonus, a pick for cash.
- The same two Bonus symbols with a Free Spins symbol on reel 5 start Roaming Kraken Free Spins, after a chest pick that sets their number.
- In free spins, every wild that lands adds to a multiplier that never falls, then moves around the reels.
Free spins carry the game. The tentacle features are what make the base game worth watching, and the treasure pick is a side dish.
Release the Kraken at $1 before our first spin: the 5x4 grid of sea creatures and anchor crates, with the Free Spins buy. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
The Kraken wild features in the base game
Each tentacle hides one of three wild features, and they change a spin in very different ways:
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| Kraken Locking Wilds | The reels keep respinning while chests award More Wilds, Continue Spinning, All Wins x2 and Collect, More Wilds and Collect, or Collect. Wins are paid when it ends |
| Colossal Kraken Wilds | A 3x4 wild is guaranteed to land in a random place after the reels stop |
| Infectious Kraken Wilds | At least one infectious wild lands and turns the symbols next to it wild |
The game publishes no figure for how often the tentacles appear. What matters is that the features need no scatters at all, so a dull stretch can turn on any spin.
Spin 37 showed the Colossal version. The giant wild landed over reels 1 to 3, anchor crates stood on reel 4 behind it, and the lines filled across the board for $177.50, our best result of the session.
Rules page 2 in our demo session: the three Kraken wild features a tentacle pick can start. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
Base spin 37 at $1: a Colossal Kraken Wild over reels 1 to 3 and anchor crates on reel 4, GAME PAYS $177.50. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
Free spins: how they trigger
Roaming Kraken Free Spins start when the Bonus symbols on reels 1 and 3 land with the Free Spins symbol on reel 5. Before the first spin you open chests worth one, two or three extra spins until a Collect turns up, with twelve spins as the most a round can hold.
The round plays on 40 lines and starts at a 1x win multiplier. Every wild that lands raises it one step for all the spins left, up to 10x, and stays on screen, moving to a random position each spin. So wilds help twice: they complete lines straight away, and they lift every later win.
The catch is that the round cannot be retriggered. The chest pick fixes its length before it starts, and a short pick leaves few spins for the multiplier to grow into.
The round can also be bought for 100x the bet, which goes straight to the chest pick.
Sunken Treasure Bonus
The Bonus symbols on reels 1 and 3 with a Chest Bonus symbol on reel 5 give a pick from three chests, each hiding a random cash prize. Picks continue while prizes keep coming, and a Collect ends the bonus. The rules list no prize values.
Rules page 3 in our demo session: the Sunken Treasure Bonus, the chest pick to 12 free spins and the wild multiplier to 10x. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
RTP, volatility and max win
There is a single RTP, 96.5%, with no separate figure for the buy. The rules label the game low volatility, which fits a base game that can pay through tentacle features as well as the bonus. One review site rates it high, but the game's own rules say low.
The intro screen promises wins of up to 10,000x the bet. The rules pages carry no cap line, so they do not say what happens to a round that reaches it.
Rules page 4 in our demo session: low volatility, 20 and 40 lines, RTP 96.5%, bets $0.20 to $240. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
Our Release the Kraken demo test
FluxPlays demo test
28 October 2026, demo running 96.5% RTP
Base game spins
100
at $1 per spin
Staked
$100
Paid back
$375.25
375.3% of stake, +$275.25
Winning spins
19 of 100
19% of spins paid something
Biggest win
$177.50 (177.5x)
Colossal Kraken Wilds, a 3x4 wild over reels 1 to 3
Free spins triggered
2
natural triggers in the session
Bonus buys tested
Free Spins
8 spins from the chest pick, multiplier up to x5
$100 in
$141 back
1.41x its price
141x the $1 bet
Played on Pragmatic's public demo on 28 October 2026 with play money from a $100,000 balance. The demo opened at $2 and was lowered to $1 in the bet menu. The game has no ante bet. Natural free spins on spins 38 ($34.50, 8 spins) and 55 ($128.25, 7 spins). Amounts come from the server log and reconcile to the screen: $200 staked in all, $516.25 returned, ending at $100,316.25. The buy is one round.
Three feature spins made our session, and all three came within twenty spins of each other: the Colossal wild on spin 37, then free spins on spins 38 and 55. Without them, the base game made back $35.00 over 97 spins, mostly from quarter and half-dollar lines.
Every free spins round, the two natural ones and the bought one, followed the same shape. The opening spins were quiet while wilds pushed the multiplier up, and the money came later at x3 to x5. The spin 55 round broke the pattern only at the start, with a $60.00 first spin at x2. Each chest pick gave seven or eight spins.
Locking and Infectious Kraken Wilds and the Sunken Treasure Bonus stayed out of sight, so those come from the rules. With three feature spins deciding everything, this session is a snapshot of how the features play and says nothing about long-run return.
Free spins from base spin 55: the closing screen, $128.25 in 7 free spins, with the multiplier at x5 behind it. FluxPlays demo test, 28 October 2026.
Is Release the Kraken worth playing?
Release the Kraken is worth it for one reason: its base game has more going on than most low-volatility slots. The tentacle features can turn any spin into a big one without a single scatter, and the free spins add a multiplier that only climbs. For us that pairing is the whole appeal.
Bonus buyers get less. The round is short, can never be extended, and its value rests on how early the wilds land.
Pick Big Bass Bonanza if you want free spins where wilds collect cash fish and climb a retrigger ladder. Pick Release the Kraken if you would rather have wilds that each add to one multiplier, plus wild features in the base game.
In the demo, spin the base game before you try the buy. The tentacle features appear only there, and they are half of what this game offers.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you trigger free spins in Release the Kraken?+
Land a Bonus symbol on reels 1 and 3 together with the Free Spins symbol on reel 5. A chest pick then adds one, two or three spins at a time until Collect, up to twelve. The round cannot retrigger, but each wild that lands raises the multiplier. Our two natural rounds came on spins 38 and 55.
What do the Kraken wild features do in Release the Kraken?+
They are three random base-game features started by picking one of three tentacles. Locking Wilds respin the reels while chests add wilds or a win doubler, Colossal Wilds drop a 3x4 wild at random, and Infectious Wilds turn neighbouring symbols wild. None needs a scatter, and the game gives no odds for how often they appear.
Can you buy the bonus in Release the Kraken, and what does it cost?+
Yes, the free spins cost 100x the bet. The buy takes you straight to the chest pick, so it can give anything up to twelve spins, and the rules state no separate RTP for it. The random wild features and the Sunken Treasure Bonus cannot be bought.
What is the max win in Release the Kraken?+
The intro screen gives 10,000x the bet. The rules pages do not repeat the figure or say how a round ends at the cap, so the intro is the only in-game source. In practice the top end comes from late free spins, when many wilds have built the multiplier toward its 10x limit.
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