Hacksaw Gaming · 18+
Wanted Dead or a Wild
18+ · Fictional credits. Clicking loads the Hacksaw Gaming player.
18+ · Fictional credits. Clicking loads the Hacksaw Gaming player.
Wanted Dead or a Wild · Hacksaw Gaming
Wanted Dead or a Wild: key rules and figures
Wanted Dead or a Wild combines wild reels, outlaw duels and three distinct bonuses. This guide for New Zealand readers explains Hacksaw Gaming’s rules without treating the advertised maximum as a likely result. It covers all four RTP settings and lets you load the provider’s demo on this page. This is not a locally verified casino offer.
The layout has five reels and five rows, with 15 paylines rather than 25 paying lines. Hacksaw Gaming lists a maximum win of 12,500 times the bet and four RTP configurations. Check the information in the version you open instead of assuming the highest figure applies.
- Provider
- Hacksaw Gaming
- Layout and payouts
- 5 reels · 5 rows · 15 paylines
- RTP configurations
- 96.38% · 94.55% · 92.33% · 88.42%
- Published volatility
- 4 / 5
- Published maximum win
- 12,500 times the bet
Sources and verification
Checked on 7 September 2026 against the official game page and the written rules delivered with the official player. These sources establish the mechanics below. Our trial launch stopped at a game-wallet connection error before playable reels or a usable demo balance appeared.
Wanted Dead or a Wild bonus features
The Great Train Robbery
Three or more TRAIN ROBBERY scatters trigger 10 free spins. Wilds that land stay in place throughout The Great Train Robbery, so the same positions can contribute to winning combinations on later spins.
Duel at Dawn
Three or more DUEL scatters award 10 free spins with more VS symbols than in base play. Multipliers on reels contributing to the same winning line are added together, not multiplied by one another.
Dead Man’s Hand
Three or more DEAD scatters start the collection feature. Collecting a wild or multiplier resets the counter to three. After three spins without a collection, Showdown uses the collected wilds and total multiplier for three spins.
Wanted Dead or a Wild: Hacksaw Gaming’s original Western
Wanted Dead or a Wild is a Western-themed slot, also commonly described as an online pokie in New Zealand. Its outlaw duels, train robbery and Showdown use wilds in different ways. Understanding those differences is more useful than assuming every bonus is simply another batch of free spins with the same rules.
Hacksaw Gaming identifies this as its first game to use DuelReels™. VS symbols can expand into full wild reels carrying a multiplier. Understanding that expansion is more useful than trying to read the animated gunfight as a clue to the next result.
This guide concerns the original Wanted Dead or a Wild. A related title can share the artwork style or DuelReels™ name without using the same number of spins, RTP settings or bonus triggers.
- Base play uses a fixed grid and predefined paylines, not cluster payouts.
- The Great Train Robbery retains wild positions; Duel at Dawn contains more VS symbols.
- Dead Man’s Hand collects resources before using them during Showdown.
Reading the 5 × 5 grid and 15 paylines
Five reels and five rows create 25 symbol positions, but only 15 predefined paylines determine ordinary winning combinations. Nearby matching symbols do not automatically pay. Read the line pattern as well as the symbols, especially when several wins are presented together after a single spin.
A row is not the same thing as a payline
A row is a horizontal band of positions. A payline is a defined path across the reels on which a combination is evaluated. Counting every matching group visible on the screen ignores that distinction and can make a perfectly normal payout appear incorrect.
Wins run from left to right on adjacent reels, beginning with the leftmost reel. The paytable gives the number of matching symbols required and shows the line paths.
Separate a line win from the spin total
One spin can produce wins on several lines. The final amount combines the relevant line payouts; it need not be the value of a single combination. Follow one highlighted line before comparing it with the overall result shown by the game.
With DuelReels™, a reel’s multiplier affects the winning lines that pass through it. Do not apply it to an unrelated combination elsewhere on the grid.
Wild and VS symbols have different jobs
An ordinary Wild helps complete matching combinations. A VS symbol can lead to a duel and an expanded wild reel with a multiplier. These are different functions: spotting a wild, seeing a VS and getting several expanded reels do not mean the same thing for a line payout.
What a Wild can and cannot replace
The Wild substitutes for other symbols except bonus-game symbols and VS symbols. It can fill a gap in an ordinary combination, but cannot replace a missing scatter to trigger one of the bonuses. That exception matters when the screen looks close to a feature trigger.
Wilds stay in position during The Great Train Robbery. Do not assume that persistence also applies to every wild in base play or a different bonus.
A VS needs a qualifying expansion
The rules make expansion conditional: at least one VS must form part of a win once expanded. The resulting reel becomes entirely Wild and displays the duel that determines its multiplier. A VS does not simply pay a fixed prize for appearing.
VS symbols occur in base play and Duel at Dawn. Follow the expanded reel and the affected paylines rather than counting an immediate return when a VS lands.
DuelReels™: expansion and added multipliers
When the expansion condition is met, each relevant VS covers its reel and two outlaws face one another. The survivor’s value becomes the multiplier for that wild reel. If a VS lands on every reel, the whole grid is treated as Wild. The animation does not ask you to choose a winning outlaw.
- Illustrative NZ-dollar calculation: 7 + 20 = 27; NZ$0.40 × 27 = NZ$10.80.
Which multiplier values can appear?
The possible values are ×2, ×3, ×4, ×5, ×6, ×7, ×8, ×9, ×10, ×20, ×25, ×50 and ×100. These are the values listed in the official rules, not a continuous range in which every intermediate number is possible.
Where more than one wild reel contributes to the same winning combination, add their values first. The combined value then multiplies that line’s win; the reel multipliers are not multiplied together.
An example using a single winning line
For an arithmetic example, put ×7 and ×20 reels on the same winning line: their total is ×27. An illustrative line payout of NZ$0.40 becomes NZ$10.80 after multiplication. The currency is used to explain the calculation for New Zealand readers, not to confirm accepted currencies or selectable stakes.
Start with the line payout, not the total bet. A different winning line uses the multipliers of the reels involved in its own combination, rather than borrowing every value displayed on the screen.
The Great Train Robbery: 10 spins with sticky wilds
Three or more TRAIN ROBBERY scatter symbols in base play trigger The Great Train Robbery and award 10 free spins. Every Wild that lands during this feature stays in position until the bonus ends. Those retained positions can help create later combinations without needing another wild to land there.
How wild positions accumulate
New wilds can join the ones already held on the grid. A retained position remains available to any qualifying line that passes through it on subsequent spins. That gives the train bonus a different structure from a spin where the wild disappears immediately afterwards.
The positions still matter. Several wilds only help a payout if the resulting symbols form the combinations required by the paylines and paytable.
Sticky does not mean a guaranteed payout
Keeping a wild does not lock in a particular amount of money for the next spin. The remaining symbols and the payline rules still determine the outcome. A screen with more retained wilds is not the same as a balance containing more confirmed winnings.
To follow the bonus, note which positions remain fixed and then read the new combinations around them. Judge the actual line payouts, rather than treating each additional wild as a cash prize.
Duel at Dawn: 10 spins with more VS symbols
Three or more DUEL scatters in base play trigger Duel at Dawn, awarding 10 free spins. This feature contains more VS symbols than base play. Hacksaw Gaming describes an increased chance of simultaneous duels, with up to five expanded reels possible, not a promise that every spin will fill the grid.
Several duels on the same winning line
The useful interaction is between the expanded reels and the winning combinations. If several DuelReels™ contribute to the same line, their multipliers are added before applying the total to that line’s payout. Simply counting duels does not explain the final amount.
Watch the values left by the surviving outlaws and which lines pass through those reels. That separates the payout calculation from the pace of the animation.
A quiet spin does not make a duel due
More VS symbols in the bonus does not create an obligation to compensate for earlier results. A sequence of low-paying spins gives no reliable signal that a grid full of duels will appear next. The feature’s increased opportunity is not a timetable.
Raising your stake after a disappointing result does not make the next outcome more predictable. If your spending or time limit has been reached, stop rather than waiting for a supposedly overdue duel.
Dead Man’s Hand: collection followed by Showdown
Three or more DEAD scatter symbols in base play start Dead Man’s Hand. First the feature collects wilds and multipliers; then it moves into a three-spin Showdown. The collected resources are used on each Showdown spin. They are not cash winnings credited simply because they entered a collection counter.
Each collection resets the counter to three
Collecting either a wild or a multiplier resets the remaining-spin counter to three. Collection continues until three consecutive spins add neither. The phase can therefore last longer than three spins: each new collected item restarts the countdown rather than merely adding a payout.
The wild counter sits above the reels on the left, with the total multiplier on the right. The collection symbols do not pay during this phase; their effect comes in Showdown.
All three Showdown spins use the collected resources
Showdown awards three spins. On each one, the collected number of wilds is placed randomly on the grid, and the total collected multiplier applies to all wins. Unlike a DuelReels™ multiplier, this accumulated value is not restricted to one particular winning line.
Unlike the train feature, Showdown does not retain the same wild positions. Read the new placement, the resulting combinations and the remaining-spin counter separately as each of the three spins resolves.
Buying a bonus: the cost of direct entry
The official rules describe a bonus-buy option for direct access from base play. Its availability and displayed conditions depend on the version offered to you. The amount charged at confirmation is the cost that matters, not just the underlying stake or the feature’s maximum possible payout.
Compare the purchase price with your whole budget
A direct bonus purchase uses the full displayed price immediately. Weigh it against your complete session limit, not just the bet used as a reference for pricing. A small-looking reference stake can still correspond to a purchase that takes a large share of the money you set aside.
Compare the eventual payout with what was actually deducted. A bonus can include winning combinations while still returning less than its purchase price.
Check the feature name and the total charge
The Great Train Robbery, Duel at Dawn and Dead Man’s Hand use wilds differently. Read the selected feature’s name and full price rather than confirming from its artwork alone. Similar presentation does not mean identical mechanics or the same financial commitment.
Exact purchase prices and purchase-specific RTPs have not been confirmed here. The four general RTP settings do not establish the RTP of an individual bonus-buy option.
Wanted Dead or a Wild stakes: track the full amount
Use the total bet displayed for the spin when assessing your spending. The game’s 15 paylines describe how combinations are evaluated; they are not a reason to multiply an amount already labelled as the total bet a second time. Keep the stake, payout and available balance separate.
A bet, a payout and a balance are different figures
The bet is the amount committed to a round. The payout is what its result returns, and the balance is what remains available afterwards. A winning spin does not necessarily mean that you are ahead across the session or even that you recovered the stake.
A bonus purchase counts at its full cost against your spending limit, not merely at the reference bet used to calculate its price.
A demo balance is not a real-money budget
Fictional credits let you inspect an interface and its mechanics; they cannot be withdrawn. The ease of restarting a trial is not a sensible basis for choosing an amount of real money to lose. Decide that limit independently before considering a paid session.
We have not confirmed an exact stake range or support for New Zealand dollars. Check the currency and amounts shown in the game you open. An NZ-dollar calculation in this guide is an example, not evidence of local banking or payment options.
The four published RTP settings
Hacksaw Gaming lists RTP configurations of 96.38%, 94.55%, 92.33% and 88.42%. These are not interchangeable estimates for a single session. The setting attached to the version you open describes that version’s theoretical model; the highest percentage on the provider’s page does not automatically apply everywhere.
| Published RTP | Theoretical difference from 100% |
|---|---|
| 96.38% | 3.62% |
| 94.55% | 5.45% |
| 92.33% | 7.67% |
| 88.42% | 11.58% |
Identify the setting in the version you open
The game title, artwork and symbols cannot tell you which RTP is active. Read the rules or information panel in the actual version. An operator’s presentation may look identical while offering a different configuration from the highest figure in the provider’s data.
The difference from 100% helps compare the theoretical settings. It is not an extra fee taken from each spin or a fixed loss that every player experiences.
A long-run measure, not a refund promise
RTP describes a theoretical return across a very large volume of play. It does not say that one person will get that percentage of a deposit, spending limit or losses back. A short session can finish far from the theoretical average in either direction.
RTP concerns aggregate return; volatility concerns how unevenly outcomes can occur. A higher RTP does not turn an irregular game into a source of steady payouts.
Volatility 4/5 and the 12,500-times maximum
Hacksaw Gaming rates Wanted Dead or a Wild’s volatility at 4 out of 5. This is a provider rating for uneven outcomes, not a claim that four spins out of five lose. It does not specify how long a balance will last or set a schedule for bonus triggers.
The published maximum is 12,500 times the bet. This is a cap, not a typical feature payout or an amount the game gradually owes you. The official page does not state the probability of reaching it, so a frequency cannot be inferred from the figure alone.
Duels and accumulated wilds explain ways a combination can be enhanced, not when that combination will occur. A smaller stake lowers the money committed to one spin without making the pattern of results more regular.
- 4/5 is Hacksaw Gaming’s volatility rating, not a losing-spin percentage.
- 12,500 times the bet is the advertised maximum, not a guaranteed return.
- RTP is a long-run measure, not a timer for the next bonus.
Wanted Dead or a Wild demo on desktop and mobile
Select “Play demo here” to load the provider’s player directly in this guide. It uses fictional credits and does not require you to leave for the official game page. Access still depends on the provider’s conditions and your location; loading the player does not guarantee a playable session.
If the trial opens, start with the rules
Locate the rules, paytable and demo status before using any game controls. Check the RTP setting and the displayed stake. You can then follow a combination while keeping ordinary symbols, Wilds and VS symbols separate, rather than trying to learn solely from the win animation.
On a phone, changing orientation may make small values easier to read. The game controls are inside the embedded Hacksaw Gaming player. A New Zealand version of this guide does not guarantee that the demo will load from your connection.
Use a trial to understand mechanics, not predict returns
If a trial becomes available, watch how a VS expands and how a line payout is displayed. In a bonus, identify what carries over: fixed wild positions in the train feature, or collected resources reused during Showdown. Those distinctions explain more than one unusually large result.
If the player is unavailable, try “Reload” later. A failed launch does not establish availability for every visitor. Demo credits never become withdrawable cash.
Who might find Wanted Dead or a Wild interesting?
The game is most relevant to adults interested in how paylines, wilds and multipliers interact. Its three bonuses are structurally different rather than interchangeable sets of free spins. An available official trial can help explain those differences without committing real money, but its results do not predict a paid session.
This Western is not a sensible choice for anyone seeking regular income or trying to recover losses. Its published volatility is 4/5, and the appeal of DuelReels™ lies in the mechanic itself, not a method of forecasting the next duel.
Hacksaw Gaming supplies the game; this independent guide is not its official site and is not a casino. New Zealand readers should check the rules and access conditions that apply to their chosen operator. A provider licence does not settle an operator’s status or availability for a particular visitor.
- Set a spending limit and a stopping time before any real-money session.
- Stop as soon as you reach either limit, without waiting for one last bonus.
- If you are chasing losses or exceeding limits, stop and consider the operator’s break or self-exclusion tools.
Wanted Dead or a Wild: common questions
Is this the original Wanted Dead or a Wild by Hacksaw Gaming?
Yes. This guide covers Wanted Dead or a Wild, which Hacksaw Gaming describes as its first title to feature DuelReels™. Another Western game or a later title using that mechanic may have different bonuses, figures and rules.
Do 25 positions mean there are 25 paylines?
No. Five reels and five rows provide 25 positions, but the game has 15 predefined paylines. Matching symbols pay on adjacent reels from left to right, starting with the leftmost reel, according to the paytable.
Does every VS symbol automatically become a wild reel?
Expansion is conditional: at least one VS must form part of a win after expansion. The surviving outlaw’s multiplier then applies to its expanded wild reel and the winning lines passing through it. A VS symbol alone is not an unconditional payout.
Are several DuelReels™ multipliers multiplied together?
No. Values contributing to the same winning combination are added, and that total multiplies the relevant line win. It is not a multiplier for every unrelated win on the grid, and it does not multiply the total stake directly.
Which bonus keeps wilds in the same positions?
The Great Train Robbery awards 10 free spins after three or more TRAIN ROBBERY scatters. Landed wilds stay put throughout the feature. Dead Man’s Hand instead places its collected wilds randomly on each of the three Showdown spins.
Does Duel at Dawn guarantee multiple duels?
No. Three or more DUEL scatters award 10 free spins with more VS symbols than base play. That creates more opportunities for simultaneous duels, not a fixed number of duels or a guaranteed win on every spin.
What is the RTP of Wanted Dead or a Wild?
The published settings are 96.38%, 94.55%, 92.33% and 88.42%. Read the information for the version you actually open to find its setting. None of these long-run percentages predicts the return on your next session or deposit.
Can every bonus pay 12,500 times the bet?
The published 12,500-times maximum is a cap, not the usual bonus payout or a target each feature works towards. The official game page does not state how often it is reached. A bonus can return less than its cost.
Where is the demo on mobile?
Select “Play demo here” in the demo section to load the Hacksaw Gaming player on this page. On a phone, changing orientation may make the controls easier to read. Credits are fictional and cannot be withdrawn. Availability depends on the provider and your location; a successful launch is not guaranteed.
Does buying a bonus offer better returns?
That has not been established. Exact purchase prices and feature-specific purchase RTPs were not confirmed. A purchase commits its full displayed price immediately and does not guarantee that you will recover it, even if the bonus produces winning lines.