The Invisible Man

The Invisible Man Slot Review

The Invisible Man is a five-reel, 20-payline video slot from NetEnt, built under licence from Universal Pictures and inspired by the iconic 1933 horror film. Released in December 2014, it carries a 96.3% RTP and medium-high volatility, with a max win of 1,000x your stake. What sets it apart from most branded slots of its era is the way the core game mechanic - walking wilds that chase each other across the reels - is woven directly into the story of scientist Griffin trying to evade the police.

Theme and Presentation

The backdrop is Griffin's rain-soaked laboratory in Iping, with bubbling test tubes and equipment filling the screen behind the reels. The atmosphere is genuinely unsettling in the best way - moody, dark, and faithful to the black-and-white film aesthetic without feeling cheap. Character symbols include Mrs Hall, Mr Hall, Dr Cranley, Arthur Kemp, and Flora Cranley, each drawn in a stylised illustrated style that fits the period. Lower-value symbols use metallic card royals (10 through Ace) designed cleanly so they don't look out of place. The soundtrack is tense and layered - worth keeping the audio on.

The game is part of NetEnt's Universal Monsters series, alongside Dracula, Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Frankenstein. Of the four, The Invisible Man arguably does the best job of translating the film's central idea into a slot mechanic.

Base Game and Walking Wilds

The most important thing to understand about The Invisible Man is the walking wild system. Two different wilds are in play:

• Police Wild - appears on reel 1 and moves one reel to the right on each re-spin
• Griffin Wild - appears on reel 5 and moves one reel to the left on each re-spin

Whenever either wild lands, it triggers a re-spin. The wild then moves one position closer to the opposite end, the reels re-spin for free, and any wins are paid. This continues until the wild exits the reel set. If a second wild appears during these re-spins, it also begins walking and triggers its own chain of re-spins.

The mechanic has a clear narrative purpose: Griffin (the Invisible Man) is heading one direction across the reels while the police are heading the other. When they collide on the same position, something more significant happens - 10 free spins are triggered. It is a clean example of a game mechanic reinforcing the theme rather than being bolted on as an afterthought.

The game pays both left to right and right to left across all 20 paylines, which is fixed - you cannot adjust payline count. Bets range from 0.20 to 100 per spin. The hit frequency sits around 29%, so roughly one spin in three produces a win of some kind.

Free Spins Bonus

Free spins trigger when a Police Wild and Griffin Wild land on the same reel position at the same time. You receive 10 free spins, and walking wilds remain active throughout. If the two wilds merge again during free spins, an additional 4 free spins are added.

Above the reels during free spins you will see two separate meters, one for Police and one for Griffin, each with eight spaces. Every time a wild drops off the edge of the reel set, one space on its corresponding meter fills. When either meter reaches eight, a separate bonus game is triggered.

Griffin's Rage and Police Spins

The two bonus games triggered by filling the meters are quite different from each other:

Griffin's Rage is a pick-and-click bonus played across three locations from the film - The Mansion, Ipping Station, and The Lion's Head Inn. At each location you are presented with five items to choose from. Each item reveals either a coin prize or a multiplier increase (up to 4x). Choosing the red police hat at any stage ends the bonus immediately, so the tension builds as you progress through the locations.

Police Spins awards 3 free spins with 5 burning wilds placed randomly on the reels at the start of each spin. The wilds do not walk during Police Spins - they are fixed for each spin, which gives these rounds a different feel to the main walking wild mechanic.

Which bonus game you receive depends on which meter fills first. Filling the Griffin meter triggers Griffin's Rage; filling the Police meter triggers Police Spins. It is possible to trigger both if free spins run long enough and both meters fill.

Volatility and Payouts

With medium-high volatility and a 1,000x maximum win, The Invisible Man sits in a comfortable middle ground. The walking wild re-spins keep the base game entertaining and produce regular small-to-medium wins, while the combined free spins plus bonus game chain is where the larger payouts come from. The 1,000x cap is modest by modern standards - newer NetEnt titles and competing branded slots often reach 5,000x or higher - but the frequency of the wild mechanics means you rarely go long stretches without something happening.

Premium character symbols pay between 7.5x and 25x the bet for five of a kind. The walking wilds, which substitute for all symbols, tend to build wins across multiple re-spins rather than landing a single large payout in one hit.

Verdict

The Invisible Man holds up well for a slot released in 2014. The walking wild mechanic is one of the better examples of thematic game design from that period of NetEnt's output, and the two-pronged bonus system gives the free spins round more depth than a simple respin count. The 96.3% RTP is respectable, the both-ways payline system adds value on every base game spin, and the atmosphere is well-crafted throughout. If you enjoy branded horror slots or NetEnt's classic catalogue, this one is worth your time.

Where to Play The Invisible Man

These online casinos carry NetEnt games including The Invisible Man. Read our Donbet review or browse all casino reviews.

The Invisible Man RTP and Variance

The Invisible Man has an RTP of 96.30%, which is above average. See our highest RTP slots for the best returning games. Medium-high volatility means less frequent wins but larger payouts when they hit.

At the minimum bet of £0.20 per spin, a £10 deposit gives you 50 spins with a statistical expected return of £9.63. Read our slot betting strategy guide for tips on managing your bankroll.

More NetEnt Slots

If you enjoy The Invisible Man, try these other NetEnt games available at the same casinos.