Pragmatic Play · 2021 · Tested in the demo
Gates of Olympus Review
The original Zeus slot: 2x–500x multipliers, 15 free spins, 5,000x max win
Our score: 8.6/ 10
Quick verdict: the game that started a whole series still holds up. Symbols pay anywhere on a 6×5 grid, wins tumble away, and winged orbs drop multipliers from 2x to 500x on any spin. In free spins every orb that lands on a win feeds a total multiplier that never resets. The game rates itself medium volatility, the RTP is 96.50% in every mode, and wins are capped at 5,000x your bet.
- RTP
- 96.50%Base game, ante and buy
- Volatility
- MediumThe game's own rating
- Max win
- 5,000xThe round ends at the cap
- Multipliers
- 2x–500xBase game and free spins
The game
What is Gates of Olympus?
Gates of Olympus is a video slot from Pragmatic Play, released on . It has no paylines. Instead, any 8 or more matching symbols anywhere on its 6×5 grid pay, winning symbols vanish and new ones tumble in from above, and winged orbs carrying multipliers from 2x to 500x can land on any spin.
Zeus himself hovers to the right of the reels, throwing lightning whenever a multiplier lands. The setting is a temple above the clouds: gold columns, burning braziers and a purple sky. The symbols are treasures of the gods: a crown, an hourglass, a ring and a chalice pay the most, and five cut gems pay the least.
It quickly became one of the most popular online slots in the world. In late 2021 it won Game of the Year at the EGR Operator Awards, and Pragmatic Play has since built a whole family on it: Gates of Olympus 1000, a Christmas version, Super Scatter, the small-screen POP and, in 2026, Gates of Olympus 2500.
The original is still the reference point for all of them. It has the lowest ceiling of the six, at 5,000x, but also the gentlest maths among the 6×5 versions: the game labels itself medium volatility, while the 1000 and 2500 versions call themselves high.
Paytable
Symbols and paytable
Nine symbols pay, in three tiers: 8–9, 10–11 or 12 or more of a kind anywhere on the grid. Zeus is the scatter, and the winged orbs carry the multipliers. The table shows each pay as a multiple of your total bet, so at a 1.00 bet a value of 10x pays 10.00.
| Symbol | 8–9 | 10–11 | 12–30 |
|---|---|---|---|
 Crown | 10x | 25x | 50x |
 Hourglass | 2.5x | 10x | 25x |
 Ring | 2x | 5x | 15x |
 Chalice | 1.5x | 2x | 12x |
 Red gem | 1x | 1.5x | 10x |
 Purple gem | 0.8x | 1.2x | 8x |
 Yellow gem | 0.5x | 1x | 5x |
 Green gem | 0.4x | 0.9x | 4x |
 Blue gem | 0.25x | 0.75x | 2x |
The Zeus scatter
Zeus can land on every reel and pays from any position: 3x your bet for 4 scatters, 5x for 5 and 100x for 6. Four or more also start the free spins, so the scatter win comes on top of the bonus.
Notice how flat the bottom of the table is. Eight blue gems return a quarter of your bet, and even 12 crowns pay 50x. The pays alone rarely make a session: the multiplier orbs do. That's why the game feels quiet for long stretches and then jumps.
Step by step
How to play Gates of Olympus
-
Set your bet
Use the plus and minus buttons beside the spin button. Stakes run from 0.20 to 300 per spin.
-
Spin the 6×5 grid
Any 8 or more matching symbols anywhere on screen pay. There are no lines to follow.
-
Watch the tumbles
Winning symbols burst, the rest fall down and new ones drop in. One spin can win several times.
-
Collect multipliers
Orbs that land during the spin are added together and multiply the spin's total win once the tumbles stop.
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Hunt the free spins
Four Zeus scatters give 15 free spins with a total multiplier that grows all round.
The key feature
How the multiplier orbs work
Four kinds of winged orb, green, blue, purple and red, can land on any reel during spins and tumbles, in the base game and in free spins. Each one takes a random value: 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 8x, 10x, 12x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 50x, 100x, 250x or 500x. The colour is decoration; the number is what counts.
In the base game, when the tumbling sequence ends, the game adds up every multiplier on the screen and multiplies the spin's total win by that sum. Two orbs showing 5x and 10x make 15x, not 50x. A multiplier on a spin with no win pays nothing.
Free spins work differently, and that's where the big wins come from: see the next section. For the maths behind every version, read our guide to Gates of Olympus multipliers, which also has a calculator.
Green orb
Blue orb
Purple orb
Red orb
Bonus round
Free spins, step by step
Land 4 or more Zeus scatters anywhere on the grid and you get 15 free spins. During the round, 3 or more scatters on one spin add 5 more, and special reels are in play.
The heart of the round is the total multiplier. Whenever an orb lands on a spin that wins, its value is added to the total, which stays for the rest of the round. Every later winning spin that brings a new orb is multiplied by the whole total. A winning spin without a new orb is paid without it, so the total only kicks in when a fresh orb arrives.
Here is the round we bought in the demo at a $2.00 bet, in screenshots.
Paying for features
Ante bet and bonus buy
| Mode | Cost | At a 1.00 bet | What you get | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normal spin | 1x bet | 1.00 | The standard game | 96.50% |
| Ante bet | 1.25x bet | 1.25 | Double the chance to trigger free spins naturally; the buy is switched off | 96.50% |
| Buy free spins | 100x bet | 100.00 | The 15 free spins start at once | 96.50% |
Because all three modes carry the same 96.50% RTP, none of them is "better value" in the long run. The difference is variance. The ante spreads extra cost over many spins for more bonus rounds. The buy concentrates 100 bets into one round, which can return far less than it cost, as ours did, or far more. Buys and antes aren't offered at every casino or in every country. Our bonus buy guide compares the options across the whole series.
The numbers
RTP, volatility and max win
RTP: 96.50%. The rules screen in Pragmatic Play's demo lists 96.50% for the base game, for the ante bet and for the bonus buy. Over a very large number of spins the game is designed to return about 96.50 of every 100 staked; in any one session the result can be far from that.
Lower-RTP versions exist. Pragmatic Play lets casinos choose from several RTP settings for many of its games, and Gates of Olympus is often found below 96.50%. Open the game's rules (the "i" button) at your casino and check the figure before you play.
Volatility: medium. That's the game's own label, shown on the intro screen and in the rules. Many players think of Gates of Olympus as a high-volatility slot, and with a 500x orb in the mix it can certainly feel that way, but Pragmatic rates it below the 1000 and 2500 versions.
Max win: 5,000x. If a round's total win reaches 5,000x the bet, the round ends at once and any remaining free spins are lost. At the 300 maximum bet that's 1,500,000.
The whole series is compared on our RTP and max win page.
What happened when we played
Our demo test
We played Pragmatic Play's free demo on with virtual credits, at a $2.00 bet, and bought one free spins round to see the feature from start to finish.
- Bonus cost
- $200.00
- Bonus won
- $171.20
- Return
- 85.6x bet
- Top total multiplier
- 29x
The round returned $171.20, so the buy lost $28.80. Most of the money came after the total multiplier reached double figures. One demo round says nothing about what you'll win: it shows how the feature behaves, not what it pays on average.
Phones and tablets
Gates of Olympus on mobile
Pragmatic Play builds its games in HTML5, so Gates of Olympus runs in the browser on iPhone and Android, with no app to install. On a phone held upright the layout changes: the logo and Zeus move above the grid, and the buy button, ante switch and spin controls sit underneath, within reach of your thumb.
The rules, paytable and features are the same as on desktop. Hold the spin button for turbo spins, or use autoplay from the menu.
The family
How the original compares with the sequels
| Game | Same as the original | What's different |
|---|---|---|
| 1000 | Grid, paytable, free spins, buy and ante | Orbs up to 1,000x, high volatility, 15,000x cap |
| Xmas 1000 | Everything in the 1000 version | Snowy Christmas look, Zeus in a Santa hat |
| Super Scatter | Grid, paytable, orbs up to 500x, medium volatility | Super Scatters pay up to 50,000x, a 500x Super Free Spins buy, a 1.5x ante |
| POP | Tumbles, orbs and a growing total in free spins | 3×5 portrait grid, 5+ wins, three jackpots, low volatility, no buy |
| 2500 | Grid and paytable | Orbs up to 2,500x, four free spins modes, four buys, five special bets |
Not sure which one suits you? Our comparison of all six games answers that.
Balance
Pros and cons
Pros
- Simple rules: 8 of a kind anywhere wins
- Multipliers up to 500x in the base game and free spins
- A free spins total that never resets
- 96.50% RTP in every mode, including the buy
- Medium volatility, gentler than the 1000 and 2500 versions
- Free demo and smooth mobile play
Cons
- 5,000x cap, the lowest in the series
- Most base game wins are smaller than the bet
- The total multiplier only applies when a new orb lands on a win
- Casinos often run lower-RTP versions
- Bonus buys aren't available everywhere
Our verdict
Is Gates of Olympus still worth playing?
Overall score: 8.6/ 10
Yes. Five years on, Gates of Olympus is still the cleanest version of the formula: one grid, one kind of multiplier and one bonus round that everybody understands. It can't match the 15,000x to 50,000x ceilings of its sequels, and that's the point. If you want the Zeus experience at medium volatility, start here. If you want bigger swings, step up to the 1000 version.
FAQ
Gates of Olympus FAQ
Who makes Gates of Olympus?
Pragmatic Play, one of the largest online slot studios. It released Gates of Olympus on 25 February 2021.
How do you win in Gates of Olympus?
Land 8 or more of the same symbol anywhere on the 6×5 grid. There are no paylines. 8–9, 10–11 and 12 or more symbols pay three different amounts, and winning symbols tumble away so new wins can follow on the same spin.
What is the RTP of Gates of Olympus?
96.50% in the base game, with the ante bet and with the bonus buy, according to the rules screen in Pragmatic Play's demo. Some casinos run lower-RTP versions, so check the rules in the game you open.
Is Gates of Olympus high or medium volatility?
The game rates itself medium volatility, on its intro screen and in its rules. Gates of Olympus 1000 and 2500 are the high-volatility versions.
What is the maximum win?
5,000x your bet. If a round reaches 5,000x it ends immediately and any remaining free spins are forfeited.
How do the multipliers work?
Winged orbs worth 2x to 500x can land on any spin. In the base game all orbs on screen are added together when the tumbles end, and the spin's total win is multiplied by the sum. In free spins each orb that lands on a win is also added to a total multiplier that lasts for the whole round.
How do I trigger the free spins?
Land 4 or more Zeus scatters anywhere for 15 free spins. 3 or more scatters during the round add 5 more spins.
How much does the bonus buy cost?
100 times your bet: 200.00 at a 2.00 bet. The ante bet costs 25% more per spin (1.25x) and doubles the chance of triggering free spins naturally, but it switches the buy off.
Can I play Gates of Olympus for free?
Yes. Pragmatic Play offers a free demo with virtual credits, and most casinos that carry the game have a demo mode too. See our demo page.
What are the minimum and maximum bets?
The in-game rules list 0.20 to 300 per spin.
Transparency
How we checked the numbers
Every figure on this page comes from the game itself: we read all seven pages of the in-game rules in Pragmatic Play's official demo on , played the base game on desktop and in a phone-sized window, and bought one free spins round with virtual credits. The release date and the EGR award come from Pragmatic Play's announcements at the time. If your casino's version shows different numbers in its rules screen, those apply to you.
Gambling should be fun, never a way to make money. Set a budget before you play, and if it stops being fun, take a break. Help is listed at the bottom of every page.
