Winter Champions

Three winter-sports bonuses and a single Wild Scatter symbol that both substitutes for paying symbols and launches those bonuses when it lands in the right spots: that is the short version of Winter Champions by Relax Gaming. The longer version involves a bear hockey player, a walrus curling champion, and a ski-jumping penguin competing for column space on a 5x4 grid with 1024 ways to win. With a 94% RTP and medium volatility, the game leans into its sports-event premise rather than relying on a generic seasonal backdrop, and it runs on desktop and mobile at Wild.io.

What is Winter Champions?

Winter Champions is a 5x4 video slot from Relax Gaming with a 94.0% RTP, medium volatility, and a top win of 6,000x your bet. The game runs on 1024 ways to win across five reels, with pays forming when matching symbols land on adjacent reels from left to right.

The standout mechanic is the dual-function Wild Scatter. It acts as a standard wild, substituting for all paying symbols to complete winning combinations, and it also triggers the bonus selection when enough land in a single spin. From there, players choose one of three sport-themed bonus rounds: Ski Jumping, Ice Hockey, or Curling. Each is mechanically distinct and contributes differently to the session's payout potential. The game also includes Rolling Respins, where wins re-trigger and new symbols drop to extend the action, and a Feature Buy option for players who want direct access to the bonus without waiting for the Wild Scatter to appear naturally.

Who will enjoy this game the most?

You will probably enjoy this game if you like:

• Medium-volatility players who enjoy theme-driven bonus selection rather than a single free spins format
• Players who appreciate 1024 ways to win, since matching symbols only need to land on adjacent reels rather than specific paylines
• Winter sports fans or anyone drawn to animated animal-athlete characters with a light, competitive aesthetic
• Bonus-buy players who want direct access to the sport bonus without accumulating Wild Scatters
• Crypto casino players who want a festive-adjacent slot that holds up outside the holiday window, since the sports theme runs year-round

How To Play Winter Champions Slot - Step By Step

Head to Wild.io and create a free account to start playing Winter Champions.

1. Launch Winter Champions from the games library at Wild.io and pick your bet using the stake controls at the bottom of the screen
2. Hit spin and watch the 5x4 grid. Wins form left to right when matching symbols land on adjacent reels; 1024 ways to win means no fixed payline lines to track
3. When a win occurs, Rolling Respins activate: winning symbols are held in place while the remaining positions re-spin. New wins extend the respin sequence until the grid settles
4. Watch for the Wild Scatter. It substitutes for all paying symbols in any win combination and, when enough land in a spin, triggers the bonus selection screen
5. At the bonus selection, choose Ski Jumping, Ice Hockey, or Curling. Each sport plays out with different interactive elements and prize structures
6. If you prefer not to wait for Wild Scatters, the Feature Buy option lets you purchase direct entry into the bonus selection. Set your budget with the responsible gambling tools available at Wild.io before using it
7. The game runs on desktop and mobile without any reduction in feature access. Free demo mode is also available at Wild.io to explore the mechanics before playing for real money

You can also deposit using various supported payment methods.

Winter Champions Slot Theme & Graphics

Winter Champions builds its identity around four animal athletes dressed for competition: a lion in academic regalia, a bear in ice-hockey kit, a walrus with a curling stone, and a penguin mid-ski-jump. The setting shifts between a trophy ceremony aesthetic for the base grid and sport-specific animated environments during each bonus round. The colour palette runs cool and bright, favouring icy blues and whites with gold medal accents for the premium symbols.

Relax Gaming's animation work here is sport-specific: the Ice Hockey bonus has rink sounds and puck effects, the Ski Jumping bonus has the visual arcs you would expect, and Curling lands with satisfying weight. This level of theme integration carries the slot well beyond a simple winter-graphics skin. On mobile, the 5x4 layout fills the screen comfortably, and the bonus mini-games translate without losing the visual specificity that makes each sport recognisable.

Winter Champions Slot Symbols & Paytables

Winter Champions uses a two-tier symbol set: card-rank fillers for low-value wins and the four animal-athlete characters as the premium paying symbols, topped off by a Wild Scatter that serves as both a substitute and a bonus trigger.

Low Value Symbols

The low-value symbols are the standard card ranks: 10, J, Q, K, and A. These appear regularly across the 5x4 grid and contribute to the 22.39% hit frequency, forming left-to-right combinations that keep small wins coming between bonus triggers. Payouts for five of a kind of these symbols are modest, so they function primarily as session-sustaining wins rather than significant payout contributors. Their frequency across 1024 ways to win means they land in combination often enough to make the Rolling Respins mechanic fire at a regular pace.

High Value Symbols

The four main characters drive the premium end of the pay table. The ski-jumping penguin, walrus curling champion, bear hockey player, and lion valedictorian each have distinct visual designs that tie directly to their corresponding bonus round. These symbols pay meaningfully for full five-of-a-kind combinations and are the symbols players are most looking for when a Rolling Respin sequence fires. The lion at the top of the table generally pays the highest per combination, though exact multiplier values were not confirmed with official source labelling at time of writing.

Special Symbols

The Wild Scatter is the game's single special symbol, and it does two jobs at once. In any winning combination, it substitutes for every paying symbol on the board, completing lines that would otherwise fall short. When enough Wild Scatters land in a single spin, they also trigger the bonus selection screen, where the player chooses one of three sport-themed bonus rounds: Ski Jumping, Ice Hockey, or Curling. This dual function means every Wild Scatter that appears has immediate value both for base-game wins and as a counter toward the bonus.

Winter Champions Bonus Feature & Special Features

Rolling Respins

When a winning combination lands in Winter Champions, the winning symbols lock in place and the non-winning positions respin. If the respin produces new wins, the sequence extends: new winners lock, remaining positions spin again, and the chain continues until a respin produces no new winning combinations. This mechanic effectively gives every initial win a chance to compound, particularly useful on a 1024-ways layout where adjacent-reel matching creates more possible win paths than fixed paylines. Rolling Respins fire in both the base game and during the sport bonus rounds, and because the Wild Scatter can land during a respin and substitute into a win, the sequences can extend further than a straightforward reel-lock would suggest.

Wild Scatter and Bonus Selection

The Wild Scatter symbol does dual work in Winter Champions. It substitutes for all paying symbols in any win combination, filling gaps in left-to-right chains across 1024 ways. When it lands frequently enough in a single spin sequence, it transitions the game to a bonus selection screen where three sport-themed mini-games are available: Ski Jumping, Ice Hockey, and Curling. Each bonus has its own mechanics: Ski Jumping involves an arc-based distance mechanic, Ice Hockey resolves through a rink sequence, and Curling plays through a delivery and scoring format. The player picks one, and the chosen sport determines the bonus payout structure for that round. This selection element gives Winter Champions a degree of player agency absent from most free-spins formats, and the three-path design means different session outcomes are structurally possible rather than just statistically different.

Feature Buy

Winter Champions includes a Feature Buy (referred to as bonus buy slots functionality by the developer) that lets players purchase direct entry to the bonus selection screen for a fixed cost. This bypasses the need to wait for Wild Scatters to appear naturally in the base game. The cost is a multiple of the current bet, so the amount scales with the chosen stake. Given the 22.39% base-game hit frequency and medium volatility, Feature Buy is best suited to players who specifically want to explore the sport bonus rounds without extended base-game sessions. As with any bonus buy feature, setting a clear budget before using it is the sensible approach, and Wild.io's responsible gambling tools are available to help manage play.

Pros & Cons of Winter Champions

Here is a quick overview of the key strengths and weaknesses of Winter Champions.

How to Deposit, Withdraw Winnings & Gamble Responsibly at Wild.io

Getting started with Winter Champions at Wild.io takes only a few steps. Follow the Wild.io deposit guide if you need the full walkthrough:

1. Create a free account at Wild.io.
2. Open your crypto wallet from the account menu.
3. Make a deposit using your preferred cryptocurrency.
4. Launch Winter Champions from the games library.
5. Choose demo mode or real-money play, then set your stake and spin.

Withdrawing winnings is just as fast: return to your wallet, pick your payout coin, and confirm. See Wild.io withdrawal times for typical processing speeds.

To help players stay in control, Wild.io includes several responsible gambling tools:

• Deposit limits
• Session reminders
• Self-exclusion tools
• Reality checks
• Account time-outs

Before you start playing, set a clear budget, self-assess your habits, and stick to limits that feel comfortable. Take regular breaks, avoid chasing losses, and play responsibly. Gambling should always be treated as entertainment rather than a way to make money.