The set up in Phoenix Fire is pretty straightforward. The game has the look of a classic fruit machine. The plain black reels include all the symbols you’d expect to see. In ascending order of value are plums, cherries, lemons and oranges which pay up to 3 times your stake if you land 5 on a payline.

Next come the grapes and melons which pay up to 5 times your stake followed by the bell which awards up to 10 times your stake. The best paying symbol is the lucky 7 which will get you 25 times your stake if you land 5 in combination. It’s worth nothing here that this is a win both ways slot so winners can start from reel 1 and reel 5.

Central to the action is the phoenix which is the game’s wild. This can hit on the middle 3 reels only. It expands to turn the whole reel wild whenever it hits. It also awards a re-spin with the expanded wild locking in place. Land another phoenix on that re-spin and the process is repeated. The ideal situation of course is to fill all 3 central reels with wilds and then get a final re-spin.

As you’d expect from a slot where a flaming phoenix takes centre stage, this is quite a fiery slot as far as volatility goes. The variance is in the medium to high range with maximum payouts of 679 times your stake on every single spin/re-spin.

Phoenix Fire is a simple game. It spices up what could be a very basic fruit machine with the expanding wilds which can certainly add plenty more excitement. It’s a classic fruity at heart though. If you want plenty of extras and backstory then look elsewhere – i.e. Playson’s Claws vs Paws. For a straightforward blast from the blast then you should do fine with Phoenix Fire.