Overview
Stick ‘Em is where Hacksaw Gaming started. Released in September 2019, it was the studio’s first-ever slot — a transition point from their scratch card origins into the video slot market that would eventually produce hits like Wanted Dead or a Wild and Chaos Crew. Knowing that context matters, because Stick ‘Em doesn’t play like the high-volatility, bonus-buy-driven games Hacksaw became famous for. It’s gentler, simpler, and more approachable — a debut that gets the fundamentals right rather than trying to reinvent the format.
The game introduces Canny the Can, a cheerful animated canister drawn in a 1930s cartoon style who sits beside the reels and celebrates your wins. It’s a small detail, but Canny became a recurring character across Hacksaw’s catalog, appearing in the sequels Stack ‘Em, Drop ‘Em, and Keep ‘Em. The retro art style and upbeat, jazz-influenced soundtrack established an aesthetic DNA that still runs through Hacksaw’s games today — even as the studios’ mechanical ambitions grew far beyond what Stick ‘Em offers.
Game Specifications
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Provider | Hacksaw Gaming |
| Release Date | September 2019 |
| RTP | 96.10% |
| Volatility | Medium |
| Max Win | 2,048x |
| Min / Max Bet | $0.20 / $100 |
| Reels | 5 |
| Rows | 4 |
| Ways to Win | 1,024 |
| Hit Frequency | 23.45% |
| Theme | 1930s Cartoon, Retro, Outdoors |
Theme and Design
The setting is a green meadow — Canny the Can has been kicked into the long grass alongside an assortment of lost objects that serve as the game’s symbols. The background is simple and pastoral, with birds chirping in the soundtrack beneath an upbeat, swing-style musical score. The transparent reels let the background show through, keeping the visual field open and uncluttered.
The symbol design follows the 1930s rubber-hose animation style that defined early Disney and Fleischer cartoons — characters with round, expressive features and exaggerated proportions. Low-paying symbols include a gold star, dice, playing cards, a poison bottle, and crossbones. High-paying symbols are a stack of banknotes, a diamond, gold coins, and a sack of money. The thumbs-up symbol is the game’s signature icon, triggering the Sticky Win Spin when three or more appear.
By modern standards, the graphics are modest. There are no elaborate animations, particle effects, or environmental transitions. But the art is consistent, charming, and readable — it does exactly what a debut slot from a scratch card company needs to do: establish a recognisable visual identity without overreaching.
Features and Mechanics
1,024 Ways
Stick ‘Em uses a 5×4 grid with 1,024 ways to win. There are no fixed paylines — wins form when three or more matching symbols appear on consecutive reels from left to right, in any row position. This is a common system for its era, similar to what Microgaming pioneered with their 243-ways and 1,024-ways formats.
Sticky Win Spin
The headline feature. When three or more thumbs-up symbols land anywhere on the grid, they lock in place and a respin triggers. During the respin, if additional thumbs-up symbols land, they also lock and another respin is awarded. This continues until no new thumbs-up symbols appear. If you manage to fill all 20 grid positions with thumbs-up symbols, the maximum win of 2,048x is awarded.
The Sticky Win Spin is the ancestor of the sticky-symbol mechanics that Hacksaw would later refine in more complex games. It’s straightforward — lock, respin, accumulate — but the escalating tension of watching thumbs-up symbols fill the grid is genuine. The 2,048x ceiling was substantial for 2019, even if it’s modest by today’s standards.
Free Spins
Landing three, four, or five Free Spins scatter symbols triggers 5, 10, or 15 free spins respectively. During the round, additional high-paying symbols are loaded onto the reels, improving the payout distribution. It’s a simple free spins implementation with no multipliers, no sticky wilds, and no retrigger — just more spins with better symbol odds. The Sticky Win Spin feature remains active during free spins, so landing thumbs-up clusters during the bonus can still produce the game’s biggest payouts.
Bonus Wheel
Three Bonus Game scatter symbols trigger a three-tier wheel game. The outer ring offers smaller prizes. Progressing to the middle and inner rings increases the payouts, with the inner ring awarding up to 1,000x your bet. All prizes are proportional to your base bet. The wheel is a separate feature from free spins — both can trigger independently during a session.
No Wild Symbols or Buy Bonus
Two notable absences. Stick ‘Em has no wild symbols at all, which means winning combinations rely entirely on matching symbol placements. There’s also no bonus buy option — this was a 2019 release, predating the bonus buy trend that Hacksaw themselves helped popularise with later titles. These absences make the base game more reliant on natural symbol combinations, which contributes to the game’s more measured, medium-volatility feel.
RTP and Volatility Analysis
The 96.10% RTP is close to the industry average — neither particularly generous nor notably stingy. It’s a fair starting point for a medium-volatility game where wins come at a reasonable frequency.
The medium volatility and 23.45% hit frequency set Stick ‘Em apart from the Hacksaw Gaming games that most players know today. A win on roughly one in four spins is a comfortable rhythm — far from the 9-15% hit frequencies of extreme-volatility Nolimit City or later Hacksaw titles. Sessions tend to be steadier, with the bankroll moving in smaller increments rather than the dramatic swings of high-volatility games. The max win of 2,048x reflects this: meaningful but not earth-shattering, achievable but not trivially so.
For comparison, the sequel Stack ‘Em (2021) raised the max win to 10,000x, increased volatility to high, and added both cluster pays and a bonus buy. The two games share a character and art style but have fundamentally different risk profiles.
Who Is This Slot For?
Stick ‘Em is for players who want a relaxed, medium-volatility session with a charming personality and straightforward features. It’s well-suited to smaller bankrolls thanks to the $0.20 minimum bet, reasonable hit frequency, and absence of extreme variance. If you’re curious about Hacksaw Gaming but find their more volatile offerings intimidating, Stick ‘Em is the accessible entry point — the game that started everything, before the studio discovered its appetite for extreme risk.
Verdict
Stick ‘Em is a modest debut that accomplished exactly what it needed to. It proved Hacksaw Gaming could build a functional, entertaining slot with a distinctive visual identity. The Sticky Win Spin feature is simple but satisfying. The Bonus Wheel adds a secondary payout path. And Canny the Can, improbably, became a lasting mascot for a studio that would go on to produce some of the most aggressive slots in the industry.
The game hasn’t aged perfectly — no wild symbols, no cascading mechanics, and a 2,048x cap that feels small next to modern alternatives. But it remains a pleasant play at medium volatility, a worthwhile demo for understanding where Hacksaw came from, and a reminder that great studios don’t always start with their best work. They start with something honest, learn from it, and build from there.
FAQ
What is the max win in Stick ‘Em?
2,048x your bet. Achieved by filling the entire 5×4 grid with thumbs-up symbols during the Sticky Win Spin feature. The Bonus Wheel can independently award up to 1,000x.
What is the RTP of Stick ‘Em?
Approximately 96.10%. Operators may offer different RTP configurations, so check the in-game paytable at your casino to confirm.
Is Stick ‘Em a high volatility slot?
No. It’s medium volatility with a 23.45% hit frequency — roughly one win every four spins. This is notably different from the high-to-extreme volatility that Hacksaw Gaming adopted in their later releases.
Was Stick ‘Em Hacksaw Gaming’s first slot?
Yes. Released September 2019, it was the studio’s first slot after several years of producing scratch cards. It launched exclusively on LeoVegas. The game introduced Canny the Can and established Hacksaw’s retro cartoon art style.
What’s the difference between Stick ‘Em and Stack ‘Em?
Stack ‘Em (2021) is the sequel. It increases the max win to 10,000x, uses cluster pays on a 5×6 grid instead of 1,024 ways on a 5×4 grid, raises volatility from medium to high, and adds a bonus buy option at 129x the bet. They share Canny the Can and the retro visual style, but the math models are fundamentally different.
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