Gladiators were the original influencers, except instead of selfies, they served sword fights and sandals. These guys got tossed into arenas half-naked to fight lions, maniacs, and each other—all so drunk Romans could cheer and throw snacks. Their job title might as well have been “stab magnet,” and they didn’t have YouTube ad revenue to make it worthwhile.

Thankfully, the new Gladius: Death or Glory slot from Backseat Gaming lets you live the chaos without the impalement.

Are you ready for the arena?

The Gladius: Death or Glory slot from Hacksaw features a unique format instead of traditional paylines. Betting starts at just $0.10, with a maximum limit of $20. If you’re betting at the upper limit, you could win up to $300,000, thanks to the 15,000x maximum multiplier. The slot has high volatility, meaning wins may be infrequent but can be substantial. The RTP is 96.26%.

Rather than using paylines, ways, clusters, or scatter pay mechanics, Gladius: Death or Glory removes all conventional win systems entirely. There are no standard winning combinations. Instead, only Shield symbols, scatter symbols, and non-paying crossed sword symbols can land during a spin. Shield symbols are central to the gameplay, revealing Coins or special symbols that deliver monetary rewards or activate bonus features.

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Shields can reveal Bronze (1–4x), Silver (5–50x), or Gold (100–1,000x) Coins, along with Multipliers, Collectors, or Bonus symbols; empty Collectors gather all Coin values, then Coins reset as Shields to continue the process until no Collectors remain.

Once no empty Collectors are left, Multiplier symbols boost all Coin and Collector values by up to x20, with the total then multiplied by your bet to calculate the win.

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Three Bonus scatters trigger the Death or Glory bonus, where Shields turn sticky and reveal new symbols with each spin; you get three lives that reset when a new Shield lands, and the round ends after three dead spins.

If you’re not keen on waiting around to get your head lobbed off, you can select to purchase a round of free spins.

Is the Gladius: Death or Glory slot ready for the Colosseum?

While gladiator-themed slots aren’t remotely unique, one that focuses entirely on a modified hold-and-win feature definitely stands out. But just because something is different doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good. In the Gladius: Death or Glory slot, the base game really just feels like a warm-up for the bonus round. That said, with a maximum multiplier of 15,000x your bet, it can be a lucrative one. Still, even with the strong win potential, there wasn’t much that got me truly excited. I give the Gladius: Death or Glory slot an eight out of ten.

If you’re looking for a few other Backseat Gaming slots to explore, I recommend trying out Crystal Robot and Infernus.