Narcos (NetEnt) – Review & Demo Play

Narcos Slot Overview

Narcos is NetEnt’s branded slot with 5 reels, 3 rows, and 243 ways to win. Released on 23 May 2019, it captures the series’ shootouts with base-game Drive-By shots, Walking Wilds, a Locked Up respins mode, and a 10 Free Spins round where high-value symbols can switch to wilds. Stakes run from 20p to £400 per spin, the RTP sits at 96.23%, and the variance leans medium to high. There’s no jackpot, but the ceiling of 1,506x can still land tidy hits when features line up.

Narcos Slot Information

Reels are packed with show references. The higher-paying set features Agents Steve Murphy and Javier Peña, a cartel figure, and the blonde, paying up to 15x or 12.5x for five-of-a-kind. Medium icons are the flamingo and the plane at 6x for five, while card suits carry the lower returns at 2x to 3x. The wild is the DEA badge, paying like the top symbols and substituting in both base game and bonus, while the white car acts as the scatter.

Escobar’s mugshot is the Locked Up symbol for the respins feature, and a golden briefcase appears within that mode. Wins follow the 243 ways mechanic, so at least three matching symbols must hit on adjacent reels from left to right. The paytable scales with stake, and you can view every value via the in-game information panel. In practice, the agents and wilds headline the line wins, but most of the game’s punch comes once modifiers start firing.

Narcos Symbols and Paytable

Symbol	Quantity	Payout
	5	x15
	4	x4
	3	x1
	5	x15
	4	x4
	3	x1
	5	x15
	4	x4
	3	x1
	5	x12.5
	4	x3
	3	x0.75
	5	x12.5
	4	x3
	3	x0.75
	5	x6
	4	x1.5
	3	x0.5
	5	x6
	4	x1.5
	3	x0.5
	5	x3
	4	x0.75
	3	x0.25
	5	x3
	4	x0.75
	3	x0.25
	5	x2
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.25
	5	x2
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.25

Narcos Slot Features

The Walking Wild turns any winning wild into a sticky mover that shifts one reel left after each spin. It can appear in the base game and during free spins, chaining wins as it travels. Layering more than one walking badge is where the grid starts to light up, since the 243 ways engine rewards repeated connections. If walking wilds remain when the free spins counter runs out, the slot grants extra spins until every badge exits the leftmost reel.

Drive-By is a random base-game event. A car tears past, bullets fly, and the higher-paying symbols they strike can flip into wilds. On a good roll it sprays several premium targets, creating clusters of wilds in one sweep. That burst pairs well with the walking mechanic, and it mirrors the TV firefights nicely. You won’t see Drive-By during Locked Up, but it can trigger within free spins, where the transformations become a regular pulse that keeps the round ticking.

Locked Up fires when three or more Escobar symbols land on the same row. You get three respins, only Locked Up or Golden Locked Up can land, and new hits reset the counter. Symbols that connect form a paying cluster, each assigned 1x to 10x stake, while golden cases add either 2x–3x multipliers, step-up upgrades in +1 increments, or bigger starting values. Free spins arrive via scatters on reels 1, 3, and 5, with ten spins and frequent high-to-wild transformations.

How to play Narcos

Setup is simple. I tap the gear to toggle quick spin and sound, then hit the “i” panel to skim features and the paytable. Bet level and coin value let me shape stakes from 20p to £400 per spin, while autoplay offers 10 to 1,000 rounds with stop triggers for wins, losses, or feature hits. The spin button is a revolver cylinder; Max Bet snaps level to its top setting. For pace, I keep quick spin on and let the badges walk.

RTP, Volatility and Max Win in Narcos

The published RTP is 96.23%, a touch above par for branded titles. Volatility sits in the mid to high bracket, so patches of quiet are broken by feature bursts rather than constant line hits. There’s no progressive or local jackpot, and the theoretical ceiling is 1,506x stake, reached via stacked wild action in free spins or a high-value Locked Up cluster amplified by a golden briefcase modifier.

Hit frequency has been quoted around 26.7%, so roughly one in four spins pays something, though many are small. I size stakes to ride out dry spells and let features do the heavy lifting. If you want steadier returns, lean on lower bets and longer sessions. If you’re chasing a burst, watch for Drive-By chains into Walking Wilds or a Locked Up round that lands early golden cases.

Is the Narcos Slot Worth it?

As a fan and a slot regular, I rate Narcos for its atmosphere and stacked feature set. Drive-By and Walking Wilds give the base game a shot of energy, while Locked Up mixes respins with tidy modifiers that can snowball. The trade-off is the modest max win for the variance, so it’s about momentum rather than one monster hit. When it flows, ten free spins with persistent badges feel class, and the TV tie-in lands without getting in the way.