DuelReels Explained: How Hacksaw's Duel Mechanic Works
By Scatter Drop Editorial Team · Updated 10 November 2026 · 2 min read
DuelReels is one of Hacksaw Gaming's signature mechanics. It turns a familiar feature – the expanding wild reel – into a small piece of theatre: two characters face off, and whoever wins decides how big the multiplier on that reel will be.
The basic rule
- A VS symbol lands. It only activates if the expanded reel would be part of at least one win.
- The VS symbol expands to cover its whole reel and becomes wild.
- Two duelists appear, each with a multiplier. They fight, and the survivor's multiplier applies to the whole reel.
- If several DuelReels join the same win, their multipliers are usually added together.
Only one VS symbol can land per reel, so the best realistic outcome is two or three DuelReels lining up on the same spin. Because the multiplier is decided per reel, a single DuelReel with a big multiplier can carry a whole line.
The original: Duel at Dawn and Slayers Inc
Duel at Dawn introduced the mechanic in a western setting, with an Outlaw and a Sheriff and multipliers from 2x to 200x. It also adds an Outlaw feature that expands into a full reel by itself. Slayers Inc moved the idea to a cyberpunk city and is rated 5 out of 5 for volatility by Hacksaw – its highest rating.
Variations worth knowing
- Resurrection Spins – in Phoenix DuelReels, losing a duel with the Phoenix awards a respin with more duel activity, so a loss is not always final.
- Bounty DuelReels – in Bullets and Bounty, the bounty hunter can win up to three duels in a row and collect each opponent's multiplier, adding them together.
- FS DuelReels – in Eternal Duel, free spin values duel too, and the winners decide how long your bonus lasts.
- Duel with Death – in Death Becomes You, spelling a word with low symbols starts a sequence where you duel Death himself with three lives.
Why DuelReels games are volatile
The multiplier range on a DuelReel is wide – often from 2x to 100x or more – and most spins don't land a VS symbol at all. That combination means long quiet stretches followed by occasional large hits. All the DuelReels slots we list have max wins of 10,000x or more; see our 10,000x+ max win slots.
Tips for playing DuelReels slots in demo
- Watch how often a VS symbol lands but doesn't expand – it only activates if it would join a win.
- Compare the bonus tiers: higher tiers usually guarantee VS symbols or improve the duel odds.
- Try the original Duel at Dawn first, then a variant, to see how much each twist changes the rhythm.
Hacksaw doesn't publish an RTP for many of these games outside the game itself, so open the in-game info screen to see the figure for the version you are playing. Read more about why in our guide to checking a slot's RTP.
