Holmes & the Stolen Stones slot

Holmes & the Stolen Stones: the case in brief

Yggdrasil released Holmes & the Stolen Stones on 9 September 2015, early in the studio’s history. Yggdrasil was founded in 2013 and is based in Malta, with a studio in Kraków, and this game shows its early habit of wrapping a familiar reel set in a story. The setting is Victorian London, the hero is the famous detective, and the plot is a theft of precious stones that you help recover across the reels.

Underneath, the structure is classic: five reels, three rows and 20 fixed paylines paying left to right, with eight regular symbols. What makes it different is that the main prizes don’t come from a single bonus trigger. They come from a sequence: collecting, a bonus game, and then a jackpot round. It belongs as much among jackpot slots as among story-led adventure slots.

How the 20 paylines pay

A win needs three or more matching symbols in sequence on one of the 20 lines, starting from the leftmost reel. All lines are always active, so a 20p stake works out at 1p a line. That makes the maths easy to follow: a symbol that pays 5x the line bet returns 5p on a 20p spin, which is a loss on that spin even though the win meter lights up.

UK design rules stop games celebrating those sub-stake returns with fanfares, so watch the balance and net position instead. If the line structure is new to you, our glossary entry on paylines explains it.

How to play Holmes & the Stolen Stones

1. Open the help screen and check the RTP shown; Yggdrasil publishes 96.8%.
2. Read the jackpot section of the help screen, including how each of the five jackpots is currently valued.
3. Set your stake. Stakes are capped at £5 a spin in Britain, or £2 if you’re aged 18–24.
4. Spin. Each spin lasts at least 2.5 seconds, and there’s no autoplay or turbo.
5. Watch the shard collection display, which tracks your progress towards the warehouse bonus.

Shard collection and the warehouse bonus game

Yggdrasil lists Shard Collection as one of the game’s core features. Shards are gathered during normal play and are tied to the warehouse bonus game; the help screen sets out exactly how many you need. In that bonus, the aim is to improve your position for the Jackpot Free Spins that follow; Yggdrasil describes the warehouse round as increasing your chances in the jackpot game.

That design makes the game a form of collection mechanic, where progress carries across spins. Progress is real, but it doesn’t make the game more generous overall: the cost of filling the collection is already built into the 96.8% RTP. Don’t keep playing just because a collection is nearly complete. Yggdrasil doesn’t publish exact shard counts on its game page, so check the help screen for the version you play.

The five local progressive jackpots explained

Holmes & the Stolen Stones has five local progressive jackpots. Local means each jackpot grows from the stakes on that game at a single casino or network, rather than from a huge pool across hundreds of sites. That keeps the amounts smaller than famous networked jackpots, but it also makes them more realistic to land.

According to Yggdrasil, a jackpot is won in the Jackpot Free Spin mode when you collect five diamond stones of the same colour. Each colour corresponds to one jackpot. The better you do in the warehouse bonus, the better your odds in that mode.

Read more about how pooled prizes grow in our guide to progressive jackpots.

What a 96.8% RTP means at the stake you play

Holmes & the Stolen Stones has a published RTP of 96.8%, giving a house edge of 3.2%. Over the very long run, every £100 staked returns £96.80 on average. Some of that return sits in the jackpots, so in everyday play the base game and bonus return a little less than the headline figure.

The volatility label depends on the source. We list it as medium, while Yggdrasil’s own page calls it low and its description says low to medium variance. Either way, it’s a calmer game than most modern bonus-led slots: frequent small returns, with the larger outcomes tied to the jackpot route. Our guide to volatility explains the labels.

Max win and jackpot sizes

We don’t quote a max win multiplier for this game, because the published figures don’t give one we can tie to a stake. The jackpots are progressive, so their values change constantly and differ between casinos; the help screen or jackpot display in the game shows the current amounts. Don’t treat any of them as a likely outcome on a given session.

Playing Holmes & the Stolen Stones under UK rules

• Maximum stake £5 a spin at 25 and over, £2 for 18–24s.
• Every spin lasts at least 2.5 seconds; no autoplay or turbo.
• No feature buy, so the warehouse bonus and jackpot spins come only through play.
• A demo is available at some sites, but only after age verification.

Holmes & the Stolen Stones vs other jackpot slots

Jackpot Raiders is Yggdrasil’s later take on a multi-jackpot game, with low volatility. Divine Fortune has a similar RTP and a progressive prize. Hall of Gods ties into a larger networked jackpot at the cost of a lower RTP.

Pros and cons of Holmes & the Stolen Stones

It suits players who like a story, a steady pace and a route to a jackpot that feels attainable. If collection meters make you want to keep going, set a time limit before you start.

Where to play Holmes & the Stolen Stones in the UK

Look for Yggdrasil in the provider filter at the UKGC-licensed sites below, and check the RTP and jackpot rules first. PlayOJO gives 80 spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p with a first deposit of £10+, winnings paid in cash. Casumo matches 50% of a £20+ first deposit up to £100 with 10x wagering in 7 days, and 10bet matches 100% up to £25 with 10x wagering on slots in 3 days. 18+, terms apply.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.