Slot News: Gates of Olympus 2500, Money Train 5 & More

Gates of Olympus 2500 slot artwork showing Zeus above the temple gates

Pragmatic Play maps out its Q4 2026 slate

The biggest news for slot players this week is Pragmatic Play's Q4 roadmap, published on 24 September, because it fixes the release dates for the studio's heaviest hitters through to Christmas. The headline is Gates of Olympus 2500, due on 28 September, which keeps the familiar 6x5 pay anywhere grid but lifts multiplier symbols to 2,500x and the top win to 25,000x the stake.

Pre-release game sheets list a 96.52% default RTP, high volatility and four free spins modes, chosen by a wheel spin once four or more scatters land. It joins Sweet Bonanza 2500 in the 2,500x format, and with a Christmas edition of that game also on the list, the format is clearly Pragmatic's favoured way to refresh a classic.

The rest of the slot list leans on proven brands. According to Gaming Intelligence, Sweet Bonanza POP follows on 20 October, Zeus vs Hades POP on 17 November, Sugar Megarush on 30 November, Starlight Princess POP on 1 December and Sweet Bonanza Xmas 2500 on 3 December. The POP line already includes Gates of Olympus POP, so expect the same treatment applied to three more household names.

Outside slots, Pragmatic is adding Keno+, Pump+ and HiLo+ to its arcade range, a Guess the Number live game show on 1 December and Mega Wheel Latino in October. Actor Kevin Hart is booked to host live casino sessions on 6 and 7 November. For players the takeaway is simple: the next three months are mostly sequels and remixes of Sweet Bonanza, Gates of Olympus, Zeus vs Hades and Starlight Princess rather than new worlds. The full list is on Pragmatic Play's newsroom.

Money Train 5 arrives with a lower ceiling

Relax Gaming released Money Train 5 worldwide on 24 September, and the notable number is one that went down. Standard mode caps at 50,000x and the more volatile Ultra mode at 100,000x, against the 150,000x ceiling that Money Train 4 carried.

The game runs on a 5x4 grid with 40 paylines. In the base game, Nuclear Wilds plant bombs that detonate on a win and turn reels fully wild. The bonus is where the series has always lived: Ticket symbols push the reels left through a line of stations, with an extra row at Station 10, the Bomber and Pyromancer characters at Station 15 and a Permanent Payer at Station 20. Reel movement can also push a useful symbol off the left edge, so the feature carries its own risk.

Two details matter before anyone plays. NEXT.io reports an RTP range from 86.00% to 96.10%, so the version at any given casino may sit well below the headline figure; check the in-game help screen. British players will not see direct bonus buys, which Relax normally replaces in UK builds with alternative mechanics. Bets run from €0.10 to €20 in Standard mode and up to €10 in Ultra, per the official game page.

Relax chief executive Martin Stålros called the fifth instalment an important milestone for the brand, and the studio is backing it with an Ultra Challenge aimed at streamers. Expect a wave of bonus clips over the next fortnight, and remember those clips show the wins, not the sessions that paid nothing.

Image: Relax Gaming

Blueprint returns to Westeros with House of the Dragon

Blueprint Gaming launched House of the Dragon on 24 September, the second release in its multi-title HBO series built with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences. It follows the studio's Game of Thrones slot from March 2026, which Blueprint says was its strongest global launch in seven of its top 10 markets.

The engine is a collect model. When a Dragon's Wheel scatter lands with a collect symbol, a mini wheel spins and Dragon Emblems award cash values of up to 150x the stake plus extra spins. A random Syrax modifier can add scatters, wilds, cash prizes or cascades. Three or more bonus scatters open the free spins round with 10 spins and at least one of five dragon egg enhancements, and cash prize multipliers climb to 10x.

Blueprint's launch announcement does not publish the RTP or maximum win, so players should read the paytable before committing a real stake. Blueprint describes it as the second instalment of a multi-title HBO roadmap, so more HBO-licensed titles are planned.

Image: Blueprint Gaming / European Gaming

Malta writes an AI rulebook for gaming licensees

The Malta Gaming Authority launched its AI Gaming Charter on 18 September, written with the Malta Digital Innovation Authority. It is voluntary and creates no new legal duties, sitting alongside the EU AI Act and GDPR, but it is the first AI framework the MGA has written specifically for gaming.

The charter covers transparency in AI design, data governance, human oversight and non-discrimination. Licensees that sign up are asked to name responsible staff, run AI literacy training and keep rollback or kill-switch controls on high-impact systems. For players, the most practical clause concerns AI customer support: operators should set clear triggers for handing a chat to a human, including repeated low-confidence answers, unresolved queries, signs of distress or a simple request.

The MGA announcement follows its own study, which found only a minority of licensees had a formal AI strategy. Chief executive Charles Mizzi framed the regulator's job as creating certainty rather than blocking innovation. Watch which of the big Malta-licensed groups publicly adopt it; a voluntary charter only means something if the largest operators sign.

Online casino drives Ontario to an 18% revenue rise

iGaming Ontario updated its monthly market report on 23 September with August figures, and online casino did almost all the lifting. Casino revenue rose 25.4% year on year to CA$336m, taking total igaming revenue up 18.4% to CA$396.3m, while sports betting fell 9.6% to CA$54.4m and peer-to-peer poker slid to CA$5.6m.

Total wagers came in at CA$9.74bn, down 1% on July, and active player accounts fell 11% to 1.2 million. Average revenue per account rose 8% to CA$328, so fewer players generated more revenue each, according to Intergame's breakdown of the iGO data.

The split tells the story: casino produced about CA$336m of the CA$396.3m total, roughly 85% of revenue. For the studios in this roundup, that makes Ontario a slots market first and a betting market second, and a province worth prioritising when titles such as Gates of Olympus 2500 and Money Train 5 roll out.

What to watch next week

28 September: Gates of Olympus 2500 goes live. The 96.52% RTP is the default setting, so check the figure in the game's info screen at your casino before playing.

29 September to 1 October: SBC Summit takes over the Feira Internacional de Lisboa in Lisbon, per Yogonet. Expect a run of roadmap reveals and distribution deals from studios exhibiting there.

30 September: the second phase of the Gambling Commission's deposit limit rules takes effect in Britain. Operators must offer gross deposit limits, call only those limits "deposit limits" and show them at least as prominently as any other financial limit.

1 October: the first eight renewed Dutch online licences, including Holland Casino Online, bet365 and BetCity, begin their five-year term after the Kansspelautoriteit approved them.

Sources

FAQs

When is Gates of Olympus 2500 released?

Gates of Olympus 2500 is scheduled for 28 September 2026, confirmed in Pragmatic Play's Q4 roadmap. It keeps the 6x5 pay anywhere grid of the original but raises multiplier symbols to 2,500x and the maximum win to 25,000x the stake. Pre-release sheets list a 96.52% default RTP and high volatility, though casinos can run other RTP versions.

What is the max win on Money Train 5?

Money Train 5 pays up to 50,000x the stake in Standard mode and 100,000x in the more volatile Ultra mode. That is lower than Money Train 4's 150,000x ceiling. Relax Gaming focused on the new station system in the bonus instead of a bigger cap. The RTP ranges from 86.00% to 96.10% depending on the version a casino picks.

Can UK players buy the bonus in Money Train 5?

No. Direct bonus buys are not offered to players in Britain, so UK casinos carry a build without that option. Relax Gaming has usually adapted Money Train games for the UK with alternative mechanics, and day-one availability at individual UK casinos varies. In markets that allow them, the game offers several buy feature options across its Standard and Ultra modes.

What is the Malta Gaming Authority AI Gaming Charter?

It is a voluntary framework launched on 18 September 2026 by the Malta Gaming Authority and the Malta Digital Innovation Authority. It sets principles for AI use by licensees, covering transparency, data governance, human oversight and non-discrimination. It also asks operators to hand AI support chats to a human when a customer shows signs of distress or asks for one.

What changes for UK deposit limits on 30 September 2026?

From 30 September 2026, Gambling Commission rules require operators to offer gross deposit limits, which count every deposit before withdrawals. Only these may be called deposit limits, and they must be shown at least as prominently as other financial limits. The deadline was pushed back from 30 June to give operators more time for technical changes.

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Slot Industry News: Pragmatic Q4 Slate, Money Train 5 and Malta AI Rules