Power Up Roulette
The Supercharged Roulette from pragmatic Play
PowerUp
Roulette
Pragmatic Play’s most ambitious live roulette – reviewed by a player who’s spun more wheels than most dealers have seen.
The Wheel Gets a
Radical Upgrade
Let me be straight with you. I’ve sat at more roulette tables – virtual and physical – than I care to admit. Classic European. Lightning Roulette. Mega Roulette. Immersive Roulette.
I’ve watched the multiplier revolution sweep through live casino gaming and, frankly, grown mildly cynical about it. Most “revolutionary” roulette games are dressed-up variations on the same trick: pick a number, maybe get lucky with a bolt of lightning or a pre-spun RNG multiplier, collect your winnings, repeat.
Then Power Up Roulette from Pragmatic Play landed in late 2022, and something genuinely interesting happened to my evening. This is not a reskin. It is not Lightning Roulette with a different paint job. Pragmatic borrowed the PowerUP mechanic from their own game show Boom City, grafted it onto a beautifully produced European roulette wheel, and built something that, on a good run, can cascade through five consecutive bonus rounds and cough up a staggering 15,525× your stake. I’ve played it enough to give you the unvarnished truth.
Is it the game that finally dethrones Evolution’s Lightning Roulette as the multiplier roulette of choice? Almost. But the devil, as always in roulette, is in the details. Read on.
5 Key Points You Need to Know
The PowerUP is Not a Side Bet
Unlike Lightning Roulette, Power Up Roulette’s bonus is baked directly into the straight-up bet mechanic – no extra wager required. Place a straight-up bet and you’re automatically in play for the multiplier.
Every Number Gets a Multiplier
During a PowerUP bonus round, all 37 numbers – zero included – receive a multiplier. Not five randomly lit pockets. Every single one. That’s architecturally distinct from anything else on the market.
Five Rounds Can Stack
Land on a PowerUP number and you enter a bonus spin where the stakes escalate. Hit another and it happens again. Up to five consecutive bonus rounds can chain, with the multiplier ceiling peaking at 8,000× in round five.
The Straight-Up Trade-Off is Real
Straight-up bets pay 24:1 here, not the European standard 35:1. That’s the price of admission to the multiplier feature. The RTP for straight-up bets is 97.19%, slightly below the 97.30% for outside bets.
The Wheel is Manual – and That Matters
The dealer spins this wheel by hand. No hidden motors, no computer-assisted spin. In an era of increasingly automated live casino mechanics, there’s something both theatrical and reassuring about watching a real human set that wheel in motion before the PowerUP numbers illuminate around the board like a game show reveal.
Graphics &
Studio Design
Pragmatic Play built a dedicated studio for this game – it’s not a shared set redecorated for the occasion. The look sits somewhere between a high-end casino pit and a broadcast arena: deep blacks, warm amber lighting, glossy surfaces. The colour temperature is deliberate – low and luxurious, pulling the eye toward the illuminated wheel without feeling garish.
The game is captured with 4K cameras at ultra-low latency, and you feel it. The PowerUP number reveal – when those pockets light up around the board during the bonus trigger – is a genuinely satisfying visual moment. It’s cinematic enough to make you lean slightly forward in your seat.
4K Ultra-Low Latency
Multiple camera angles captured at broadcast quality, streamed with minimal delay.
Purpose-Built Studio
Bespoke set design with mood-lit surfaces and a game-show production sensibility.
Clean UI Architecture
Racetrack, betting board, statistics and favourite bets accessible without clutter.
The interface is clean without being sterile. The PowerUP summary panel – which appears during bonus rounds to track your accumulated winnings – is well-placed and genuinely informative. Compared to Evolution’s occasionally overwrought Lightning Roulette studio, Pragmatic’s offering here is more restrained and, to my eye, more elegant.
Gameplay &
The PowerUP Mechanic
At its core, Power Up Roulette is European Roulette – single zero, 37 pockets, the house edge you know. You get approximately 18 seconds of betting time per round. You can bet directly on the board, use the racetrack for call bets, or pull from saved combinations via the Bet Builder.
Before the ball settles, three to five numbers are randomly selected as PowerUP numbers. If the ball lands on a PowerUP number and you hold a straight-up bet on it, the PowerUP Bonus begins. In each subsequent round, every single number carries a multiplier:
The accumulated maximum across all five rounds is 15,525× your stake, capped at €500,000. Only straight-up bets qualify for multipliers – outside bets pay standard European rates. Experienced players often hedge with outside bets while spreading straight-up chips across multiple numbers.
How It Stacks Up Against the Competition
| Feature | Power Up Roulette | Lightning Roulette | Mega Roulette (PP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Multiplier | 8,000× | 500× | 500× |
| Max Total Win | 15,525× | ~500× | ~500× |
| Side Bet Required | No | No | No |
| Straight-Up Payout | 24:1 | 29:1 / up to 500× | 29:1 standard |
| Bonus Rounds | Up to 5 chainable | None | None |
| Overall RTP | 97.30% | 97.30% | 97.30% |
| Wheel Operation | Manual (human dealer) | Automated | Manual |
Extra
Features
The PowerUP round is the star, but Pragmatic built a fully equipped roulette table around it.
Racetrack – Call Bets
A full racetrack overlay lets you place Voisins du Zéro, Tiers du Cylindre, Orphelins, and neighbour bets with a single click. Critical for players who want to cover significant wheel sections while simultaneously placing straight-up bets – no mode switching required.
Bet Builder & Favourite Bets
Save your custom betting configurations and recall them instantly. For players with a preferred spread strategy, this eliminates the frantic scramble every round. One of the cleaner implementations in Pragmatic’s live suite – and frequently absent in rival titles.
Autoplay
Set a fixed number of spins with your saved bet applied automatically each round. Works well for tracking results across a session – though with a game this visually engaging, you’ll likely want to watch anyway.
Statistics & Hot / Cold Numbers
Historical stats tracking flagging frequently and infrequently hit numbers. Statistically meaningless in the long run – each spin is independent – but psychologically useful for players who like to feel informed. Display kept clean rather than overwhelming.
PowerUP Summary Panel
During bonus rounds, a dedicated overlay tracks your cumulative winnings and the prize potential of the current round. When five rounds can compound, knowing where you stand at a glance prevents confusion during the most exciting moments.
Multilingual & 24/7
Available round-the-clock with presenters in 10+ languages. Minimum bets from around €0.10; maximum up to €5,000 per round (casino-dependent). Crypto-compatible at select operators.
Pros &
Cons
- ✓Only live roulette with chainable bonus rounds – different
- ✓15,525× maximum win – highest in its category by a wide margin
- ✓No side bets needed – bonus integrated into standard straight-up bets
- ✓Every number gets a multiplier in the PowerUP round
- ✓Manual wheel adds authenticity
- ✓Excellent User Interface – Bet Builder, racetrack, stats, bonus summary panel
- ✓4K production in a purpose-built studio
- ✓97.30% RTP on outside bets matches European standard
- ✗Straight-up bets pay only 24:1 vs. standard 35:1. That’s the big kicker
- ✗RTP on straight-up bets dips to 97.19%
- ✗Five consecutive bonus rounds require extraordinary fortune
- ✗Not available in demo mode – real money only
- ✗Game-show presenter energy won’t suit every player
- ✗~18-second betting window can feel tight
“Power Up Roulette does something rare in an increasingly me-too market – it earns its multiplier hype through innovation rather than cosmetics. The 24:1 straight-up payout is the price you pay to get on the road to 15,525×. Whether that trade-off appeals depends on your appetite for risk. For players who love the tension of a live roulette ball and want big upsides without manufactured side-bets, this is the most compelling option currently on the market.”
4.5 / 5 – Expert Rating
Frequently
Asked Questions
Pragmatic Play –
The Story Behind the Name
In the competitive and murky world of iGaming software, Pragmatic Play’s ascent is one of the more compelling stories in the industry. The company was built on the bones of TopGame Technology, a provider operating since 2007 primarily in poorly regulated markets, with a reputation that was mixed.
TopGame Technology operates in grey markets, accumulating a catalogue of games but struggling with unreliable software and regulatory complications. Flash-based, outdated, and increasingly out of step with a mobile-first world.
Investors led by the IBID Group acquire TopGame and execute a comprehensive reset. The company is rebranded as Pragmatic Play, headquartered in Malta. New leadership, HTML5 architecture, and a pivot toward licensed regulated markets.
Licenses secured from the Malta Gaming Authority, UK Gambling Commission, Philippines’ PAGCOR, and Romania. Multiple Malta iGaming Excellence Awards by end of 2017. The company is profitable and moving fast.
Pragmatic acquires Extreme Live Gaming, inheriting a dedicated live dealer studio and professional croupiers – giving Pragmatic the in-house infrastructure to eventually build Power Up Roulette.
Julian Jarvis assumes the CEO role. A former barrister and early internet entrepreneur (AOL Europe, PartyGaming, Odobo), Jarvis brings legal rigour and commercial ambition. Live casino becomes a serious strategic priority.
Gates of Olympus wins Game of the Year. Pragmatic named iGaming Supplier of the Year. Boom City introduces the PowerUP mechanic. Power Up Roulette launches in late 2022 – bringing that mechanic to the roulette wheel for the first time.
Pragmatic operates from Gibraltar under CEO Julian Jarvis and COO Irina Cornides, certified in over 40 jurisdictions, content in 33 languages, releasing up to eight new titles per month.
Power Up Roulette isn’t a lucky product. It is the product of an organisation that finally knew what it was doing when it made it.