Every thoroughbred is born to be a champion, just as every slot product introduced to casinos is designed for success.
It rarely works out that way. Only one foal becomes a Kentucky Derby winner each year, while most racehorses don’t achieve enduring fame. Same for slots. The majority come and go, a few go on and on.
Huff N’ Puff is a notable exception in the world of casino gaming, to such an extent that it’s Light & Wonder’s signature brand, the result of a deliberate strategy to build an original slot franchise.
Everyone can relate to the story of the Three Little Pigs, their different house-building strategies, and the villainous destructive “huff and puff” wolf. However, it took the creativity and imagination of the team at Light & Wonder to develop the story and characters into slot-icon status.
Brett Colbert, Director of Product Management, Slots, for Light & Wonder, summed up Huff N’ Puff’s phenomenal success. “It’s incredible art, sound, math, and an engaging story. When you put it all together, it’s a great ride.”
Slot devotees worldwide are attracted to Huff N’ Puff’s design, gameplay, and narrative. The franchise is the result of the rare game chemistry that brings everything together in such a way that all the elements combine to create an experience players can’t get enough of.
“Huff N’ Puff is based on a story that’s familiar to everyone,” Colbert said. “It’s light-hearted, cartoonish, and most importantly, relatable.”
Acknowledging that Light & Wonder’s game designers put a lot of love and effort into the development of Huff N’ Puff, Colbert believes that the carefully crafted “anticipation factor” of the game keeps players enthralled.
“Being able to utilize the core hold-and-spin mechanic on the game in a different way, the prize isn’t revealed to the player until the very end of the bonus,” he explained. “There are also layers to the game. The straw-house icon, the wood house, and of course the brick house, which becomes the mansion feature. Each layer results in higher winnings.
“There is incredible anticipation to having the wolf unveil the prizes at the end. The story is relatable to everyone. It’s easy to follow and at the same time fun and light-hearted. Combining the two concepts yields an output greater than their sum.”
Colbert onboarded with Light & Wonder in December 2020. Prior to that, he was in slot operations at Barona Casino in San Diego, spending a good deal of time working the floor and engaging with players. He brings insight to the table from both a vendor and player perspective. He recognizes the considerable effort and dedication that the designers and developers at Light & Wonder invest in developing the concept. A great deal of intuitive thinking, Colbert says, went into the process. In addition to the multifaceted nature of the characters, their houses also contribute significantly.
Colbert said, “The magic of the Three Little Pigs is fun, perfect for storytelling, and ties into ‘layering.’ The pigs build the houses up. The player may have some brick houses and you know instantly as a player that’s where the money is. The reward is in the brick house, the Mansion Feature.
“Then there’s the the big bad wolf, who comes in and huffs and puffs and blows it all down. By blowing it all down, there is the opportunity for incredible payouts. The story happens to line up so well with the slot machine. It’s the simplicity of the story and the great anticipation within the game.”
Colbert credits the game designers at Light & Wonder, with backgrounds in art, mathematics, and other fields, for their passion.
“They’re storytellers,” he said. “Light & Wonder invests heavily in its talent. We have some of the top talent in the industry. Their love of the entertainment world outside of gaming and their knowledge of history and literature make it a team effort.
“Many times, product management gets involved. Sometimes it’s a new intern with fresh ideas. Their love of learning and the sharing of knowledge come together and make the magic happen. It’s a true collaborative effort.”
A great deal of thought and enterprise even went into naming the game. Choosing “The Three Little Pigs” would have been simple, but simplicity isn’t part of the Light & Wonder philosophy. The classic line by the wolf from the story “I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house down” is as famous as the characters themselves.
“The title of the franchise invokes action,” Colbert explained. “When you see ‘Huff N’ Puff,” you know what the game is about, with action verbs that give the game life. That’s the magic. When you see and hear the name, you already have an idea where the action is.”
The animation of the characters themselves, the three little pigs, required careful thought. The artists had the option of exploring various directions; however, their final concept was ideally suited for the light-hearted storytelling theme of Huff N’ Puff.
“The team creates a lot of story boards to capture the feel of what fits well, which is precisely what they wanted to keep,” Colbert said. “The art is extremely well planned and thought out. They went back and forth with different story boards and agreed on the perfect fit for a light-hearted fairy tale that blends with the story.”
There is no “dark side” to Huff N’ Puff as there can be with fairy tales. The closest they came was the big bad wolf’s ferocious lung capacity, but instead of it being destructive, it turns out that it carries the player to bonus riches.
“The core foundation of Huff N’ Puff is the familiar story behind it, but in the end, it’s the unveiling of the prizes,” Colbert reminded. “There are so many ways to get to the feature, which we’ve done with the wheel in Huff N’ Even More Puff. Also, we just released Huff N’ Puff Grand as a wide area progressive.”
Colbert is eagerly anticipating Light & Wonder’s presence among its valued tribal gaming customers at the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) 2025 tradeshow April 1-3 in San Diego, California.
“I can hardly wait for the show. It’s going to be so much fun. The big debut will be Light & Wonder’s Huff N’ More Puff We’ve Had Enough, where the three little pigs fight back! It’s so comical, imaginative, and engaging.”
Other games in the top-performing award-winning franchise at IGA will be Huff N’ Even More Puff Grand and Huff N’ Puff Highrise. The games are displayed on the Cosmic Upright, Cosmic Mural, and Horizon cabinets.
“We’ll be doing ‘triple pots,’ which will debut at G2E later this year,” Colbert added. “The game will have Huff N’ Puff money mansions with an incredible lightbox that gets the player to the hold-and-spin mechanic when triggered.
“The foundation is so strong for Huff N’ Puff, which already has gone through ten iterations. We can add layers and bring in different mechanics. Our designers at Light & Wonder love the brand and they love the story. You’ll see many innovations coming throughout the year.”
