Habanero in Canada
The studio behind Koi Gate and Hot Hot Fruit: what its games are like, how its RTP versions work, how to check the RTP inside a game, and where its games stand in Ontario, Alberta and the rest of Canada.
Key facts
- 227 games in the catalogue on the studio’s website, 204 of them slots
- 96.26% theoretical RTP in the help screen of the Koi Gate demo
- 26 markets where its games are certified, by its own list; none of them in Canada
What Habanero games are like
Habanero makes games of chance that run on a random number generator (RNG): 204 slots, 13 table games and 10 video poker games in its current catalogue. It has no live-dealer studio. The games are built in HTML5 and run in a phone, tablet or desktop browser, in portrait or landscape, with the same rules on every screen.
- 1
Line slots with re-spins
Koi Gate (2017) has 5 reels, 3 rows and 18 lines that pay from left to right and from right to left. The koi wild lands only on the middle three reels: it gives a re-spin and, when it is part of a paying line, expands to fill its reel. Re-spins continue while a koi keeps landing, and payouts during them are doubled.
- 2
“Hot Hot” slots
Hot Hot Fruit (2019) has 5 reels and 15 lines. On any spin, symbols can turn into doubles and sevens into triples, so one reel position counts as two or three symbols. Three or more wilds start a feature round of 6 or 12 spins in which paying symbols lock in place.
- 3
Tables and video poker
Sic Bo, European Roulette with the la partage rule, several blackjack and baccarat tables, Three Card Poker, Caribbean Stud, Dragon Tiger and War, plus ten video poker games played on up to 50 hands at once. The house edge comes from the rules and the paytable.
- Volatility is on the studio’s game pages
Habanero’s website rates every slot from “very low” to “ultra high” volatility, and 133 of its 204 slots are rated high or above. The in-game help screen we read does not repeat the rating, so look it up on the studio’s game page.
- The feature round is rare
In high-volatility slots, the bigger payouts come from a feature round or a run of re-spins that starts only now and then. Many spins in a row can return nothing, so set your budget for the session, not for the next feature.
- Autoplay has stop limits
Where autoplay is offered, the help screen describes options to stop it after a set number of spins or when your balance falls by an amount you choose. Setting a stop limit keeps a run of spins inside your budget.
- Demo mode on the studio’s site
Habanero’s website runs its games with fun money. The demo help screen shows an RTP line, but it is the demo’s version, which can differ from the one a site runs.
How Habanero’s RTP versions work
Habanero’s game pages list the RTP versions each game is available in. 202 of its 204 slots list more than one, and more than 140 list five. The most common set, used by Hot Hot Fruit and 94 other slots, is about 98, 97, 94, 92 and 86%. The reels, symbols and features look the same in every version; what changes is how much of the total amount bet the game pays back over a very large number of rounds.
| RTP version (about) | House edge | Long-run average cost per C$100 bet |
|---|---|---|
| 98% | 2% | C$2 |
| 97% | 3% | C$3 |
| 94% | 6% | C$6 |
| 92% | 8% | C$8 |
| 86% | 14% | C$14 |
Rounded levels as listed on Habanero’s game pages; the exact figure differs by game. Averages over a very large number of rounds. A single session can end anywhere above or below them.
You cannot tell the RTP version from the reels or the artwork. Two sites can run the same Habanero slot at about 98% and at about 86%, and at 86% the long-run cost is seven times higher. The help screen of the game you open is the only place that tells you which version you are playing.
How to check the RTP in a Habanero game
Habanero games state their theoretical RTP at the end of the help screen, not in the pay table. This is how to find it, using Koi Gate on desktop as the example.
Open the game where you play
Check the RTP on the site you use, not on a review page or the studio’s demo. The version depends on the site, so it can differ from one site to the next.
Open the game menu
In Koi Gate on desktop it is the gear icon at the far left of the thin bar along the bottom of the game window, next to the balance. A small panel opens with Help, More Games and the sound switches. The round “i” button on the bet panel opens the pay table instead, which has no RTP line.
Choose Help and scroll to the end
Help opens a text page with the bet rules, the controls and the disconnection policy. The last section, Return To Player (RTP), reads “The theoretical RTP for Koi Gate is 96.26%” in the demo on Habanero’s website.
Read the line with the game’s name
Some games add separate RTP lines for an extra prize pool. The line that names the game is the one to compare with the versions above: close to 98% is the top of the range, close to 86% the bottom.
If there is no RTP line, ask
The demo we checked on 20 October 2026 showed the line. If the game on your site shows none, ask the operator’s support team which version it runs before you play.
What the games look like
A screenshot from the demo version on Habanero’s own website, taken on 13 October 2026 for our video poker guide. The play-money status bar has been cropped off. We have no screenshots of its slots yet.
Habanero games in our guides
Two of our game guides use a Habanero game as a worked example. The figures below come from those guides and from the games’ own help screens and paytables.
| Game (links to our guide) | Type | What the guide shows |
|---|---|---|
| Sic Bo | RNG sic bo | Its paytable next to the Atlantic City and Macau tables; Small and Big return 97.22% |
| Jacks or Better | Multi-hand video poker | The demo’s paytable is a 7/5 table, which returns 96.15% with optimal strategy |
Is Habanero available in Ontario, Alberta and the rest of Canada?
A game studio does not run casinos. It supplies its games to operators, and in a regulated province it needs its own registration first. This is where Habanero stands, as checked on 20 October 2026.
Ontario
- Regulator AGCO
- Studio’s licence list Ontario not listed
- Checked 20 October 2026
We found no registration for Habanero with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). Habanero’s website lists its licences and the 26 markets where its games are certified, and no Canadian province is among them; its news archive and the trade press we checked mention no launch in Ontario. Operators registered in Ontario may only offer games from suppliers registered with the AGCO, so we cannot confirm that its games are offered there.
Alberta
- Regulator AGLC
- iGaming registrants Habanero not listed
- Checked 20 October 2026
The public list of gaming registrants kept by Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) has no entry for Habanero in the iGaming stream, and a search of the full list for the name returns nothing. Alberta’s regulated market opened on 13 July 2026, and a studio needs an AGLC registration before its games can be offered there.
Rest of Canada
- Quebec Not confirmed
- Other provinces Check the lobby
Outside Ontario and Alberta, each province offers online casino games through its own Crown platform, and the territories have none. We found nothing that shows Habanero games on any Crown platform, including Quebec’s; the game lobby of your province’s platform shows the studio of each game. Our guide Are online casinos legal in Canada? covers each province.
Testing and fairness
- Independent testing labs
Habanero lists BMM Testlabs, iTech Labs and GlobaLab under “Licensed and Certified” on its website. Its B2B licence comes from the Malta Gaming Authority, and it also lists licences in Sweden, Romania, Panama, Peru and the City of Buenos Aires.
- Every round is random
The RNG fixes the result the moment you press spin or deal. Habanero’s help screens say the RTP is based on statistical analysis of the game logic and cannot be affected by how you play. Past rounds carry no information about the next one.
- Data security
Habanero Systems Limited holds an ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certificate for information security management, first issued on 19 March 2026 and valid until 18 March 2029, subject to yearly audits.
- Check that a game is genuine
Habanero warns about forged copies of its games. Real-money Habanero games have a Game Authenticity option in the game menu that opens a page at verify.habanero.co showing your current balance; if the address or the balance does not match, the studio says to stop playing and report it.
Frequently asked questions
Play within your limits
Habanero games are games of chance and the house edge applies to every round, whichever RTP version you play. Set a time and money limit before you start and treat any spend as the cost of entertainment. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Free, confidential help: ConnexOntario 1-866-531-2600, and every province’s helpline is on our responsible gambling page.