Madly Wild Slot
Although we’re now used to seeing video slots with multiple bonus rounds, side games, 3D graphics and clearly defined themes, there’s always been room for good old fruit machines. These games have been around in bars and arcades for decades, and now that there are online and mobile-optimized casinos, slot machine developers have adapted them to fit our lifestyles and gaming preferences. The Madly Wild video slot from Novomatic is a perfect example of a slot machine that you could have played years ago, but which is now available at the huge number of online sites powered by software from this famous company.
They’re the established experts on fruit machine-style games, and Madly Wild shows others how it’s done. Three reels and five paylines of fruit symbols are played in the base games, but wins can be transferred to a special Super Meter. This triggers a second set of reels above, where you can claim higher prizes and enjoy more winnings with a wild symbol that acts as others to complete combinations.
It looks like a classic fruit machine with symbols having a simple, straightforward design and a plain dark-blue reel background. LED-effect flashing lights add to the retro style, while the electronic sound effects are just what you would expect from this type of game. Test it out via the free Madly Wild video slots on this page, or read on to see how it all comes together.
Starting at the Bottom
Let’s start out with a look at the lower set of reels and how they can trigger the upper set. Three reels with fruit symbols in three rows are seen, and there are five paylines running across from left to right. The pay table is to the left of the reels, and it shows how many times the bet per line is won when matching symbols fill a payline. Cherries and lemons each pay out ten times, plums are worth 40x, grapes pay 80x, and watermelons return 120x the line bet.
Land three bell symbols or three crowns across the reels to collect 200x, with just two crowns being worth 40x. You have two options with any win. You can either have it moved up to the Super Meter or gamble it. This last option doubles the win if you click a red or black button as a row of red and black coins lights up across the bottom of the game. You can keep gambling the win or stop the round and transfer the new value to the Super Meter at any time.
Top Game Reels
Once enough coins have been transferred, it’s time to play the Top Game on the upper set of reels of Madly Wild. You’ll first need to decide how many coins to play, with just five coins keeping you on the lower set of reels, and 20 or 40 coins activating the upper ones.
There are four reels and ten paylines here, and you win prizes when at least three matching symbols land across a line from the left side. Plums are the lowest-paying symbols, worth 20x the line bet when three are seen, with full lines of four worth 40x. The top symbol is a star, and this pays 200x for three on a line, or 1,000x when four land across the reels.
You can get more frequent wins on the upper reels as the wild symbol can act as any other, completing combinations by filling in any gaps in a run of matching symbols. At a 20-coin stake, it can stop in any single spot on the reels to potentially complete combinations; but if you place a 40-coin wager, a ‘Wild Fills the Reels’ feature is activated. It pretty much does what it sounds like, with any wild symbol in view being nudged to fill all three rows on a reel.
Play From Just 0.25 per Spin
Betting options on Madly Wild are very simple, with the five-, 20-, or 40-coin wagers being the only choices. It comes with an Autoplay function that spins the reels on their own for as long as you want. The only other decisions you need to make are whether to play on a desktop PC or a mobile device – such as a Windows- or Android-powered smartphone or tablet, iPhone, or iPad.
This game also gives you the option to transfer coins from the Super Meter to the lower reels. We found this to be a useful feature that let us steadily build up winnings until enough were available to play the Top Game reels. When it’s time to cash out winnings, just click the small ‘Exit’ button. Your bankroll will be topped up with any prizes collected in the game.
More Fruit-Themed Slots
Classic fruit machines come in all shapes and sizes – from the very simple ones, such as Jackpot Cherries by Realistic Games, to the innovative gameplay of Random4Runner by Stake Logic. Jackpot Cherries plays out over three reels, crossed by a single payline. The only symbols are the cherries, which pay out five times the stake when they cross the payline, and a Jackpot icon that’s worth 25x. Games don’t get much simpler than this.
If you want the fruit machine style and more engaging gameplay, then Random4Runner offers you up to six reels of fruit-themed action. Several betting options activate more and more reels, with the top Superbet level activating all six reels, plus 20 paylines and a rewarding wild symbol that comes into play.
Another Exciting Fruit Machine From Novomatic
Classic fruit machine style slots are still as popular as ever. With games such as Madly Wild available at online casinos, it’s easy to see why they have such an enduring appeal. This slot might not have the various features and side games that more recent video slots often provide, but you could argue that it’s more exciting.
Having two sets of reels to play will double the fun, and with the chance to switch between them at will, you can build your bankroll as you see fit. We found the optional gamble feature to be a rewarding way to boost winnings, although you will need to time clicks on the right buttons very carefully to see prizes doubled in value.
Madly Wild is available at the top Novomatic online casinos, where you can play for free or make real cash bets to start claiming some of the great rewards on offer.