Pharaoh Slots
It’s good to be the king. This isn’t a new revelation, either: for thousands of years, the place to be has been at the top, and while the titles have changed, the awesome power and responsibility of these positions has remained the same. Back in ancient Egypt, this exalted position went to the pharaohs, god-kings who were the most powerful men on the planet for millennia in the ancient past.
There was a lot to envy about those rulers of days gone by, and you might experience just a bit of what it was like to be them if you’re a big winner on Pharaoh by Inspired Gaming, a new online slot machine that is exclusive to William Hill. This game comes with a number of Egyptian-themed features that are designed to give you some big rewards, the kind of treasures that archeologists could only dream of uncovering. And if you’re willing to pay for the opportunity, you can even make these bonus rounds come up more often.
Crossing the Nile
The Pharaoh video slot is one of the latest releases by Inspired Gaming, and as we noted, this game is only available through William Hill’s online casino. The game uses an Egyptian theme, though it isn’t quite as conceptual as many games that are placed in this setting: other than some subtle pyramids placed in the background and some light artwork, this game could be mistaken for a pretty generic slot. But the reels and detailing make it clear on a second look that this is definitely a game set in Egypt, albeit one with a pretty cartoonish style.
This machine is offered in a mobile-optimized format that allows for play on Android or iPhone devices, as well as many other smartphones and tablets, with no download needed. The game offers a variety of bet settings that allow for some very low limit play, while still leaving open the option for higher stakes gamblers to enjoy the action. One thing we didn’t see is a play for free option; if you’re going to try this game, you’ll be doing so in a real money online slots environment.
An Ancient Adventure
The Pharaoh video slot is a five reel game with 20 paylines of action for players to win on. All wins are made by matching identical symbols from left to right across the active lines. In most cases, you’ll need to hit at least three in a row in order to score a win; however, a couple of the high-paying icons can also grant you a consolation prize if you find just two in a row.
At the low end of the pay table, you’ll find the typical poker ranks ranging from jacks through aces. Larger wins come from some more thematic elements like books, a scarab, or a treasure chest. The biggest payouts of all are attached to the game logo, however. If you can manage to hit five in a row of these icons, you’ll be rewarded with 500 times your line bet.
Scaling the Pyramids
As usual, there are also wild symbols available on this game. These icons can appear anywhere on the screen and will substitute for normal symbols in order to complete winning paylines wherever possible. In addition, they can also create their own wins; hit two or more in a row, and you’ll win the same prizes you would get for making a winning line using the game logos.
The most interesting portion of the game is reached by hitting three bonus symbols at the same time anywhere on screen. When this occurs, you’ll be taken to a map where you’ll roll dice in order to find your way to one of three different special features included in this machine. The first of these is a straightforward free spins game, though even this starts with an interesting wheel mini game where you’ll find out how many spins you get, what (if any) multiplier your earnings will receive, and if any of the low-value symbols will be replaced by wilds.
There is also a Pharaoh Wild Spins game in which you’ll get to play four free spins. On each spin, two more wilds will be added to the reels, making these some very lucrative rounds, especially as the feature comes to a close. Finally, you might be taken to the Pyramid of Prizes, where you’ll play a pick ‘em style game where you’ll collect bigger and bigger rewards as you climb the steps. Make it all the way to the top without triggering the end of the feature, and you’ll be placed into one of the free spins rounds as an added bonus.
It Takes a Fortune to Make a Fortune
There’s also one other aspect of this machine that we found intriguing: the Fortune Bet option. Players can activate this feature at any time by hitting the appropriate button next to the spin trigger. Doing so causes the cost of each play to go up by 50%. However, you’ll benefit by turning all of the bonus symbols into double height icons, making it twice as likely that you’ll hit them on any given spin. If you really want to trigger the special features, this is a way to make that happen more frequently.
All the Riches of Egypt
William Hill has definitely found themselves a solid exclusive by landing the Pharaoh online slot machine. While the theme is a common one, we enjoyed the many unique features that gamblers can trigger during play, as well as the ability to make them easier to trigger if they are willing to pay for it. Given how light the theming is, anyone can get into this game whether they enjoy Egyptian slots or not, and if you have an account at William Hill, we imagine you’ll want to give this machine a try.
