This week we turn our attention to the major providers who have been pulling out the big guns and unleashing some major new slot releases.
You must be quite an online gaming veteran to remember Microgaming’s Cashoccino slot. Well, the good news is that Microgaming have given the game a spring clean and relaunched it as Le Kaffee Bar.
NetEnt, meanwhile, have gone minimal with their Spinsane slot release. It’s so bad it might actually be good. Only a closer test will decide it once and for all.
And bringing up the rear, Yggdrasil’s Wild Mantra features a cool reel mechanic where every reel position spins independently. Wild Mantra is a slice of Tibet on your desktop. But will it provide the peace and tranquillity you’re looking for? Let’s take a closer look.
Le Kaffee Bar | Microgaming
Cashoccino was brought out in 2014 but was never really a massive hit with players. But that hasn’t stopped Microgaming persisting with their coffee-themed slots range.
Le Kaffee Bar features a respin bonus and a free spins round where you can collect games and win up to 2,833x your stake.
Playable on desktop or mobile from 0.30 a spin, Le Kaffee Bar is attractive enough to warrant a few extra spins. You can trigger the Wild Spin Again feature when you land three matching symbols vertically or horizontally.
One respin is granted to start off with, and the center symbol transforms into a wild symbol to give you more chances to win. If you win again on the respin you will retrigger the feature.
Le Kaffee Bar doesn’t feature a regulation free spins bonus by hitting sufficient scatters. Rather, you collect scatters on reels 1 and 5. Reach 10 scatters and you will earn 10 free spins with a 3x multiplier attached.
Alternatively, collect 20 or 30 symbols to trigger 15 free games with a 4x multiplier or 18 free spins with a 5x multiplier. You can opt to play your bonus round at any time, which is great if you prefer to save your bonuses up for later.
Spinsane | Netent
New from NetEnt is a game that suggests you might go mad playing it. Well, Spinsane might not be crazy but the lack of action might make your head spin.
Spinsane is a 5-reel slot that brings iSoftBet’s Neon Reels to mind. The drum style reels evoke a classic slot machine. But there’s more classic slots play as most of the reel positions are blank. This can lead to plenty of “dead spins” where you gain nothing except a little more unwanted frustration.
Could the horror nature of this werewolf-themed slot be enough to save it, though?
You can start your Spinsane adventure with games costing just 0.10. On every winning spin the display at the top of the reels will light up. You will also trigger one of two special features: nudge a winning symbol into view or respin to try and complete a winning combination.
There are scatters to look out for too. Scatters appear stacked at all times and you will need to see five in view in order to trigger the bonus round. For every scatter that lands on the triggering spin, you will earn two free spins. Every subsequent scatter gets you an additional free spin.
Look out too for the overlay wild reel. This will move to a reel at random on every spin, providing you with more winning potential. And when the potential is as much as 5,000x your stake, this fearsome slot might be worth sticking with.
Wild Mantra | Yggdrasil
Part of the LeoVegas Originals series, Wild Mantra is a cool Tibetan-themed slot where you can find inner peace while landing Mantra Wilds and free spins symbols. Well, that’s the plan anyway.
The free spins feature has sticky wilds and a top payout worth 100x your stake on every game. Will this slot leave you feeling Zen? Let’s travel to the Tibetan highlands and find out.
Your spiritual journey in Wild Mantra starts with spreading at least 0.10 a spin across the 5 reels. Mantra Wilds will be at the center of your voyage in the base game and free spins. Any wilds landing on a spin in the base game will turn into a sticky wild.
If a new wild lands during the respin, all sticky wilds nudge up or down by one row, depending on where they are placed. The wilds will keep nudging on every respin until the entire reel is covered. Respins continue until no further wilds land or the entire screen is filled with stacked wilds.
If wilds aren’t your thing, maybe the free spins are. You can win 10 free spins by landing 3-5 scatters on the reels. The more scatters you hit, the bigger your payout. So, hit three scatters and you win 2x on your win. Land four scatters and you earn 20x, and a 1000x jackpot is yours if you land five scatters.
In addition, any wilds that appear on the reels during the triggering spin will be transferred to your bonus feature. Any wilds that then appear will lock in place as sticky wilds. These stay in place for the duration of the bonus round.
If you fill one reel with wilds you will earn an extra free game. It is possible to win up to 15 free spins in a single round.