Tutankhamun Slots
Ancient Egypt is once again the setting for slot game. This time it’s the turn of Tutankhamun, brought to you by British developer Realistic Games. If you’re not yet sick to death of slots about pharaohs, scarabs and pyramids, you might well enjoy this one, which is spread over 5 reels and 20 paylines.
Tutankhamun is nothing you haven’t seen before, but with a multiplying wild and a bonus symbol engendering a plentiful supply of free spins, the action is pretty fast-paced. The game is, of course, based on the eponymous Egyptian pharaoh, who was buried in a treasure-laden tomb later discovered by explorers Howard Carter and George Herbert.
Entering the Treasure Tomb
Realistic Games is one of the smaller software companies in the market, and many of its games look just like this one, including their other Egyptian title, The Great Pyramid. Certainly the control panel is similar to many I’ve come across, designed to resemble an old-fashioned machine in a regular, land-based casino. The controls are minimal, with a Start button in the bottom left corner, an Auto button bedside it and adjustable arrows in the centre, where you can set the number of pay-lines and your stake-per-line. In the opposite corner, there’s an Info tab, where the game’s rules are explained in finer detail. The tab also links to the pay-table.
Above the control panel, the reel grid is sandwiched between a couple of Egyptian drawings on stone tapestries. The graphics are solid, as the drawings look pretty authentic – certainly very detailed. The 5x3 grid, meanwhile, is populated by icons including a pharaoh, a pyramid, a vase, a flower, an Eye of Horus and a golden pendant.
There are also several low-value playing card symbols, which go from 9 to Ace. If you’re too lazy to check the pay-table, you can press on any symbol – so long as the reels are stationary – to display the actual return for your present bet.
Gamers can wager bets with coins as low in value as 0.01, or as high as 5 per line. Given the top prize is 40,000x your stake-per-line, this means there’s a potential jackpot of 200,000 – surely enough to satisfy most casino rollers.
Find the Pharaoh
The aforementioned jackpot – since that’s all you’re likely to be thinking about – is won when a player lands five blue pharaohs on an active line. The sum for four pharaohs is 10,000x, while for three it’s 100x. There’s even a modest 40x pay-out for he who can uncover two of these symbols.
Since the proud pharaoh is the object of the game, he also serves as wild: use him to replace other icons to hit pay-line wins. That’s not all, though. If you successfully integrate the pharaoh in a win, you’ll be treated to multipliers for each pharaoh you use. Utilise one in a winning line and it’s 2x; for two, it’s 3x. If you use three or four, you’ll be given multipliers of 4x and 5x. Get five, of course, and you’ll be taking home the gargantuan 40,000x jackpot.
Other high-paying symbols include the golden pendant and the Eye of Horus, both of which pay 1,000x for five, 100x for four and 30x for three.
Pharaoh Free Spins
The pyramid bonus symbol acts as a scatter, and holds the key to free spins. Unlike other symbols, this one doesn’t have to appear on consecutive paylines to make up a matching combo. Simply land three, four or five anywhere on the reels and you’ll be treated to 15 free spins. All wins during the feature will also be subject to a bountiful 3x multiplier. What’s more, the free spins bonus can re-trigger during free spins themselves. The same rules apply: just hit three or more scatters to win 15 extra freebies.
Scatters are linked, too, with handsome pay-outs. Any three scatters pays 5x your bet. Four scatters pays 75x, while five scatters anywhere on the reels yields an eye-popping 500x. Remember, scatter pay-outs are paid as a multiple of your total bet, not your stake-per-line. Your total bet, of course, is your stake-per-line multiplied by the number of lines in play.
Toot the Horn for Tutankhamun
You might roll your eyes at the emergence of yet another Ancient Egypt slot, but Tutankhamun is a solid offering. It has multipliers coming out of its eyeballs, a giant jackpot and there are free spins to be won. Give it a go – your righteous indignation could vanish in a flash.