Mata Hari Slot Machine
Have you ever heard of Everi? Probably not; they can safely be regarded as one of the world’s lesser known slots developers. Just because they’re obscure doesn’t mean they’re bad however. In fact, far from it. While Everi’s online casino games won’t be to all tastes, they have got a certain kitsch appeal to them. The colours are bright, the stereotypes are all there and the vibe is distinctly glamorous. Take their Mata Hari video slot for example. It’s obviously an Asian-themed slot and with a name like that it was always going to be colourful.
Do a Google search for Mata Hari incidentally, and you won’t find any stories of Indian promise. Instead you’ll be greeted by stories about a Dutch exotic dancer named Mata Hari who was convicted of being a German spy during the First World War and duly hanged. It seems safe to assume that Mata Hari by Everi isn’t based on that character, although by the sounds of it, Mata Hari deserves her own video slot. This one is a lively romp though whose reels are filled with finely attired warriors, princes and mystical men.
An Exotic Adventure
The free Mata Hari slot has 40 fixed paylines and a coin size that ranges between 1 and 5. This enables you to set a max bet of 250 coins per spin. There are a lot of playing card symbols which appear on the 5x4 board but they’ve been attractively designed and look quite sophisticated in their reddish purple finish. The game comes with an autoplay option incidentally which can be set as high as 100 spins, and a Max Bet button.
The game’s protagonist is Mata Hari, an exotic dancer – possibly the same one the World War I spy was named after. She appears as an expanded symbols, filling two or even three squares on the board. Land five of these expanded symbols on the board and you’ll be awarded what’s described as an Incredible Win. The game’s wild symbol appears as the word printed in devilish read. At times, you’ll see an entire reel fill with wild symbols, which almost certainly guarantees a win on your next spin.
Wild About Winning
Free spins are this game’s most lucrative feature, or at least they have the potential to be. The wild Mata Hari symbol will nudge during free spins, filling the reel and ushering in big wins. Land three or more purple Free Spins symbols on the board to activate this feature. One of the oddest things about Everi as a developer is that their slots have really low RTPs. This one comes in at 89.91%, which is astonishingly low. That’s a return to player that’s more on a par with a scratch card.
The key symbols in this game can appear in purple or green. That’s the deal with the wild and scatter symbols which appear in the base game. Then, when free spins kick in, it’s the Mata Hari who takes over and becomes wild as she shows off her fine dance moves. If you’re playing with the highest bet level in place, you’ll earn the most for landing five Mata Haris on a payline. The next most valuable symbols are the trio of eccentric male characters, each of whom presumably has designs on Mata Hari. Although this can be a tough slot to win anything of substance from, if you make it to free spins, you’ll be awarded between 7 and 20 spins.
Try Cat Queen Too
Although it feels like a higher variance slot, Mata Hari has medium volatility. If you’d like to try a similar game, but one which has a less miserly RTP, try Cat Queen by Playtech. It too has 40 paylines, awards 15 free spins and boasts an RTP of 93.6%. Western Belles by IGT is another option. It’s also got 40 paylines but comes with a variable RTP that can exceed 96%. Finally, check out E-Gaming’s Dice Party, a 40-payline slot with low to medium variance.
Mata Hari in Summary
Mata Hari is a mobile-compatible slot which is surprisingly fun to play. Everi aren’t the greatest developer, and this game isn’t a classic, but it’s got something about it. Although unlikely to win any awards, Mata Hari looks pretty and gets the job done with the use of multiple wilds, including expanded wilds, helping to keep things fresh and preventing the base game from getting too monotonous. If you’re going to play an Indian-themed slot, Mata Hari might just be worth having a look at – that’s if you can track it down anywhere.