Smokin' Hot Gems Slots

Many players, especially those from an older generation, only enjoy playing old-school slots at online casinos. You know the kind – those that make you feel like you’re in the heart of a Las Vegas casino, pulling the lever of a machine to make the reels spin. If that sounds like your cup of tea, you’re in for a real treat with Smokin’ Hot Gems, one of the latest releases from Everi.

Everi is a leading slots supplier to casinos along the Las Vegas Strip. This US-facing gaming provider is renowned for developing online slots that provide a land-based casino experience, and the free Smokin’ Hot Gems slot machine is yet another classic that does exactly that.

It’s been filled with traditional symbols like 7s, bars and bells, all of which erupt in a ball of flames whenever they are part of winning combinations. Those aren’t the only symbols you’ll see on these reels, though. As the title implies, there are also some sparkling gems that twinkle on the reels. These include diamonds, rubies and topazes, all of which appear as special wild symbols. Not only can these wilds substitute and multiply wins, but they can make you a progressive jackpot winner too!

Will It Burn a Hole in Your Pocket?

Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel and develop groundbreaking game mechanics like so many other software providers are attempting nowadays, the team at Everi have stuck with a tried-and-tested structure for Smokin’ Hot Gems.

It’s a 3-reeled slot with 9 paylines that can be adjusted. While you can select 1, 3, 5 or 7 paylines instead, we strongly recommend sticking with the maximum number. This means you won’t lose out on any wins. Let’s face it, what could be worse than landing the third wild required for a jackpot win, only to realize that it’s on a payline that hasn’t been activated?

There are seven different betting options to choose from. Beginning at a minimum of 0.25, the value of coins can be adjusted to a maximum of 20. This results in a low limit of 2.25 credits per spin when playing with all paylines active, while the max bet stands at 180.

We’re sure that won’t go down too well with those of you who like to play low-limit slots online. If it’s too pricey for you to risk real cash, you can always play for free with no download needed in the demo version below.

Watch the Reels Ignite

Gemstones can be seen swirling around the static fiery background, but it’s the reels igniting in flames that you’ll be hoping to see while playing the Smokin’ Hot Gems video slot. Every time this happens, it means you’ve landed a winning combination. Payouts listed on the pay table indicate that regular wins range from 5x to 60x your line bet, so let’s look at what combinations are required for each payout.

Let’s start from the bottom of the pay table and work our way up. Combinations of single and double bars are worth the lowest payout of 5x, while a full line of single bars sees you secure 10x. Things heat up when you land any mix of single, double or triple 7s as you receive 15x. A full line of double bars is worth 20x, while these are followed by 25x for three bells ringing at the same time.

For your balance to soar as quickly as the temperature, you’ll need to line up 7s on across the reels. Full lines of single 7s see you win 40x, double 7s are worth 50x, while the top prize of 60x is yours whenever a triple of 7s erupt in flames.

There are also three special symbols to watch out for. These are the gem symbols that represent wild symbols, possessing the power to substitute for all standard symbols. It’s the diamond wild that you’ll want to see sparkle on the reels most frequently, though. If one of these contributes towards a win, a multiplier of 2x is applied, whereas two of them on a line see the payout quadrupled thanks to a 4x multiplier.

Four Sizzling Jackpots to Be Won

Aside from the multiplying perks on non-jackpot wins, there is another reason to cross your fingers for wild symbols to appear amidst the flames. That’s because they are key to winning each of the four progressive jackpots that teasingly increment above the reels after every spin.

They might not be life-changing progressive jackpots, but they add another dimension to this classic slot. Each jackpot gradually grows with every spin as a small portion of every bet is contributed towards the jackpot pool. Now you know how they increase in value, let’s look at how they can be won.

The highest-paying jackpot is won by lining up three diamond double wild symbols. The second- and third-tier jackpots are won by matching three ruby and topaz symbols respectively. Winning the fourth-tier jackpot is much easier, since it simply requires any mix of wild symbols to land on a line.

Just Getting Warmed Up?

If you fancy working up a sweat matching more gems across flame-ridden reels after playing Smokin’ Hot Gems, we’ve got a solid recommendation for you. Orange flames flicker in the background of Gem Heat by Playtech, a 5-reeled slot that has been filled with the type of symbols you find on the reels of Smokin’ Hot Gems. This means more bars, 7s and sparkling gems will be catching fire. While the base game is decent, Gem Heat is all about the free spins bonus. Triggered by landing three or more scatter symbols, you’ll receive 10 free spins with locked wilds and an increasing multiplier.

One for Old-School Slots Lovers

Everi has delivered yet another masterclass in the development of classic slots with the release of Smokin’ Hot Gems. And it’s not just the traditional symbols, wild symbols and four progressive jackpots that will excite old-school players – so will the turbo option and game recall feature. Fancy doubling the number of spins you can make during your session? Simply hit the turbo button and watch the symbols spin into place almost instantaneously.

If you’re someone who loves to keep track of your session, click the game recall feature to view a detailed breakdown. This displays the time of each spin, your starting balance, how much was staked, how much was won, and your end balance. It would be great to see more software providers include such a feature in their slots, rather than you having to send a request for such information to the online casino’s support team.

There are some negatives, though. The minimum stake will be too high for many players to even consider playing for real money. There isn’t mind-blowing potential as it’s a medium-volatility slot, and the payout percentage of 95.84% isn’t great for a 3-reeler. Now is probably a good opportunity for us to gripe about the sounds. Everi has simply used the same sounds used in previous real money online slots, and it’s very disappointing to find that no effort was made to create unique sound effects instead.