Posted 2/4/11 : February's releases offer three slots and a new multi-wheel roulette concept
With Valentine's Day imminent, it was perhaps predictable that the February games release schedule from online gambling software provider Microgaming would include at least one romance-themed slot machine, and this has proved to be so, with the new 5 reel, 30 pay-line Queen of Hearts in the three slot line-up.
But the most innovative and exciting game in the February package is probably a unique roulette game that allows players to bet on up to eight wheels at once. As part of the Gold Series, Multi-Wheel Roulette offers class and sophistication with enhanced sound effects, sharp graphics and realistic animation.
The game allows mixed chip piles and the action takes place on a single betting table, although each bet placed is multiplied by the number of wheels enabled. The player enables or disables wheels by simply clicking on them.
Call bets are also catered for in the game. These are a group of pre-named and pre-determined bets, equivalent to bets that are normally shouted out in a land-based casino for the dealer to place. The player can choose to place one or multiple Call Bets on the table. Play it Here.
But back to the feature-rich slots in the package – Queen of Hearts, Sneak-a-Peek: Planet Exotica and Ruby of the Nile…
The latter is a 5 reel, 20 pay-line game that offers two Wilds and 5 Scatters to build winning combinations, all backed by a theme based on ancient Egypt, and with up to 20 re-triggering Free Spins and generous Multipliers. The theme is carried by quality graphics depicting lotus flowers, ancient Egyptian queens, winged falcon and royal scarab beetle symbols, and the dreaded god of the Underworld, Hathor.
Five different Scatters across reels 3, 4 and 5 can bring up to 100x the original bet, but the game also offers two Wild symbols; the ankh of the double jackpot doubling the player win, whilst the eternal eye in the triple jackpot boosts wins by 3x.
Players can hit achievable wins worth GBP15 000 in the base game and up to GBP30 000 on Free Spins. Play it Here.
In a complete departure from the world of the ancient Egyptians, "Sneak-a-peak – Planet Exotica" (Play it Here.) whisks the player via a sleek spacecraft to a sci-fi space adventure at a galactic strip club with some of the hottest alien strippers around!
Imagination runs wild with the launch of this out-of-this-world online gambling experience on a 5 reel, 15 pay-line video slot that features neon bright graphics portraying a risqué planet, where a selection of alien babes, hulking bouncers and truly handy barmen serve the patrons and form symbols that can bring rewards through Wild, Scatter, Bonus, Free Spins and Multiplier features.
Super-hot strippers Tandy, Lumeena, Sooki, Asherah and Meduna await the players' pleasure and hand out rewards (here's a tip – Tandy is the most generous!).
The Planet Exotica logo is Wild in this game, helping players to build winning combinations, but look out too for the tempting lips waiting to bestow free spins in Select-A-Smooch; three or more on the reels triggers the free game opportunity, which starts when the player clicks on the choice of lips and randomly awards up to 10 re-triggering free spins with a 2x multiplier. If the red or green lip gloss tube show up on reels 4 or 5 those rewards are boosted by either extra multipliers or free spins.
Adding to the excitement in this fantastical club is the Sneak-A-Peak logo – when this appears on reel 1 and exotic bonus is triggered if one of the club's pulchritudinous poppies appears in the same position on reel 5. After that it's all fun and choices as the player clicks on items trying to match three in order to disrobe the strippers, at the same time trying to dodge hulking bouncer symbols that can only spoil the party.
And finally, back to the Queen of Hearts (Play it Here.) ….an old rhyming poem that dates back to 1782 informs the theme for this new slot, which forms part of Microgaming's Rhyming Reels series.
The ancient couplet tells the story of a crook who one summer stole tarts newly baked by the queen, provoking the king's anger and tough physical retribution. This brought about the return of the tarts and a new direction in life for the knave.
All of these characters, from the rather corpulent queen to the chubby knave and a bevy of serving maids, are captured in the bright artwork graphics.
The king's golden crown heralds the approach of good Free Spin news on this slot; when 3, 4 or 5 appear it launches 10 re-triggering spins with a 2x multiplier and achievable rewards of up to 2.4 million coins. Another member of royalty that players will welcome is the plump queen herself – this symbol is stacked within the free spins action and can deliver 4x win multipliers.
The game's Queen of Hearts logo is Wild, enabling stacked winning combinations to be built and at the same time rewarding players with a win-doubling multiplier of its own.