Royal Gardens Slots
History buffs will be delighted with this 5-reel slot from EGT, which takes inspiration from the great and the good of Great British monarchs, the pomp and pageantry of yesteryear. Prepare to step back in time then.
Royal Gardens is themed on the past, and all things English and regal. Of course that also means you could draw comparisons with some of the less favorable sides to this period in history – the brutality of what were, in effect, dictatorships, not to mention the beginnings of a colonialism that would go on to ruin the fortunes of many countries. But, for the sake of not feeling interminably guilty about all that, let’s not dwell on things too much.
Like many games by this particular developer, Royal Gardens looks amazing – really clean graphics and the animation techniques are first rate. It’s also not too busy, and rather tastefully done, all of which will have you chomping at the bit for a game, and keen to stick around once you have had a few goes. Introductions over, let’s proceed with the historic facts of this great gambler.
Bow Before the Monarch
Royal Gardens uses 5 reels, and 10 pay lines. The idea of the game is to match up like-symbols in combinations – twos, threes, fours, or fives. You can only win with a match if it occurs on an active pay line, but thankfully that’s guaranteed, as you must play with ten pay lines- some might find this restrictive, but we actually like it as it basically means you’re all in.
The symbols themselves range from spotted dice, each corresponding to a different value of win when you land a combination, to dice with pictures on. For example a fair maiden, or a sundial. Or top of the pile (offering a massive 5,000 payout for five matches), the King, who appears to be looking down on you in a way that would suggest an air of superiority. Overall the look and feel is both robust and aesthetically very pleasing.
Off With Their Heads
While you may not be able to adjust the number of active pay lines in play, you can alter your Bet Size via the control panel at the bottom of the screen. The options are 10, 20, 50, 80 and 100. The more you put down the more you stand to pick up in the end.
There is also an auto bet. To use this click the symbol with two arrows going round in a circle within the control panel (bottom left). The Bet size us already selected, so when you auto bet the game continuously bets at that value. This obviously means quick fire betting, so we recommend only using this when the pot looks healthy.
On the Throne
It doesn’t just start and stop with normal matches, mind. We mentioned a sundial type symbol on a dice. This is actually a Wild, meaning it can substitute for any other dice on the reels to create a winning combination. The more involved in a win the more the win is worth too- the dice has a multiplier effect.
One key thing to note, though, is that it will not replace or stand in as a Scatter symbol, because there isn’t one. Instead, the usual purpose of the Scatter is to award free spins, and again this is where the sundial comes in – the Wild is the Scatter and vice versa, a decision we’ve never seen before but makes sense in terms of streamlining. When you get free spins there will also be a new expanding symbol- the same as one of the standard dice, only during the free spins every like symbol will be expanded across three reels.
Confused? That might not be your fault, so let’s rephrase all that. Each time you see a sundial surface there’s a very good chance of increasing your winnings. On top of all that, there is also a ‘Gamble’ function, which allows you to open a side game revolving around guessing what color the next card will be- red or black.
Enter the Garden
Royal Garden is a fun online slot machine, there’s no denying that. We also like the theme itself, referencing a time in history when things were a lot more formal, and people played harpsichords like the one used on the soundtrack here.
It’s compelling to play, smooth, wonderfully designed, and has plenty to keep you buys like Wilds and Scatters, not to mention the ‘Gamble’ feature, which anyone will love.
