Frogger Get Hoppin Skill Game
One of the most popular arcade titles of all time, Frogger was first released by Konami in 1981. Putting the player in a position where they must safely guide a frog across a highway and a river, the game was an instant classic, testing the skills of players for decades to come. Not only does the original remain extremely recognizable to this day, there have also been more recent versions of the title that have been released on a variety of gaming platforms.
Konami has also used this franchise in its casino gaming division, releasing a Frogger video slot in 2016 to rave reviews. They’re now looking to take that one step further, developing a game that could take advantage of the coming revolution in skill-based gambling games. Frogger: Get Hoppin’ by Konami is a title that combines the elegance of the original game with new features that turn it into a gambling experience that’s very different than what you can currently get from casino slot machines.
A Race to the Finish
When you get the chance to play Frogger: Get Hoppin’ – which won’t be seen in Nevada until final approvals for skill games is granted – you’ll notice that it looks more like an arcade game than a nostalgic slot. There are no reels or paylines, or really any slots features at all, at least until you get to the bonus gameat the end, which we’ll talk about a bit later.
As with anything in the casino, you’ll start by placing your wager. In the version we saw, the buy-in was eight coins (in this case, quarters, though we imagine there will be other options for high limitplayers). After paying, players can use the controls at the bottom of the screen to guide their frog through the various sections of road and river that anyone who has played the original version of this game will remember fondly.
As they move through the game, gamblers will hit checkpoints and collect coins, all of which will add to their point totals. While the game’s famous obstacles, like trucks and alligators, will still slow you down, they won’t actually “kill” you; instead, you’ll just be delayed a bit. Of course, that’s still a problem, as you only have a limited amount of time to collect points, so you’ll want to move as fast as possible.
Take a Spin
Once the arcade portion of the action ends, players will be tasked with choosing one of five lily pads. Four of these hold instant payouts, offering small rewards: anywhere from two to eight coins (meaning the best you can do is get your money back). However, the last one grants access to the bonus wheel, while is the part of the game that feels most like casino slot machines.
Here’s where the skill based elements come into play. To start with, the wheel at the end only features the four progressive jackpots in the game and 10 other instant prizes, offering up to 80 credits. However, there are three milestone scores that will allow three of these instant win results to be upgraded to more progressive jackpot wins, improving your chances to walk away with a larger prize.
It’s also possible to play so well that you don’t even need the wheel to earn a great payout. If you can reach a truly incredible score, you could walk away with thehigh-paying bronze, silver, and gold jackpots, each of which require a progressively higher result to achieve. These are entirely skill-based prizes, and they can increase in a manner similar to progressive jackpots until someone wins them.
Hop, Skip, and Jump
There’s no doubt that Frogger: Get Hoppin’ by Konami is going to bring back a lot of memories for players. The Frogger video slot was definitely a hit when it was released, and this has the same kind of instant recognition potential that could make it popular for those who want some nostalgia mixed in with their casino play.
The one concern we have is the fact that most of the game is still based on luck: unless you are a great player who can go after the big skill jackpots, you’ll mostly be at the mercy of the lily pads and the wheel. But for some gamblers, that might strike the perfect balance between skill and fortune. If you’d like a little influence on your results, but still don’t want it all to come down to your arcade abilities, then this might be one to check out when it hits casino floors.
