Sword of Ares Slots
Prepare to sharpen your blades and get ready to face off against the evil sorcerers of the underworld in the online slot game, "Sword of Ares." Developed by Pragmatic Play, this game is a follow-up to their previous title, "Gates of Olympus."
The game's main feature is the Scatter Pay system, which allows players to receive wins with growing prizes. However, the way that the multiplier is unlocked has changed.
RTP & Variance
Although the return on player value has gone down compared to the previous game, it is still not significantly different. This game is powered by a highly volatile math model and can be played in three different settings. There are two ways of playing it: the regular mode and free spins. In the first instance, you can bet on each individual spin for 20p/c to £/100, and any device can be used. The RTP drops slightly when you buy the free spins.
The game's scatter system works by rewarding players with wins when at least eight matching symbols appear on the 6x5 grid. On the lower pay side, five gems appear, while the highs are the shields, swords, helmets, and chariots. On the other hand, the clusters of 8 to 9 of a kind pay around 0.5 to 8 times the stake, and the bet for 12-30 clusters goes up to 40x. Wild symbols do not appear on the board at all.
Slot Features
The winning cluster triggers the feature known as the Tumble feature, which randomly removes all of the winning symbols from the reels. If a new cluster win occurs after the previous ones have filled the gaps, these are replaced and removed as well. The total win is then calculated once the sequence ends.
Multiplier
The game's multiplier function is different from that of the previous game. On top of the reels is a meter that displays the three and six different values of the base game and the free spins. These values start each spin in a locked state, and after a tumble, the number of winning or exploded symbols is collected. The winning total is then multiplied by the highest of the three.
Bombs
The four Bomb symbols appear on all of the reels. When one of these lands, it activates the feature, which then randomly removes all of the winning symbols from the board. New symbols then drop from above the former. In the base game, only the bombs explode if at least one tumble occurs.
Free Spins
The game's free spins feature is triggered when four or more scatters appear on the board. The multiplier meter is then extended to indicate the number of free spins that are awarded each time a certain number of these symbols are collected. The first, second, and third multipliers are respectively x2, x3, x4, and x5. The fourth, fifth, and sixth are unlocked when 39 or more of these symbols are acquired.
The fifth, sixth, and seventh multiplier are respectively x26, x28, x32, x35, x40, or x50. The sixth, which is always x500, is unlocked when 235 or more of these symbols are collected.
If players are able to obtain free spins, they can buy them for the cost of around 100x their bet. However, the bonus round cannot be re-triggered.
Final Thoughts
If you play the game Gates of Olympus, you'll notice that Pragmatic Play has left some of the same features unchanged. The changes that they made aren't clear cut better or worse, and they can still be a bit challenging to implement. One of the main reasons why the game's goal-based feature is more challenging is that it requires players to collect multiple symbols to trigger the feature.
It was hard to decide if the strategy of collecting winning symbols was better or worse than the previous game's random multiplier. For those who are curious about the game's goal-based feature, it might be worth trying out.