Smugglers Gold
The Smugglers Gold video slot from Novomatic takes players on a pirate-themed, treasure hunting adventure. You’ll be on the lookout for free spins at all times. However, every 10 spins, you also have a chance for a turn with lots of extra wilds forced on the game board.
Casinos with Smugglers Gold
- Smugglers Gold
An Introduction to Smugglers Gold
Different sub-genres of video slots have been around for longer than the Internet. However, they still persist today as they ride the wave of newer ideas, formats and game mechanics. Novomatic’s Smugglers Gold online slot is a good example of this within the pirate-themed sub-genre.
They’ve taken the game play to a whole new level in a way that makes this slot a bit different than other games with similar themes.
Standing out is the name of the game with titles that have popular themes. However, Novomatic was up to the task, and you can really see that with how they set up the gameplay. This title is based on cycles of 10 spins that build up to a feature over and over again. On top of that, they have plenty of paylines for you to win on as well as a super balanced pay table. Add to that an additional bonus round with free spins that offer extra ways to get paid, and you have an exciting adventure just waiting for you.
With that said, the graphics aren’t bad either. They’re pretty standard fare in the genre. While they’re definitely above-average, they aren’t going to win any awards for the presentation for this slot either. However, that’s fine since their main focus here was the gameplay and features. We do like the island background scene with the view from above, however.
Betting and Layout
The layout for this game is something that you will have likely seen before if you’ve played slots for a while. It’s a style that offers a lot of room for the types of features that are used in this game. However, it’s not something where you’ll need to learn a bunch of new stuff to enjoy this slot. Here’s what to expect:
- You get five reels in this game that stretch down vertically, and across those, you have four rows of symbols.
- The payline setup offers 40 static lines that pay out from the far left to the right only.
- Unlike many of their titles, Novomatic doesn’t allow you to change the number of paylines in this one.
- They’ve set things up so that you have 17 bet sizes to choose from that are in a pretty wide range.
- At the low end, you can wager €0.40 per turn, which works out to €0.01 per bet line.
- However, the maximum wager is €120 for the spin, and that’s €3 being wagers on each payline as well.
The amount that you’re betting on each line is important in this game. That’s because this is what the payouts are based on. For example, a 50x win would mean you’re picking up 50 times the amount wagered per line.
Additionally, the pay table is super balanced in this slot. This is helped by some two of a kind wins and the fact that one of the two main features is forced to hit every 10 spins. As a result, the volatility of this game is pretty low. It’s quite a bit below average, and we would even say it’s below what we’d normally call medium-low. Subsequently, you’ll end up with minimal swings on average.
Gameplay and Features
The feature set for the Smugglers Gold online slot machine is all about giving players frequent wins. Most of the features don’t bother too much with giving you much larger payouts. Instead, the focus is largely on frequency, which is a lower volatility approach.
With that said, we strongly suggest reading over how the features work before you start playing this one. Some of the game mechanics are quite a bit different than the normal thing you’ve probably seen before.
Wild Golden Coin Payouts
The wild symbol in this title is a golden coin. You’ll see a skull in the center of it with compass directions and other decorations around the edges as well. Since this coin appears on each of the five reels, it has some pretty good payouts to offer. Here’s an overview of the prizes you can win with just pure combinations of this wild symbol:
- Five of a Kind – 150x
- Four of a Kind – 40x
- Three of a Kind – 20x
- Two of a Kind – 2x
These wilds have a really important part in another feature that we’ll look at just below. However, we want to point out two things about these symbols before we get to that. First, they do not substitute for the scatter chest symbols, but they will substitute for every other symbol found in this game. Second, they have the possibility of substituting for multiple symbols simultaneously. This can happen if they fall at an intersection of two paylines with wins for different symbols.
Active Wild Spaces Feature
In the top-right corner, you’ll see a simple meter that fills each spin. Additionally, this meter fills every 10th spin, and on that last spin, it’ll trigger the Active Wild Spaces feature.
Here’s how that feature works. In the spins leading up to the final one on the meter, every spot where a wild falls causes that position to have a golden frame around it. However, these frames persist until that 10th spin. When the meter fills on that 10th spin, every position with a golden frame is forced to have a wild symbol.
As a result, you end up with chances for a lot of extra payouts on every 10th turn in this game. Additionally, this keeps the volatility of the title pretty smooth since you know this feature is coming regularly.
However, the meter and frame positions are saved for each individual bet size. If you change bet sizes, you will go to the position that has been saved for that amount.
Scatter Symbol Payouts and Prizes
On each reel, you can find chest symbols. This is the best-paying symbol in the game, and the wins are all scattered, which makes it easier to win since they don’t have to land on specific lines to give prizes. Here is a quick look at the payouts these scatters can offer:
- Five of a Kind – 2,000x
- Four of a Kind – 400x
- Three of a Kind – 80x
The scattered chest symbols pay in any position on any reel. They do not have to be on any certain lines to give you wins.
Smugglers Gold Free Spins
You can also trigger a set of eight free spins with three or more of this scatter symbol. However, during this free spins mode, the meter at the top-right does not fill. Instead, you get extra value in a different way.
Every single spin will have at least three and as many as eight wilds added to the game board in random positions.
This makes it much easier to get a lot of winning combinations. Additionally, it makes the free spins worth quite a bit more than their regular counterparts.
How to Win at Smugglers Gold
With a volatility level that’s so far below the average, the swings that you get in the Smugglers Gold video slot will generally be pretty mild. However, if you’re the type of player who wants a bit more fluctuation in your play, a simple betting adjustment can get you that.
This adjustment requires you to increase your bet size by 33 to 50 percent. Doing this will increase the size of your payouts in the absolute sense. Additionally, it will increase the volatility relative to the amount you would have wagered to begin with.
You do not have to make this adjustment, and it’s completely optional. It’s also a matter of taste, and the return to player percentage does not benefit from it.
Payout Structure for Smugglers Gold
The smuggler himself with the eye patch is the top-paying non-scatter. He’ll award you with a 100x win for five of a kind combinations. From there, you’ll earn 50x when you line up five of the crossed swords. Additionally, 30x wins are yours for five of the compass, telescope or bomb symbols.
For the card rank symbols, they have a pretty balanced set of wins as well. You’ll score 20x for five of the golden A, red K, green Q or blue J symbols. However, five of the pink 10 or purple 9 will be worth 15x.
Overview
The gameplay in the Smugglers Gold slot brings a ton of fun, and what slot fans will absolutely enjoy with this title is the additional padding that the wild-based features add to your winnings every 10 spins. Due to the fact that it offers a serious degree of quality while still standing out as an individual game in the pirate sub-genre, this slot fits tremendously in Novomatic’s portfolio as a whole.
If you’ve liked other slots that use this kind of pirate theme, then this is a game you definitely will not want to miss playing because the gameplay is so different. Additionally, the look and feel of this title gives a lively tone that’s comparable with what the online casino industry overall has available.
FAQ
Which online casinos have Smugglers Gold?
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What is the Return to Player (RTP) for Smugglers Gold?
The Smugglers Gold RTP is 95.15%. An RTP of 95.15% puts Smugglers Gold among slots with a below-average Return to Player. An Average RTP is at least 96%, and a high RTP at least 98%.