Top Casinos with Game of Thrones
Overview
Licensed slots have proven to be an almost certain win for the big casino software developers over recent years, so it was only a matter of time before Microgaming entered the fray with a game based on HBO’s crown jewel, Game of Thrones.
Fans of the franchise are likely to be absolutely delighted the first time they fire up this game, with the background music, the special symbols and the feature games all coming straight from the show itself.
To play the Game of Thrones slot is to fully enter the universe, where you fight alongside the great houses of Westeros and, with a little luck, walk away with the spoils of war. But does this slot have enough depth to meet fan expectations, let alone those of slots players in general?
Rating
Gameplay and Features
Game of Thrones is a five-reel, three-row slot with 243 “Ways to Pay”, meaning any combination from the leftmost reel to the right will give you a payout. There is also a 15-payline version that is carried by some casinos. For a list of top paying casinos, visit our high payout casinos page.
The main version carries higher theoretical maximum wins, but the latter gives players the flexibility to bet between 0.01 and 0.10, compared to the former’s 0.02 maximum.
The base game has stacked wilds in the shape of the Game of Thrones logo, which work in combination with the valuable crests of the great houses of Westeros to pave the way to the high payouts.
But if you want to really hit it big, you need to collect three or more Iron Throne scatter symbols to activate the Free Spins bonus round. Once this happens, you’ll be presented with the option to select which house you want to fight for, with Baratheon, Lannister, Stark and Targaryen all available.
You’re free to choose any of the houses, with each one having a different balance between the number of free spins granted to the player, the multiplier that is applied to any wins, and the number of stacked symbols. It adds a little simple strategy. Do you go for more chances to win by choosing a house with a high number of free spins but a low multiplier, or do you go for glory with just a handful of free spins but a big multiplier?
The game also has a gamble feature, which gives you the opportunity to double your winnings. It’s framed as a “Trail Map’ of Westeros, but it’s basically a heads-or-tails situation, so probably best avoided.
The highest possible payout on Game of Thrones depends on whether you’re playing the 15-payline or 243-payline version.
- 243-payline version – Maximum possible win = £121,500
- 15-payline version – Maximum possible win = £75,000
However, in the base game the situation is reversed because of the higher possible maximum bet:
- 243-payline version – Maximum possible base game win = £50
- 15-payline version – Maximum possible base game win = £200
Graphics and Sound
The audio-visual identity of this game is taken straight from the show. The background music is, of course, that oh-so-hummable Game of Thrones theme, which, although stirring, gets old very quickly. Worse still, it seems to be the only music on offer
This is the biggest downside of this online slot. The adaptation feels a bit lazy, with little effort put into capturing the scale or the excitement of the show. A few static symbols and one (admittedly awesome) theme tune do not do justice to such a visually spectacular show.
This is a problem we see time and again with licensed movie and TV show slots from various software developers. But on the other hand, you only have to look at which slots are most popular to see that the developers have good reason to continue churning out licensed products without worrying too much about innovative design.
At least the many paylines and interesting free spins bonus mechanic means you’ll be immersed in the gameplay.
Review Summary
The Game of Thrones slot by Microgaming is mainly aimed at GoT fans, but even if you’re not a big fan of the whole sex-and-dragons thing, there’s still plenty to recommend it. The game features exciting Free Spins options, a multitude of paylines and, yes, that epic theme tune.
Of course, fans will get the most out of this as they root for their favorite house and decide which Free Spins to play once they activate them. It’s a shame more wasn’t done to capture the epic scale of the show, but at least the Game of Thrones slot gives you a number of chances to strike big.
