I enjoy slot machines on the iPhone. Previously, I had reviewed one of the slot machine game (Reel Deal Slots), but I thought I would pick a few of them to compare. When playing slots machines, I am looking for a few things. First, the option to play “non-real world” payouts – I don’t want to be sitting, spinning the wheels for days and days without hitting a jackpot. Second, I look at the various “bonus” features and games that are included. Let’s face it, just watching the spinning wheels may be a little boring, so adding the bonus games, the “features”, makes them more interesting. Lastly, I look for visual and sound quality. I mean, we aren’t playing for real money, so I want a nice “experience” when playing – immersive sounds, impressive graphics, etc. There are lots of different slots machines to play out there, I randomly picked eight of them to try. Some of them are from the same companies, so they may be similar. The games I picked are Slots Megapack 1, Slots Megapack 2, Cleopatra Slots, Hoyle Red Hot Slots, Viaden 9-in-1 Crazy Pack Slots, Kalahari Sun Slots, Totem Treasure 1, and Totem Treasure 2.
What I have done below is list each app, include some photos, and mention the details of each app. I address the three areas of focus listed above, as well as giving my general comments and review score.
Slots Megapack 2, by Pokie Magic, $2.99
Slots Megapack 2 includes three slot machines from Pokie Magic – Dragon Dollars, Monkey Money, and Totem Treasure 2 (reviewed separately). Each of these games presents a different theme, although they do have the same overall method of getting to the bonus features (getting three scatters on a spin). The bonus features vary from game to game.
In Dragon Dollars, it is a standard “free spins” feature (called Lucky Coins). Lucky Coins add more free spins while you play. They also have an additional bonus feature with the Yin/Yang symbol, where you can replace the YinYang with random “bonuses”. The Monkey Money slot bonus feature has a few different takes. The butterfly feature lets you pick butterflies for prizes. The coconut feature lets you race against other monkeys. In Jungle Jackpot, you are a Monkey trying to cross the road (think Frogger). (See the Total Treasure 2 review for specifics on that game)
The graphics are nice and well represented, as are the sound effects and audio. You can choose to double your winnings with the “gamble” or “roulette” option after every win, but you might lose it all. You can also select low, medium and “dream” payout levels for the games as well.
For $2.99, you get three nice slot machine games, each of which can be used to pass the time. They have variety, so you shouldn’t get bored with any specific one. Four and a half out of five stars.
Slots Megapack 1, by Pokie Magic, $2.99
Slots Megapack 1 includes three different slot machine games – Gallop for Gold, Egyptian Dreams 4, and Mega Hearts 2. Each of these games is somewhat different from the other, although I was disappointed to see that the method of obtaining the “bonus features” is the same (getting 3, 4, or 5 of the scatters). I would have liked to see different kinds of bonus features based on various factors (statters, wilds, etc). The bonus features themselves vary from game to game, however. In Gallop for Gold, the bonus features (and part of the slots) include a horse race, where you can buy upgrades for your horse to win! In Egyptian Dreams 4, the bonus features include the options of picking (from hidden options) the number of bonus spins, the multiplier, and the wilds.
The graphics are good, typical slot machine fare, with details images and nice wheel action. The sounds effects are immersive, nothing that seems out of place or that you wouldn’t hear on a casino floor. One nice additional feature is the inclusion of a “gamble” and “roulette” option when you win. The Gamble option give you the chance to double your winnings by guessing if a random card is red or black. The Roulette option lets you actually play roulette with your winning (one bet). Like all of the Pokie Magic designed games, you can choose either low, medium, or dream payout levels.
For only $2.99, you get three well designed, entertaining slot machines that are fun to play. The three games provide variety, and each of them are slightly different, adding different kinds of bonus features and play. Four and a half out of five stars.
Totem Treasure 1, Kalahari Sun, and Totem Treasure 2 by Pokie Magic, $1.99 each
In addition to the “megapacks” of slots you can buy, Pokie Magic also offer you the option of buying individual slot games for $1.99 each. I looked at three of them – Totem Treasure 1, Totem Treasure 2, and Kalahari Sun. Each of them has a variety of bonus features, well designed game play, and the same options of all Pokie Magic slots machines (gamble option, multiple payout levels, multiple bonus features).
Totem Treasure 1 and 2 are based on a Native American Theme, while Kalahari Sun is based on an African Theme. Totem Treasure 1 has a dreamcatcher bonus features that triples your winnings while playing the free spins. Totem Treasure 2 has a totem bonus, where the totem pole can change into a variety of added bonuses (multipliers, extra spins, etc). Kalahari Sun bonus features include wild diamond feature, locked wildcard feature (my favorite for big payouts), and a golden mask feature. You get your choice of bonus games when you get any three scatters on a line.
Each of the games has clear, well designed and appropriate graphics and sound to draw you in, and the game play is smooth and crisp. For $1.99, however, it may be more beneficial to get one of the megapacks that include a variety of slot types, or get an ultra pack (for $7.99) that includes 9 different slot games. While the slots themselves are fun, I found that you would get more bang for your buck with the megapacks. Three and a half out of five stars.
Continued in the second post...
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Cleopatra Slots is an Egyptian themed slot machine, with Cleopatra acting as a wild and the Sphinx acting as the scatter to trigger the bonus round. The bonus round is a straight forward free spin round (with multipliers), but it is limited to that – no additional features or games other than getting extra free spins during the bonus round.
One nice addition is the inclusion of a “shake to spin” option, although I didn’t find I used it that frequently when playing. It was nice to have a change from the standard hit a button to spin option. Unlike the other games, this game could be played in portrait mode, which made it seem more like a real (or “reel”?) slot machine in my opinion. If you don’t like it, you can turn it sideways for landscape mode. It didn’t include any option for adjusting the payout rate, although I found myself winning quite readily so the payout must be set higher than a normal slot machine in a casino. The graphics and sound effects were similar to the other slot machine games by Pokie Magic – basically what you would expect in a slot machine game.
This game did include a tournament mode, in which you start with 3,000 credit to play, your score is saved to the leaderboard to see how well you do compared to others playing the game. This is a cool feature that I wish more games incorporated. One of my biggest gripes about the game was that once you are playing, I couldn’t find any button to return to the menu! I had to exit the game and enter again to start over. This is a big oversight, but maybe I simply missed the button to push.
For $1.99, Cleopatra is a nice slot machine game, but in general I preferred some of the other games more. The lack of a variety of bonus features and the oversight of not having an “exit” button cost the game, and overall it is only three out of five stars.
Viaden 9-in-1 Crazy Pack Slots, by Arawella Corporation, $3.99
Crazy Pack slots comes with nine slot games to play – Vanilla Coctails (yes, that is how it is spelled), Deep Blue, Sign of Luck, Maya Piramid (as spelled), The Legend of Unicorn, Luxor Valley, Burning Cherry, Non-Stop Party, and Charming Chick. Each of the games is almost identical to the others, except for the graphics.
The bonus play, they method of entering the bonus play – even the sounds are pretty much the same. The graphics are minimal at best, lacking some of the detail seen in the other slot games. You don’t have the option of adjusting the payout for this game, for the primary reason that the company offers prizes to people who achieve the best score. According to the game description, high scores are submitted to the leaderboard via Openfeint, and prizes are awarded for the highest weekly score. In addition, “special combinations” (not identified) allow you an entry in the $499 prize, although this contest is listed as over according to their website (but not changed on the description of the game!) This strikes me as a bit of false advertising, and results in a lower overall rating.
In general, I found these slots to be lackluster, lacking some of the design and fun of the other slot games. While the idea of a “real” contest is interesting, they fail to mention that the contest is over, while still presumably trying to get people to buy the app to win $499! Due to this, and the slightly higher cost, I only give this app two and a half out of five stars.
Hoyle Red Hot Slots, by Encore, $1.99
Hoyle Red Hot Slots comes with 10 different slot machines. I was expecting a lot from Hoyle, and in general these slot games are okay, but nothing spectacular. They have a variety of different themes: - Idol Fun, Surfin’ Slots, Rockin’ Reels, Cats & Dogs, Bling Cha-Ching, Cashin’ In, Fruit Fiesta, Martini Madness, Gold Rush, Cash Ahoy! – each with it’s own graphics and sound effects. The graphics are pretty good, slightly worse than the ones by Pokie Magic, but definitely better than they ones by Arawella Corporation.
There are a few different bonus games – including free spins, selecting hidden objects, but overall there was less…excitement in these slots. The way to get the bonus was the same for each game – getting the bonus figure on reels 1, 3, and 5. There was less actual animation while playing the games itself, which made the slot machines seem more static, less interesting. In addition, there was no method to adjust the payout rates in the game itself.
The slot machines themselves were okay, but the lack of diversity in the bonus games, and the overall same “feel” that each of the ten different slot games had detract from the overall value, so I give this app only three and a half out of five stars.
Reel Deal Slots Slots, by Publisher X, $1.99 (previously rated 4 out of 5 stars): See the review here
So what is the overall result? Well, I generally found the Pokie Magic slot machines the best. They were immersive and drew you into the game with nice graphics, nice sound effect, and a variety of playing options. The big draw is the variety of bonus and feature games. I touched on some of them here, but many of the games have bonus features I didn’t mention! Combined with a wide array of slot machines, I feel the Pokie Magic is the overall winner in this round up of slot games. If you like slot machine games and want to give one a try, Pokie Magic is the way to you. You can find one machine that you particularly like, or you can buy “packs” that contain three or nine different slot machines. I would avoid Viaden Crazy slots (along with anything by that company) just out of principle. IGH and Encore are inbetween – not too bad, definitely some features that make them interesting, but not as enjoyable as some of the other.
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It was nice to have a change from the standard hit a button to spin option. Unlike the other games, this game could be played in portrait mode, which made it seem more like a real slot machine in my opinion.
Hey, are these iPad slot machines still available? The images no longer display for some reason. I live in New York and I've been looking for a decent iPad slot machine game that accepts U.S. players. I found these US slots apps listed here [url=http://www.ipadcasinogames.com/us-ipad-casinos.html]U.S. iPad Casinos - iPad Casino Games[/url] but I'm looking for a bit of variety.
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Review: Slot Machine Roundup 
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