Medusa Megaways: Review
As a consequence of the Megaways trend, new life has been
brought into many of the old classics,4️⃣ allowing us to experience them in a more
relevant format. Of course, there might be some grumpy old conservative players4️⃣ out
there that don't agree, but the success speaks for itself! The latest classic to get
the Megaways treatment is4️⃣ Medusa, a NextGen Gaming creation that has been released in
two instalments, out of which the second became one of4️⃣ NextGen's biggest hits to
date.
Fundamentally, what you get here is Bonanza type gameplay - you have your typical
6 reels4️⃣ + the extra reel, the random variation of between 3 to 7 symbols per spin and
reel (which is really4️⃣ the heart of the Megaways game engine), up to 117,649 Megaways
and, of course, cascading symbols and growing multipliers in4️⃣ the free spins. But that's
where the similarities end as Medusa Megaways comes with a new set of unique features
4️⃣ as you will see. You can play this bad boy from between 0.25 to 25 Eur per spin across
all4️⃣ devices, and also worth a mention is that it comes with two RTP-settings, one when
triggering the bonus "organically", where4️⃣ you'll play with a 96.28% RTP, and one when
you buy the bonus, where it's set to 97.63%.
As fans of4️⃣ Medusa, we're happy to see that
the developers have made sure to stay true to the original, both visually and4️⃣ by
sticking to the same creepy soundtrack as before. With a mythological theme based on
the legend of Medusa, a4️⃣ gorgon described as a winged female with venomous snakes in
place of hair, in the backdrop you'll see ancient Greek4️⃣ stone ruins and pink skies.
It's a rather unsettling scene that transitions to the inside of a temple when you
4️⃣ trigger the free spins. The graphics have intentionally made to look a bit dated as a
homage to Medusa which4️⃣ we love in this case.
The symbol set includes A to 10 royals as
well as talaria sandals, silver rings, golden4️⃣ snakes, trojan shields and pegasus
horses, the latter being the most lucrative, coming in at 30 times your stake if4️⃣ you
land 6 on a payline. The daunting Medusa herself is the wild, substituting for all
symbols bar the scatter4️⃣ and the special Soldier symbol* which only appears on the extra
reel during the free spins feature - more on4️⃣ that latter!
Just as in most Megaways
slots, the slot is played using cascading symbols where all symbols part of a4️⃣ winning
combination are removed and replaced by a new set of symbols - a chain reaction that
repeats until no4️⃣ more winning combinations appear on the reels.
Medusa Megaways:
Features
Medusa Megaways is a slot rich in features. When one or more4️⃣ wilds appear on
the extra reel there's a chance that the Medusa's Gaze feature might activate. When so
happens, Medusa4️⃣ appears to cover the full reel directly below the wilds, revealing one
or more wild symbols as she disappears again.
Though4️⃣ offering satisfying potential in
the main game, it all comes down to the Free Spins feature which activates to give4️⃣ you
10 free spins when you land 3 or more scatter symbols anywhere on the reels
(optionally, you can Buy4️⃣ the feature for a cost of 100 times your stake). Furthermore,
each additional scatter symbol that lands on the reels4️⃣ will give you 5 extra free
spins. It's also possible to retrigger the free spins feature by landing 3 or4️⃣ more
scatters with no limit to how many times it can retrigger.
Once granted access, you
will benefit from the Unlimited4️⃣ Win Multiplier feature - kicking off at 2x, every chain
reaction win increases the multiplier by 1. Also, aside from4️⃣ the Medusa's Gaze feature,
which applies here as well, to further help you win in the free spins the Snake4️⃣ Strike
feature may come into play. Pay attention to the two snakes on both sides of the extra
reel. When4️⃣ one or more *soldiers land on this reel, the snakes lash out to attack them
- if the snake on4️⃣ the left attacks, the symbol transforms into a wild. If the snake on
the right attacks instead, the symbol transforms4️⃣ into a scatter.
Finally, when the
feature ends, the Temptation feature gives you the opportunity to choose one of two
options4️⃣ - to walk away with your winnings or to play the feature again in hope for more
significant wins. Of4️⃣ course, it's quite likely that you'll end up with an even worse
feature so choose wisely.
Medusa Megaways: Verdict
As you've seen,4️⃣ Medusa Megaways is a
rather busy slot that comes packed with features. If it seems confusing, don't worry.
It's actually4️⃣ quite simple once you get going. Though a reasonably well-balanced slot,
as these Bonanza-type slots usually are, most of the4️⃣ action is concentrated to the free
spins bonus. Though we enjoyed all of the features included, we have to say4️⃣ that the
Temptation concept is the most interesting. If anything, it's great knowing you'll get
a second chance if you4️⃣ experience a dreadful bonus.
Medusa Megaways is a high variance
slot with a max win potential of 50,000x but is likely4️⃣ capped relative to the stake.
Either way, we thoroughly enjoyed it and are of the opinion that it, not only4️⃣ lived up
to, but exceeded our expectations! With the help of Big Time Gaming's excellent
invention, the curse of Medusa4️⃣ lives on, more powerful than ever before.
