Plunderland: Slot Overview
Ever since Lewis Carroll let loose his tale Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, readers have returned ever since to2️⃣ explore the weird and wonderful imagery which poured forth from the author's mind. Slot developers and players also return on2️⃣ a regular basis, getting a taste of the bizarre while attempting to extract a few coins along the way. Relax2️⃣ Gaming, by contrast, keeps things real by transporting players to a low-key Wonderland and giving them the task of plundering2️⃣ the place. To do so, players make use of a bonus game replete with a multi-tasking roaming progressive multiplying wild2️⃣ that can grow in size when it hits a hotspot.
Plunderland is a 7x7 grid slot using cluster pays to crank2️⃣ out winners. It looks a little average and flat for a Relax Gaming slot. Wonderland is one of those places2️⃣ where imaginations run wild, with no limit to the sort of riotous visuals or effects that are possible. In the2️⃣ hands of a studio like Relax Gaming, one might expect an envelope-pushing experience of colour, sound, and weirdness. In an2️⃣ unusual twist, Plunderland is one of the more restrained Wonderland slots out there. Alice sits to the side of the2️⃣ grid, calmly reading a book on the grass, while behind her is a positively relaxing rural scene with a maze2️⃣ and lashings of trees. The Mad Hatter does set up a tea party when free spins are rolling, but it's2️⃣ more like tea with Mary Poppins than a mind-bending psychedelic event.
Plunderland might not be hugely striking visually, yet you can't2️⃣ fault the statistics, provided you're into highly volatile games. That aspect of the math has been rated 5 out of2️⃣ 5, while RTP comes in at 96.43% playing normally, or 97.14% when buying the feature. Playable from 10 p/c toR$/€100,2️⃣ this less-zany side of Wonderland can be played on any device, including Android and iOS devices.
Wins form when at least2️⃣ 5 identical symbols land adjacent to each other in horizontal or vertical directions. Clusters are then removed by a tumble2️⃣ mechanic, which makes space for new symbols to drop down. Tumbles repeat until no more clusters form. Six pay symbols2️⃣ are used, three being low-value flowers, the other three are high-value Alices, Hatters, and Queens. The most valuable clusters included2️⃣ 32+ symbols and are worth 70x the bet for low pays or 150-500x for the highs.
Plunderland: Slot Features
The White Rabbit2️⃣ wild symbol is integral to just about every feature in Plunderland. Its most basic role is replacing all regular symbols2️⃣ when evaluating cluster wins. The White Rabbit wild is present on every spin and moves one step closer to the2️⃣ hot spot after cluster wins.
The hot spot is the very centre cell of the game grid, and when the White2️⃣ Rabbit wild reaches it, he expands in size. The first expansion is 2x2, then 3x3, followed by 4x4, then finally2️⃣ 5x5. If the expanded wild is used in a win, it gets removed from the reels as part of the2️⃣ cascade and reappears in 1x1 size in a random position. If he reaches the hotspot in the same game round,2️⃣ he expands to the next size up. In addition, the White Rabbit wild has a win multiplier which increases by2️⃣ +1 every time it is used in a cluster win. Multipliers return to normal between paid spins.
Mad Hatter's Free Spins
When2️⃣ 3 scatter symbols are collected throughout a game round, 6 free spins are awarded. The wild's multiplier does not reset2️⃣ in free spins, nor does the potential expansion reset. After an expanded wild is used in a win, it cascades2️⃣ off and reappears in a random position. The next time it reaches a hotspot, at any time in the bonus2️⃣ game, it grows to the previous size, rather than start from 2x2 again.
Bonus Buy
Instead of waiting for the required three2️⃣ scatters to land on their own in the base game, shelling out 70x the bet guarantees they appear on the2️⃣ next spin.
Plunderland: Slot Verdict
After the excellent run of games Relax has been on of late, the studio lets us gently2️⃣ down to earth in Plunderland. It's almost as if the project was a way for the team to let off2️⃣ steam rather than flex. Don't get us wrong, Plunderland is not a bad game, but it's not one of those2️⃣ hair-raising slots that feels like you're riding a roller coaster without being strapped in with a safety belt. However, the2️⃣ frustrating cleverness did kind of grow on us once we'd got a handle on how it all functions.
There are moments2️⃣ to be sure when the partially Jammin' Jars, partially Fat Rabbit features combine to get on a thrilling roll during2️⃣ the bonus game. Relax are as much masters of teasing as they are of entertaining. Arguably the biggest tease (or2️⃣ frustration, if you will) in Plunderland is expanding the wild in free spins but having it return to regular 1x12️⃣ size after it is used in a win. It's good that the next time it reaches the hotspot, it expands2️⃣ to the previously achieved size, thereby making it somewhat easier to reach the fabled 5x5 dimensions, though it can be2️⃣ tough going.
On the positive side, the White Rabbit wild does come with a progressive multiplier, which can provide a major2️⃣ leg up when the expansion and multiplication elements are working together. It's a slightly intricate system and not as straightforward2️⃣ satisfying as just growing a wild symbol and watching it string together wins, as seen in games like Royal Potato.2️⃣ Expanded wild symbols tended to be put back on the grid as far away from the hotspot as possible, making2️⃣ repeat expansions feel like a pipe dream. Get it right, though, and a win as high as 10,266x the bet2️⃣ was recorded by Relax during simulated spins.
And so, don't come to Plunderland if you want a full-blown technicolour Alice in2️⃣ Wonderland trip. It might be best to check out what Play'n GO has done in that regard, or Big Time2️⃣ Gaming even with their hit release White Rabbit (which ignited the feature buy trend). Also, don't play it if you2️⃣ want a cheerful Fat Rabbit knee-slapper. Plunderland might look like a casual garden party, but it means business and offers2️⃣ rewards, just be prepared to work for them.
