Evil King Ox Slots
While an ox is a pretty big beast that probably shouldn’t be messed with, we’re not sure if they are actually evil, but online casino games developer GamingSoft have create the Evil King Ox video slot, which features just such an animal. It’s all done with good humour of course, and has a cartoon style that suits it perfectly well. The main character is joined by several demonic assistants, plus we see some fairly random symbols of ink pots and ham.
There’s also a couple of bonus symbols in play, with expanding wilds, an entrance to the king’s fiery realm that launches free spins, and an erupting volcano that starts a progressive jackpot feature with some potentially explosive rewards.
It’s a 5-reel slot machine, where symbols are arranged over 3 rows and 9 paylines run across them, but winning combinations can start from either the left or right-side reels, in a win both ways format which gives players twice the chances to get a prize when 3 or more of the same type stop on adjacent reels across a line. You can play Evil King Ox for real cash stakes from just 0.09 per spin, although anyone wanting to try the game without any risk to their bankrolls will be able to find free Evil Ox King video slots at most online casinos that carry the GamingSoft range.
The Devil is in the Details
As we descend into the depths where this unlikely beast rules, we should stop and take a quick look at the paytable, which reveals what each symbol is worth. Unlike many slots which use playing card symbols to create the lower-value winning lines, everything here is related to the theme, although quite how remains a bit of a mystery. There’s a big ham joint that’s 2x, 5x, or 20x the line bet when it’s on 3, 4, or 5 reels, while the ink pot pays out 3x, 10x, or 40x, and some strange broach symbol is valued at 5x, 15x and 60x.
A 3-pronged pitchfork is a little more related to the theme, and this painful-looking object returns 7x, 20x and 100x the line stake when it’s on 3, 4, or 5 reels. The various assistants to our evil king are next up, with winnings of 160x, 200x and 400x the line stake when the purple-haired girl, strange orange-haired thing and brunette fill paylines.
The top prizes are paid out by our friendly neighbourhood evil ox creature, who’s valued at 50x, 200x and a huge 1,000 the line stake when he stops on 3, 4, or 5 reels across a payline, and don’t forget that this can run from either side of the reels.
Wild Substitutions and Expanding Wilds
The volcanic theme extends to the wild symbol, which is a Chinese inscription against molten rocks. It completes additional win-lines by acting as other symbols, although not the scatter or jackpot icons. When it turns up on reel 3, it will be come an expanding wild that extends right across it, and while this isn’t guaranteed to compete a combination of symbols, it could certainly help.
Special Free Spins Games
The entrance to King Ox’s evil lair is the flame-filled scatter symbol and seeing this land in any 3 or more places triggers a special free spins bonus round. The number of extra spins awarded depends on how many scatter symbols launched them, with the minimum of 3 equalling 8 spins, 4 scatter symbols will see 12 free spins play out, while any 5 or more starts the high limit of 16 spins.
However many extra spins you get, the middle reel will be fully wild throughout them, which makes it a lot easier to land some nice wins, especially if another wild turns up anywhere, as the win both ways format means this will guarantee that winning combinations are formed. There’s no way to retrigger the free spins though, so once the round is done, it’s back to the base game.
Multi-Level Progressive Jackpot Feature
Like many online casino slot machines from GamingSoft, the Evil King Ox game has a progressive jackpot feature which guarantees a win once it’s been triggered. Only players at the maximum stakes will qualify for 100% of a jackpot prize however, with those on the lowest wagers only getting 10%, which is a shame, but better than nothing.
When the exploding volcano jackpot symbol stops on reels 1, 3 and 5 at once, you get taken to a side game where a click sends a fortune wheel spinning. It will stop on either the Mini, Minor, Major, or Grand jackpot values and you get paid out accordingly, and while most spinners won’t qualify for the whole amount of any prize, the Major and Grand can be worth thousands, so even 10% is a decent amount.
A Hot Slot, or Just Hellish?
It may have a weird subject matter, but it doesn’t stop the Evil King Ox video slot from being a good-looking game that comes with enough bonus features to keep gamblers entertained. It isn’t mobile-optimised, and the way that progressive jackpots are divided up seems a bit mean, but apart from these points, this is a game that has lots to like about it.
