Out of this World Slots
Some topics are more popular than others with the developers of slot machines and among those themes seen on numerous games are ancient Egypt and outer space. So, it seems logical that someone should combine the two, with the result being the Out of this World video slot that comes from the imaginative minds at Live 5 Gaming. While the idea has been covered before, notably in the Stargate film and TV series, it’s a new idea in the online slot machine market, so it’s sure to be a huge hit for this UK-based company.
It’s a classic 5-reel slot, where 20 paylines run across the game and punters need to land 3 or more of the same symbol across a line to win a prize. It looks fantastic, setting the symbols in the windows of a spaceship that’s flying above a purple planet that has a landscape dotted with futuristic pyramids, and where a blue alien pharaoh stands to one side, watching the action unfold as those symbols spin up winning combinations. To go with the other-worldly design, there’s a suitably weird soundtrack that can be played along with the clicking sounds of symbols falling into place.
Licensed by the UK Gambling Commission, all Live 5 Gaming slots are completely fair, where results are determined at random and a high return to player percentage is standard. They released their first games in 2015, and while the range is still small, they have gone for quality over quantity, as you will see when you spin the reels of this unique slot machine that’s optimised for mobile and online casinos alike.
Interplanetary Payouts
Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds and Spades symbols, each enhanced with patterns to give them a slightly alien appearance, will award the smaller wins, while the bigger coin prizes come from a beetle, a pyramid, a white planet and a purple planet with rings around it. The top prizes however, are paid out by a smiling alien Sphinx, which returns 40x the amount staked per line when it stops on 3 reels, 100x when you land 4 across a payline and there’s 500x returned to you when this symbol is seen right across a line.
Unusually, while winning combinations are created by any 3 or more matching symbols across any of the 20 paylines, you won’t need to see the sequence starting from just the left or right sides, so 3 in a row on the middle 3 reels will also be enough to create a win-line. This All Ways Pays (AWP) format should result in more frequent winning spins, although the relative value of each prize may tend to be lower.
There’s no wild symbol, or a scatter icon in the game, but a special Portal symbol can transport players to a series of rewarding bonus features, so it really doesn’t need them.
A Portal to Prizes
The Portal can land in the course of a normal spin, or you could see a little red alien at the top of the control buttons, or the pharaoh floating across and adding it to the middle reel at the end of a random spin. However this special Portal appears, once the reels have stopped spinning, you are treated to a bonus feature that’s guaranteed to create winning combinations of symbols.
In a nice animated sequence, the Portal opens up and a colourful swirl surrounds it, sucking all symbols on reels 2, 3, and 4 into another dimension and replacing them with a single type of symbol chosen at random. As all spots on these reels are now of the same type, you have at least 20 lines, each with 3 of the same symbol being created, and if the same symbol is already on reels 1 and/or 5, there’s going to be some 4 or 5 of a kind lines as well.
It’s also possible that the characters will turn all symbols on all reels into the same kind and this creates 20 winning lines, each at the maximum of 5 symbols for some truly massive rewards, especially if the chosen symbol is a high-value one. Occasionally, the skies above the planet turn red and you are awarded a free spins bonus feature, which is where the Portal will appear 3 times in succession, awarding a huge prize each time.
A Galaxy of Betting Options
A high return to player percentage of over 96% means that whatever bet size is chosen, most will be won back in prizes. The low limit is set at 0.20 per spin, which is equal to just 0.01 on each of the 20 paylines, while stakes can be raised to a maximum of 200.00, or 10.00 per line.
Clicking the Autoplay button opens up further options that speeds up gameplay for up to 100 spins, and you are able to set win or loss limits beforehand, so you can just sit back and watch the action unfold without having to do anything.
Free Out of this World video slots are provided by Live 5 Gaming which is fine for those who just want to see reels spinning without any chance of actually winning anything, but where’s the fun in that?
To Infinity and Beyond
The developers of this slot game were clearly aware of the Stargate franchise, but the rights to the TV show have already been snapped up by Fremantle, who have their Stargate SG1 video slot on the market. It’s filled with images from the show, including the mysterious gate itself, which opens up a free spins feature, while wild multipliers and expanding wild symbols can open up some big winning lines.
For a similar cartoon style online casino game, take a peek at the Alien Spinvasion video slot from Rival Gaming, where a bug-eyed green monster becomes a sticky wild symbol that triggers repsins and an army general who is trying to save the Earth will launch missiles and free games. During these free spins, a cascading reels feature can see multiple winning combinations appear in sequence. It’s a 5-reel, 50-line slot that brings a great retro-style to the alien invasion theme.
Does Out of this World live up to the name?
This is a fantastic blend of an outer space themed slot machine and one based on the classic topic of ancient Egypt, all wrapped together in a beautifully-animated cartoon style. The aliens are genuinely funny characters, with the pharaoh for example, zapping the reels now and then, but burning his fingers in the process, while all symbols will move around a little within their spots to add life and movement to proceedings.
An unusual mix of symbols, where there’s no wild or scatters in play, doesn’t stop the Out of this World video slot from having some great bonus features, as entering the Portal will always end up with some huge prize payouts.
Although the Live 5 Gaming company may not be particularly well-known at this moment in time, going by the style and gameplay of this slot, they will one day be far more popular, and their games will be featured across many online and mobile optimised casinos, both in the UK and beyond.
