Sparkling Roses Slot Machine
Sometimes, casino slot machines don’t have to be terribly complex to be interesting and entertaining to play. While loading up on lots of special features is certainly one way to keep players engaged in the action, classic slots have always been about the straightforward gameplay, with maybe just one or two bonus games or free spins features thrown into the mix to make things more interesting.
That’s the direction that was taken in the creation of Sparkling Roses by Konami. This machine doesn’t offer up a lot of second screen mini games or huge jackpots, but it remains a fun title to play thanks to a clear theme, a multiplier system that can lead to some massive payouts, and an easy to understand gameplay flow. While this doesn’t have the wow factor we’ve seen from some of the other latest releases populating casino floors, it might be a game that flies under the radar to become a favorite for many gamblers.
A Rose by Any Other Name
The Sparkling Roses video slot is a five reel, 40 payline machine that runs on a fairly standard 3x5 layout. This is basically a luxury themed slot: the backdrop is a gold-lined mansion foyer, and most of the game decked out in the colors of gold and a royal purple. While nothing stands out as being particularly groundbreaking or noteworthy, the overall presentation is quite beautiful, and definitely lends an air of elegance to the machine. At the moment, you’ll only see this game in live casinos; it has yet to be ported over to casinos online, which means we’re not aware of a play for free version.
As usual, the object here is to match symbols from left to right across your active paylines. Players must play the maximum number of lines, but because this is offered as a penny slot, you won’t need to be a high roller in order to play Sparkling Roses. For basic, small wins, you can make matches of the typical card rank icons: everything from tens and jacks up through kings and aces. Larger wins come from matching a number of different luxurious symbols, including keys, perfume, and emeralds. The highest paying symbol is a beautiful woman, though even these payouts aren’t particularly large: you’ll get 60 coins per line credit wagered if you hit five in a row.
Multipliers Add a Spark
One of the most exciting features on the Sparkling Roses video slot is the mystery multiplier function, which can take those modest payouts and make them legendary. This can occur randomly at any time, and allows for random multipliers to be added to random positions on the reels. Should one of the high-paying symbols land on the position where a multiplier has been seeded, then its value will be revealed. Should multipliers take part in part of a winning combination, your winnings will naturally be increased by that amount. These bonuses can stack as well, leading to some incredible payouts: it is theoretically possible to get as much as 144x in total on a single payline.
There are two special icons that appear on the reels during the base game. First, there are wild symbols that conveniently have the word “wild” printed right on them. These can substitute for any normal symbol to help make winning paylines. There are also roses that act as scatter symbols. Hitting three or more will earn you entry into a free spins special feature: you’ll get five free games if you hit three scatters, up to a maximum of 20 for six or more. During these free spins, the mystery multiplier will be active on every single spin, greatly increasing your odds of pulling in a big payout.
Run for the Roses
The Sparkling Roses video slot may not be the most spectacular new game from Konami, but we still think that it will be a popular game among many gamblers. In a world where most casino slot machines are now packing in as many features and as much visual content as possible, this is a game that keeps it relatively simple, allowing the gameplay to breathe a bit and speak for itself.
If you’re someone that cares more about that gameplay than anything else, we think you’ll be pleased with the way this machine plays. The random multipliers are a great touch, and we love how they can occasionally get exceptionally large, as that adds a sort of jackpot element to a game that doesn’t have any progressives attached to it normally (though it’s always possible that other Konami jackpot systems could be grafted on to it). Easy to understand and a joy to play, this is one of the best of the new games from this developer.
