Play Sherlock for Free

Octavian Gaming has a knack of turning what could be fairly basic symbols into something more interesting and in the Sherlock video slot they have used the traditional playing card symbols J, Q, K and A, but made them look like bits of evidence printed on scraps of paper. Each of these, and the higher-paying picture symbols, will need to be seen in continuous runs of the same type across an active payline to be worth anything.

However, in true Victorian gentleman style, Holmes is able to assist in this matter. He’s a wild symbol that’s able to substitute for others, bridging any gaps in a sequence so that players still get paid as if there was a continuous line.

If they get a run of 3 or 4 of the same symbol across the reels, our helpful sleuth can turn these into higher value runs of 4 or 5 when he’s seen on the right-side reels of the game. Bravo, Holmes!

Players lucky enough to land the bonus symbols in enough places in a single spin will be treated to extra features. During the bonus rounds, there’s a greater chance of landing a few wins, which is yet another common feature with the range of Octavian Gaming slot machines and one that we are always happy to see.

While winnings aren’t totally guaranteed, it would take the sinister actions of Moriarty to stop players collecting a few coins during these extra rounds.

There’s a low limit of just 0.40 needed per spin and control buttons can be used to raise this in 12 stages to a maximum bet of 20.00. Of course, higher stakes means higher rewards and with a great return to player percentage and the chance to trigger richer bonus rounds, many punters will just opt for the high limit and collect the best payouts.

There’s no free Sherlock video slots option and high rollers may wish that they could stake more than 20.00, but apart from this, it’s a nice flexible bet range that should be ideal for most bankrolls.

There’s a few good reasons why Sherlock Holmes is such a popular character who is now featured in a number of online casino slot games. First and foremost, he’s well-known by most people, so punters from 21 to 91 will have heard of his stories, but a more subtle reason is that the copyright for the books and characters has long expired, so there’s no royalties to pay when casino games developers feature them.

It’s actually good news for players, as the returns can be higher, so everyone wins, except perhaps for the estate of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle who invented Holmes back in 1887. Some of the top slots themed around this fictional detective include Sherlock Mystery from Playtech and the imaginatively-named Sherlock Holmes video slot that comes from the Russian minds of Drive Media.

In Sherlock Mystery, sinister hooded figures, guns and knives share space on the 5 reels with Sherlock and Dr Watson. When Watson is seen to the immediate right of Holmes there’s a coin payout of 3x the bet, and the 221b Baker Street sign triggers free spins with extra wild symbols and random multipliers. The Crime Scene bonus symbol takes players to a bedroom where some sort of dastardly deed has taken place and by clicking on various items in the room, multiplier prizes can be found as the crime is slowly solved.

Unlike Sherlock and Sherlock Mystery, which are both presented in more of a cartoon style, Drive Media’s Sherlock Holmes slot game has highly realistic symbols. These line up to award treats such as free spins, during which any payouts will be tripled in value, along with wild substitutions and the option to gamble wins, potentially turning a small prize into a much larger one. Tread carefully though, as gamble rounds can take a turn for the worse just when you think you are close to collecting a huge payout, as any wrong choice during the feature will lose not only any gains made so far but also the triggering prize.

The character of Sherlock Holmes has been famous since the first books were published in the 1880’s and the endless films, TV shows and now slot machines all look certain to continue keeping him in the public eye for many years to come.

The Sherlock video slot may not be the best of his adventures in the world of online casinos, but it’s still an enjoyable game that looks good and can reward punters with some decent bonus features. However, if features are important to you, we would probably choose to spin the reels of Playtech’s take on the subject, as Sherlock Mystery comes with a greater chance of landing multipliers, free games and bonus rounds.

But that’s not saying we didn’t like Octavian Gaming’s effort, which gives spinners a good return on their wagers and can be enjoyed on different platforms such as desktop computers, Macs, Android powered devices, iPhones and iPad tablet computers, all with no loss of gameplay or features.