Star Cash Slot
Prepare to have your mind blown and your bankroll boosted in Star Cash, a trippy slot from GameArt that will take you at warp speed to the outer reaches of the galaxy and back in time for breakfast. Fans of sci-fi, Star Trek in particular, will be enamoured with this space-themed slot whose typography should look very familiar.
Space is infinite and so is Star Cash, a slot that goes on forever and ever. While most video slots let the animations take place on the reels, appending a backdrop almost as an afterthought, in this instance the reverse is true. With a travelling-through-space backdrop so convincing you could almost dive right into it, the sensation can be quite disorienting.
In Space, No One Can Hear You Spin
With stars zooming past at light speed, there’s a lot to take in as you get to grips with this busy 5-reel slot. Entrancing as the background is, don’t stare too long or hard – there’s business to take care of. Star Cash is a 10 payline slot with a line bet that can be set between 0.01 and 0.5, making for a maximum stake of 5 per spin. Autoplay can be capped at 500 spins and there’s the option to disable the audio and also the gamble feature too if you’re not a fan.
With no visible reels to clutter things up, it’s left to the symbols to hang invisibly in space, including dollar and pound signs that glimmer invitingly. You would expect the animated space backdrop to stop moving once you spin the reels, but no – this thing just keeps on going. It’s more than a tad overwhelming, even if the effect impresses initially.
Intergalactic Slots
Instead of playing card symbols, GameArt have deployed currency symbols including a Euro sign, dollar, pound and yen. It’s a neat touch; somehow the mere sight of letters that don’t comprise J, K, Q and A feels refreshing, even if it doesn’t really change anything. There are also gold BAR symbols, a classic slot symbol which is worth 250 for five, and another classic in the form of red 7s, worth 500 for five.
Wild is an eight-pointed star that will substitute for any of the other playing symbols. It will appear on reels 2-4 and is also capable of triggering respins. The respin feature will see the wild symbol expand to fill the entire reel and then remain in place while the other reels respin. Unfortunately, the maximum number of possible respins is capped at just two. There is a gamble feature built into Star Cash at least, a simple black or red card gamble that will double your winnings every time you get it right. It’s possible to gamble up to five times in a row if you’re feeling brave.
Kawaii’s Close
Star Cash is rated as a medium variance slot and it’s one that has a number of imitators, or more likely vice-versa. In terms of features, the closest game is Kawaii Kitty, which is every bit as cute and Japanese as its name would suggest.
A closer game, thematically at least, is Capecod Gaming’s Stardust Evolution. It’s also got 10 paylines, an RTP of 96% and an almost identical minimalist theme. No feature and no free spins in other words. Finally, two more slots on a different tip, but with gameplay and features – or rather lack of features – that aren’t so different: Wild Shamrock by MOB and Beefee’s Royal Crown, a simple fruit-based slot.
Hardly a Stellar Performance
Star Cash isn’t widely regarded as a great game, and it’s easy to see why. The sheer simplicity of it all, including an absence of scatters or any kind of feature game, automatically limits its appeal. This is coupled with the fact that the animated space travelling background gets a bit much after a while.
It’s a shame because Star Cash actually looks quite cool and is one of GameArt’s bolder efforts in terms of removing the reels altogether and applying an animated backdrop. If the seasick-inducing background would stop cantering away at a rate of knots, Star Cash might actually be a good game instead of a mildly disappointing one.
