Spooky House Slots
We’re looking to get our fill of vintage horror when we play the 5-reels of Spooky House, a horror slot from Novomatic that comes in gently rather than screaming. The brand has taken a more refined approach with their aesthetic, ensuring that all deem it friendly and inviting rather than scary and horrifying. Not only is this the safer option, but it also ensures a wider audience engagement.
But you don’t want to hear about engagement, you want to know what you can expect to win, and what awaits you inside the four walls of this abode. Firstly, you can expect a lot of free games, as well as a bonus respin should luck favour you. And secondly, you could be looking at a payout of 150,000 credits – talk about a whopping incentive to play! For that amount of money we’d spend a night in a haunted house, let alone just playing a themed slot machine.
The Bigger the Better
Surprisingly, Novomatic have made it so you can adjust the number of paylines you’re playing with, allowing you to reduce the number down to just 1. Often the brand opts for fixed winlines, which while easy to engage with, tends to put less experienced users off; that concern is forgotten here. Instead what you do get is 243 ways to play, if you so wish. All you need to do is tap that ‘+’ icon until it hits 30, and the grid will open up and be all yours.
Yes, the wording of the controls is misleading, making you think you’re getting one thing and then you receive another, but really you’re sitting pretty here. 243 ways to win means you stand a greater chance of walking away with some cold hard cash, and so you don’t have to deal with the legendary high volatility that haunts Novomatic titles.
A Flick and a Wink
Another unexpected feature of this game, that has nothing to do with the 15 free spins, is that the tiles are animated. Given the 2D nature of the matrix, and that the brand has gone for a very old fashioned aesthetic, we expected the rest of the slot to follow. No gimmicks. And then we scored a win, and watched as the beautiful raven haired witch of the grid winked at us and flicked her wand. It was most enchanting, giving the title a more whimsical feel than one of horror.
Not only does this highlight the hidden depth of the game, but that you should never judge a title from what you see on the outside. Far too many users dismiss such a seasoned slot machine because of how it looks, and yet if they just gave it a chance they’d discover a pretty modern real cash slot that can hold its own. Not to mention you actually get decent payouts here rather than having an attractive interface with zero substance.
Such a Ghoul
If you’re a fan of this genre, you’ll already likely know the other titles that await you, but for those just starting out on their horror journey, we’d like to suggest Ghouls Gold. This playfully named real cash slot is brought to you by BetSoft, offering 5-reels of spine tingling gameplay, and in some respects you get it. But in a much more vintage styled format: there’s only 3-reels and 3 paylines, which is a huge step down from Spooky House.
Though that may be, we implore you to give the title ago, for it’s easy to adapt to and is better suited to quick gaming. Spooky House is a feast for all who play, whereas Ghouls Gold is a quick bite to eat while you try and hold out until dinner; it’s a filler, but one that slots nicely into your pockets when on the move.
Horror House
All in all, Spooky House is a good game from Novomatic, and one that displays how varied the company can be with their gameplay. However, it’s still a long way off from the likes of brands such as Microgaming and Endorphina - they tend to lead with visuals rather than paytables, whereas Novomatic is the other way round. Not sure how you feel about that, then why not try the demo version of this slot first, just to get your bearings?
