Links of Ra Slot Machine: Review & Demo
A joint release, from Microgaming and Slingshot Studios, Links of Ra adds to an already very long list of excellent slot machines that the two companies have worked on together. A solid option in a lot of ways, you will find that this game focuses on features and mechanics that have proved popular already, without innovating much. Even its theme, based on deities of Ancient Egypt, is one of the most common you will find in slot machines.
Links of Ra has 40 active lines, which you will find spread across 5x4 reels. While using Power Stacks, wilds, scatters, Link & Win respins, or free spins with 2x multipliers, the slot is capable of paying excellent prizes of up to 25,000x the stake. Don’t mistake it for a slot game where it’s easy to win, it has high volatility and a 96.20% RTP.
Links of Ra Slot Betting and Prizes
A complete range for your bets in Links of Ra will have you spending from $0.20 to $20, on each spin. All 40 lines are active, regardless of the level of the bet you’ve chosen.
One thing that Microgaming has become a lot better at, is in delivering high volatility slot machines, with huge top jackpots. Links of Ra is one of those, as it can pay up to 25,000x the stake, or $500,000 cash.
As usual, the downside is that a game with big rewards needs to have high volatility so that it can pay well and still be profitable for the casino. Long-term, it’s about as fair as any other modern release, with the RTP at 96.20%.
Slot Features
An important feature for Links of Ra, the wild symbol is one of those mechanics that you get to take advantage of fairly often. While its ability to act as a replacement comes in handy in bringing you more winning combinations, it doesn’t have the same sort of potential as the bigger features do. It will pay as much as 25x the stake for its own combinations, during paid spins (50x during free spins).
The Power Stacks are also important when you can get them, but these are not guaranteed. Instead, they trigger at random moments, choosing symbols that can land super stacked on all reels. Only regular symbols will be influenced by this mechanic.
Via 3 scatter symbols that you get at the same time, the game can trigger 15 free spins. This is where you want all your big wins to come since a 2x multiplier will help boost them. Even other features pay better when they trigger in this mode.
Speaking of those other features, there is only one more to mention, the respins that they call Link & Win. The game uses a Coin symbol as a trigger, a scatter that needs to land quite a few times, in order to be useful. 6 or more of these Coins will get you 3 respins.
They start with the triggering Coins sticky, and as you get more during those 3 respins, the number of remaining rounds resets back to 3. When you run out of respins, or when you fill all positions with coins, you will get paid.
Rewards go up to 15x for the regular Coins, while jackpot coins come in four variants, which will pay up to 2,500x the stake. Should the respins come from a free spin, all wins are worth twice as much, so jackpots of 5,000x the stake are a possibility.
Theme & Design
Ancient Egypt, with its history, deities and awe-inspiring construction projects, has proven quite the fertile ground for slot machine developers. Hundreds of these games have been created so far, using the pyramids and the main gods of this civilization as inspiration. It’s gotten fairly boring by now, but at least the design quality is above average in Links of Ra, and it’s not a bad game to spend some time with.
Symbols will have four gems of just as many colours, along with five deities of Ancient Egypt (Horus, Anubis, Bastet, Sobek, and Khnum), and several feature symbols (Ankh scatter, Coin, Logo wild).
Conclusion
Links of Ra has proven itself a solid choice in most respects, a slot that has good graphics and a list of special features that a lot of players can appreciate. There is nothing original inside, but that doesn’t take away from its merits, it’s still a solid option.
