The world of slots is changing rapidly. Games publishers and designers are having to come up with some new ideas and fresh takes on video slot machines, and industry leader Microgaming has taken some of the biggest leaps forward in the last few years.
They have begun to team up with games developers to design and craft more in-depth and characterful games that bring story and structure to online video slots. No longer are these machines simply reels of spinning fruit to match and win; now, video slots have a narrative and a setting, and a protagonist.
Its isn’t unusual for video slots to have a theme, or even a character. Games like that have been around for decades, but it didn’t involve much more than a look or a brand, and underneath it was still simply a slot machine.
In this game there is a protagonist, with a story, and a mission. Aurora beast hunter where Aurora is a best hunter that needs your help in this 1990s action movie-themed game to hunt and kill wild beasts run amok. This is about more than match three and win.
Underpinning this story of a young beast hunter is a five-reel video slot that is filled with action, bonuses and features, as well as the lovely Aurora herself who causes her own brand of mischief while you play.
There are four types of wild symbols on the reels, keeping you on your toes, as well as ‘Treasure Tick’ symbols on reels 1, 3 and 5. All these symbols combine to act as wilds that substitute for any other symbol to increase your chances of winning. Any other symbol except scatters that is.
The Scatter symbols unlock free spins. Match three and you will open the free spins feature, match just to and you get a scatter re-spin.
This game showers you in free spins, and if you are lucky, these can lead you to some top payouts. There are three different kinds of free spins called Sub, Sandstorm and Danger Zone. These effectively are spins with a different level of volatility. Sandstorm gives you 12 spins, for instance, but its biggest jackpot is only 2000x your initial stake. Sub offers just five spins, but the maximum payout is 5000x your stake.
Aurora Beast Hunter is a sign of the changes that are coming to the gaming industry. New generations of players need to start filling up casinos, both off and online, and younger generations have different tastes and expectations of gaming.
Slot machines can no longer simply be reels of spinning fruit, and need to offer players more story and structure than some players may be used to. With decades of video game playing experience, younger players need quests or challenges to keep them interested, allied with a good narrative and a strong character to help tie it all together. Microgaming are clearly setting a high bar for their competitors with this offering. Expect Aurora to be popular with gamers, and more slots like this to follow.