Ancient Island Megaways

Theme and graphics

Imagine, if you will for a second, washing up on the shore of a deserted island. Your ship was wrecked far out at sea, and you have managed to survive. What about the rest of the crew onboard? You’ll have to wait and see. Until that time, there was an ancient island that needed exploring. Who knows what awaits on such untouched lands? There will doubtless be treasures for you to find!

That’s the theme that I get from playing Ancient Island Megaways, which Pragmatic Play executes perfectly. The island in question can be seen in the background, as can the seashore. Meanwhile, in the foreground, you can see stone carvings and an ancient building surrounding the reels. It is upon those reels that you will see some wonderful symbols, too. The developer bolsters the theme even more with its tropical, tribal-sounding music, leading to a fulfilling experience spinning the reels.

Gameplay and features

The design of this online casino slot is very much in keeping with games that utilise Megaways for wins. By that, I mean that it includes six reels, and each of those reels can feature up to seven symbols per spin. The number of symbols dictates how many ways to win there are per spin, too. You’ll see the number of winning ways displayed in the top-left corner of the screen.

To contribute to a win, symbols need to land on adjacent reels, starting from the leftmost one and proceeding to the right. At least three identical symbols need to be included in a combination for it to count as a winning one.

The symbols that appear on those reels are all very thematic, feeding into the island/tribal/ancient civilisation idea. Lower-paying symbols are those of playing cards, while the higher-paying symbols are of various masks.

Make sure you also keep an eye out for the appearance of the wild symbol. This one can land on reels 2, 3, 4 and 5 only. If it does show up, it will substitute for all the other basic symbols included in Ancient Island Megaways, helping with creating wins.

There is also the addition of the scatter symbol, represented by the green gemstone set in stone. Scatters can land on any of the slot’s reels. It is also this one that can activate the free spins round – more on this later.

Something else I want to make you aware of (especially as it’s one of my favourite features of the game) is the tumbling reels. When you create a win, the symbols included in the combination disappear and leave spaces. New symbols tumble from the top, giving more chances for forming extra wins. This process continues repeating itself until no further wins can be created.

My experience playing Ancient Island Megaways by Pragmatic Play

I must say that my time playing Ancient Island Megaways was truly enjoyable. The game has plenty to offer to players, starting with its inviting graphics and base theme. Pragmatic Play always puts its all into creating high-quality slots, and this release falls into that category. As I spun the reels, I found myself captivated by the graphics, which led me to continue playing and as wins started hitting, I became even more engrossed.

Things pick up when the tumbling reels come into effect, and even more so when free spins become active. There’s also more for the wild symbol to do, and the horizontal reel running along the top of the standard reels introduces its perks, too. Ancient Island Megaways may look busy at first on your screen, but believe me, it’s thoroughly entertaining.

Bonus rounds and free spins

The Megaways and tumbles features of this game are fantastic additions, I must admit. It’s the wild and top modifiers that bring even more to it, in my opinion, though. Whenever a wild lands, it expands to fill the whole reel. On the horizontal reel at the top of the game screen, different modifiers can spin into view. If the wild expands over a reel featuring a modifier symbol above it, this becomes active.

The possible modifiers available in Ancient Island Megaways are:

• Cash Prize – An award of up to 100x your base bet.

• Multiplier – Applies a random multiplier of up to 50x to all winning combinations on the spin.

• Max Ways – Increases the number of symbols on all reels to the maximum.

• Replace Non-Winning Symbols – Any non-winning symbols on the spin are replaced with other random symbols.

• Extra Wild Reel – A fully expanded wild reel appears on reel 2, 3, 4 or 5.

The other addition to the slot is the free spins round, which activates whenever four or more scatters land anywhere. Up to 16 free spins are awarded to you, and during the feature, all positions on the horizontal reel are guaranteed to be filled with a random modifier on every spin. An extra modifier, Extra Spins, is also possible in the round. If it lands, you receive a random amount of up to 10 more free spins to your total.

You don’t have to wait for this feature to trigger naturally, either. Pragmatic has been…well, pragmatic, and included a Buy Free Spins button. Pay 100x your base bet to instantly activate the round.

Payout potential and volatility

Having studied the official game documents of the Ancient Island Megaways slot, I have some insightful information to share with you. I think it’s great that the game comes with an RTP rate of 96.55%. This is wonderfully above the 96% average associated with online video slot games. RTP tells you what you can expect to win back from playing an online slot, with the percentage worked out over an extended timeframe.

Some other information you can use to assist with placing bets on the slot is the maximum win possible. In this Pragmatic Play slot, you can win up to 10,000x your bet. That’s double what is considered the average for video slots, so there’s plenty to potentially look forward to in this respect. Finally, Ancient Island Megaways operates as a high volatility game. This means the game pays out less often in general, but there is a greater chance of triggering bigger wins.

Look below and find out what other popular Pragmatic Play slots look like in comparison to this one:

Game	Volatility	RTP	Max Win
Ancient Island Megaways	High	96.55%	10,000x
Wolf Gold	Medium	96.01%	2,500x
The Dog House Megaways	High	95.53%	12,305x
Wild Wild Pearls	High	96.46%	5,000x

Playing Ancient Island Megaways on mobile

You also have the option of playing Ancient Island Megaways via a mobile device. As a fan of this type of gaming myself, I’m always happy to see a mobile-compatible slot machine appear online. Fortunately, because this game is by Pragmatic Play, it does the mobile version perfectly, maintaining the high level of graphics and gameplay. Plus, because the slot is very scalable, it is available this way on Android and iOS handsets.

When I played on my Samsung Galaxy Android device, I found Ancient Island Megaways to be just as entertaining. All the inbuilt features stand out in the same way; the game adheres to the dimensions of your screen, and everything runs smoothly. To make this variation of gameplay easier and more convenient, some online casinos may also provide a downloadable mobile app for you to use.

Play responsibly

Your entertainment should be the primary focus when playing online slot titles. If you’re not having fun, then you need to re-evaluate your activity. To remain in control of your gambling habits, try setting yourself a deposit limit and betting limits on the games you play. Always record how long you’re playing the slots for, too.

If there comes a time when you are experiencing difficulties with controlling this, then you can turn to certain resources for help. Three of the best are listed below to access:

• International Center for Responsible Gambling

• GamCare

• Gamblers Anonymous

Final verdict on the Ancient Island Megaways game

If you like playing online slots that transport you to desert islands filled with ancient relics and memorabilia of a long-lost civilisation, Ancient Island Megaways is the game for you. Its theme is executed perfectly, and the technical details of the slot serve you well. This includes both the RTP rate and the maximum win potential. You’ll also likely enjoy the slot's built-in special features.

The high volatility may make some people think twice about playing it, but this is something easy to counteract. Just be sure to place responsible bets that don’t take away from your balance too much, and remember – always have fun!