By Peter Scotch
Microgaming is a well-known online casino software provider that has in the last decade created hundreds of original slots. Amongst the many slots, Microgaming has also released a number of very entertaining film, television, comic book and pc gaming slots to add to each brand's franchise. Boasting cutting edge graphics and sounds, and a variety of winning possibilities, Microgaming's video slots are a worthy addition to each respective franchise. If you happen to be a fan of the reviewed games included in here, this is the perfect opportunity to add this game to your already existing trademark catalogue. Because the software is identical with all Microgaming casino clients, it is up to you to pick the casino you think is enjoyable most.
This article looks at and reviews Microgaming's best and most played multi-franchise slots. In these game reviews you will be able to learn everything there is to know about each slot including the look & feel, winning opportunities, background, and the reasons why these slots are considered as some of the best forged online casino games the internet has ever seen. We hope that after reading this article you will be ready to tackle each slot as if having played the game for years. (Even though slots are largely games given to chance, there are a number of important elements that you should know before you play any game. Free spins, bonus screens and multi-paylines are some such elements each player should definitely recognize when playing any video slot game at Microgaming).
Hellboy Video Slot
Based on artist's Mike Mignola's creation, and made possible by Dark Horse Comics, Hellboy now makes its slot appearance on computer screens around the world with 5 reels and 20 paylines. This game features the already well known Super Mode with 3 Held Wilds which are randomly triggered at any time within the game's gameplay.
Background
The story of Hellboy begins during the final months of World War 2 when Nazis summon the creature in the project Ragna Rock. Hellboy appears as a fireball and proves to be a well-intentioned creature, although his looks are that of a typical malevolent demon or devil-like being: the creature is red skinned, bears horns that he files down to seem more human and wields a massive right hand made of red stone.
Hellboy is then taken to the US and raised by the army where becomes a combatant of occult threats. Here is where the Hellboy slot picks up the story, much like the Hollywood rendition.
Gameplay and characters
Other characters that will be spooling on your screen include Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, Abe Sapien, Liz Sherman and Johann Krause. The Hellboy character acts as the Wild, substituting for all other symbols and multiplying all wins by 2. The character's enormous clenching right fist (made possible by some of Microgaming's best to date animation) acts as the Scatter symbol, which triggers the enormously profitable Underworld Bonus. This bonus feature can be triggered by 3, 4 or 5 clenched fist symbols and contains four levels. Here the player needs to do everything possible to avoid the blocked underworld tunnels and try find other team members whilst encountering a number of garish beasts along the way.
Once having completed all four levels, the player will arrive at the Chamber of Fire to get the additional Relic of Power award. The Underworld Bonus can also be triggered during Super Mode which itself is triggered randomly at any time during the game.
Players can also choose to engage the gamble feature by guessing whether the next card is red or black (50/50 odds) to double a previous win; choosing both color and suit will quadruple winnings instantaneously. This feature can prove to be extremely lucrative, but also disparaging for players who choose to gamble large wins. Bonus level wins can also be gambled.
Betting ranges for this particular game run form 0.01 coins to 0.25 coins. The maximum bet is at 50.00 which can win the player up to 25 000.00 in the base game and the free spins feature and 8400.00 on bonus screens.
Look and Feel
Although the look and feel is largely that of the comic book, rather than the depicted film, there is no other way this slot could be fashioned to look any better. The graphics are slick and the bonus screens take you straight to the pages of the popular comic book - but this time it's even better as the characters move about your screen flawlessly, aided by some great action music which will have you right on the edge of your seat.
Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword Video Slots
The Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword duo are some of Microgaming's best known slots releases released in the years 2006 and 2008 respectively, and both portray well known character: the voluptuous Lara Croft.
Tomb Raider
The first of these two slots came to be one of the software provider's most played games, appealing to almost all player demographics and mostly to those who enjoy computer gaming. But once the game was translated from the gaming world to this of film, Lara Croft (with the aid of the beautiful Angelina Jolie) became a character adored not only by computer gaming males, or computer nerds, but also action fanatics of all walks of life.
This particular game is set in the heart of Asia's jungles and promotes a treasure theme on 15 paylines and 5 reels. The game includes a second screen bonus game and a free spins feature. Players can make a maximum wager of 75.00 coins per spin. Look out for 3, 4 or 5 relic (golden idol) scatter symbols which will trigger the Tomb Bonus.
On the other hand the Tomb Raider logo will act as the wild symbol and will substitute and double all symbols except the scatter symbol discussed above.
Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword
The more exciting and newer rendition of the two reveals Lara Croft's adventures in search of The Secret of the Sword. This game is a true wonder when it comes to action packed slots gaming and is known as one of the most loved animated slots the internet has ever hosted.
Background
Lara Croft is a character created by Square Enix, a Japanese video game publishing company also known for other franchises like the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest series. Lara Croft is a British archeologist who gets involved in a farrago of adventures, much like her male counterpart Indiana Jones. She is an athletic woman and is known by her signature tank top and large bust.
Croft was born and raised as an aristocrat to her father Lord Richard Croft. In the story, Lara witnesses her mother vanish after tempering with an ancient sword. When her father disappears in search for his wife, our video slot adventure for the Secret of the Sword begins.
Gameplay and characters
Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword is a 5 reel, 30 payline video slot. The game contains the randomly triggered Super Mode where you will get awarded with 5 Free Spins on which Lara appears to alter random symbols to wilds. When the scatter key symbol appears on 3, 4 or 5 positions on the reels, 10 Free Spins are awarded which in turn contain the Rolling Reels feature. This feature will have all winning combinations explode and allow the symbols above them to fall into place to complete further winning combinations - the multiplier will be increased up to 5 X with each passed win should that happen.
The game also features the treasure hunt Global Adventure Bonus. Here Lara searches across the globe to find the lost sword - this bonus round is the most lucrative of all in the game, so make sure to find the passport symbol in the middle payline of the screen and across all five reels. Once the symbol has landed in the center of the wheel, the game will reminisce the reel which it has landed on and after all five have been triggered so will the Global Bonus Round. This feature may take some time to activate but is completely worth the wait.
The highly interactive Shootout Bonus round requires players to choose the right disk to win even further prizes.
Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword gives away multipliers of up to 450 times the bet. Wagering is available in the range of 0.01 coins to 60.00 coins per spin.
Look and Feel
Tomb Raider - Secret of the Sword definitely boasts some of the better graphics people can enjoy on the internet. The animations are flawless and exciting to look at, whilst the sound is completely complimentary to the proposed theme of the slot. In general, this game has it all and is perfect for all those already acquainted with the Tomb Raider franchise.
The Lord of the Rings Progressive Video Slot
In 2010 Warner Brothers and Microgaming began its foray into Middle Earth by releasing the first of three video slots, but quickly changed its release plans to create just one updated version in 2011. The Lord of the Rings Video Slot is one of Microgaming's most advanced slots offering players the 243 Ways to Win gaming feature and Progressive Jackpot addition.
Background
First conceived by JRR Tolkien, and later adapted for the big screen by Peter Jackson and Warner Brothers, The Lord of the Rings is today considered one of the greatest fantasy stories ever told.
We follow the journeys of Frodo Baggins and his fellowship on the quest to destroy the evil Ring deep in the pits of Mordor and Mount Doom where the evil master Sauron and his orcs dwell.
Gameplay and characters
The game includes some of the most well known characters depicted in Peter Jackson's films: Frodo, Aragorn, Legolas, Elrond, Suruman, Bilbo and Arwen are just some of the characters players will see spinning thrillingly on their screens. The most important symbol is the The Lord of the Rings logo, which acts as the wild symbol and substitutes for all symbols along the reels.
Another added element to the game is the character of Gollum who can appear sporadically to award a number of prizes and extra features. The second element of importance to you is the The Ring symbol which acts as the scatter. 3 or more of these symbols and the game will launch the bonus Free Spins round with up to 15 free spins for the player. During this round Gollum can appear out of nowhere to reward the player with extra free spins, increase the multiplier and award other out-of-the-hat prizes.
Progressive Jackpot
The Lord of the Rings now boasts 4 progressive jackpots. Progressive jackpots are jackpots that are accumulated over all Microgaming casinos, over 100 of them. This allows the jackpots to be meatier than any other winnings possible in online casino gaming.
This particular jackpot is tiered into 4 levels: The Bronze Progressive jackpot starting at 10.00, the silver Progressive jackpot starting at 100.00, the Gold Progressive jackpot starting at 10 000.00, and the Mithril Progressive jackpot starting at a whopping 1 000 000.00.
The trick here is to bet the highest amount of coins and lines in order to have a chance at winning the millions. This slot is sure to amount jackpots of a few million and will, as all other progressive jackpot online today, sooner or later be won.
Look and Feel
The Lord of the Rings is probably the most visually active video slot at Microgaming . The game boasts the much talked about Cinematic Spins which are essentially some of the film's best scenes taken across to the newly made video slot. If you happen to be an avid Lord of the Rings fan, this slot will definitely have you go watch the movies again, which means that you have to arm yourself with a lot of time. The music is as chilling as in the theater and the bonus screens are out of this world and a pleasure to look at.
Hitman
Hitman is another video slots that was adapted from the original pc game, which later in 2007, the year of the development of the video slot, was also released as a big budged Hollywood film starring Timothy Olyphant. The highly intense assassin theme allows players to experience and interact with a real thriller of a video slot, and with some of the best computer video slot animation, action bonus screens, free spins and whizzing sound bites, this game is yet another stalwart available at Microgaming's lobbies.
Background
The idea for the Hitman series was first developed in the year 2000 by Danish computer gaming company IO Interactive, currently owned by Square Enix and is largely known just for its Hitman and Kane & Lynch series of games. IO interactive developed the character of Agent 47 who quickly became well known with most pc gaming fanatics of the stealth gaming genre.
Agent 47, an assassin for hire, is known as the most flawless of killers and is hired by the elite around the world to pull of important 'jobs'. He is created from a combination of DNA from the world's most dangerous criminals, making him a force to be reckoned with. His name, Agent 47, comes from the last two digits of a barcode found on the back of his head - 640509-040147. Your mission is to guide the the killing machine Agent 47 through the many hidden bonus rounds within the game.
Gameplay and characters
Hitman is a 5 reel 15 payline video slot containing multi levels of bonus rounds and extra features. The game also contains the exciting 3 reel expanding Wild feature which animates the entire wheel that the Wild lands on.
Wins will be doubled by the aid of the 18 Free Spins symbol. 3 Insignias will trigger the explosive on-screen bonus, whilst the Contract bonus will require you to select and assassinate one of 5 targets. Here you will also have to choose the means by which you will fulfill the task: guns, sniper, syringe of poison, knife, or the assassin's favorite - the choke.
Players can bet from 0.01 coins to 75.00. The winnings can be as high as 20 000.00 in the base game and 40 000.00 during the free spins round. Other on-screen bonus possibilities can add another 1 500.00 and the off-screen bonus can get as high as 67 500.00.
Look and Feel
Hitman is an unfaltering game that is simple to master. The animations and ease of spins by the reels make this game quite sensational to say the least. The sound in the game are admiring as they make for the perfect thriller video slot currently spinning across Microgaming casinos on computer screens around the world. This game is perfect for males in their twenties, thirties and forties, although everybody should be able to enjoy the graphics and sounds unreservedly.
We hope that you have found our reviews helpful in your search in finding some of the best movie, comic book and pc game video slots on the internet. Remember to find the casino that corresponds to your personal tastes - and remember when to stop gambling.
About the Author:
Film, Comic Book & PC Game Themed
Slots at Microgaming