By iSoftbet
RTP 95.96%
Min bet $0.20
Max bet $20
Max Win bet x 2000
Popularity Medium
Min bet $0.20
Max bet $20
Max Win bet x 2000
Gamble Feature Sticky wins, Freespins, Expanding reels, Wilds, Random wilds
Layout 5x3
Devices Support all devices
Configurable Winlines No
Volatility High
Progressive Jackpot No
Merlin the magician was brought into a world of magic mirrors to figure out ways to boost your chances for big win outcomes, and a unique gaming experience.
The premise of Merlin’s Magic Mirror puts you in the company of features that have deemed this game somewhat legendary. I remember seeing this title as available across multiple online casinos from the moment it was released.
Fast-forward to one year later and Merlin’s Magic Mirror still rocks with its decent graphic design and an impeccable mechanic. Part of the whole are the free spins bonus and random acts of ‘magic’, i.e. features that include symbol conversions, random cash prizes and sticky respins.
iSoftBet – its production company, equipped the layout with three rows, five reels and 20 paylines, which in my opinion, is a perfect setup for the features I mentioned above.
The cherry on the top is the game’s payout potential of 2,000x your bet and a high variance that can enable long streaks of feature-tinged winning outcomes. This is where the big-win potential lies
The action takes place inside a cave of pink and purple crystals – fitting for the set of symbols that are encased in crystalline structures. Every symbol springs to life when it is part of a winning payline by way of Merlin’s powerful electric current.
I like the artwork. There is no doubt that every drawing resonates well with the premise, especially when visual effects take hold of the high-paying symbols of the grimoire, owl, vial and Merlin.
The soundtrack is worth mentioning too. If your aspirations towards magic require an edifying ambience, then having the sound on definitely puts you in the mood for what Merlin can do on the reel set.
Merlin’s Magic Mirrors has two special symbols (Bonus/Scatter and Wild), but most of the extra features materialize through random acts of magic.
I like the fact that the gameplay isn’t only about the free spins bonus. Although hugely important to improving your odds for a killer win, the free spins have their near-mirror image in the base game, in the form of respins.
This is a huge plus to avoiding the long-ish draughts that can be typical for high volatility games. In other words, plenty can go on both in the base game and in the free spins bonus.
You need three scatter symbols anywhere on the screen to trigger 10 free rounds. The game gives you a fighting start because the feature starts with three locked mirrors.
Additional scatters that may land on the reels become sticky mirrors. These have the function of materializing an aggregate cash prize or converting it into matching symbols. It can be either-or, but both outcomes can shake out an exciting end-result from that spin.
This is probably my favourite feature because it is part of the base game.
A stack of matching symbols landing on reel one triggers a respin. In the event, the game picks a random symbol and locks into place all instances appearing on the reel set. This is followed by a respin.
If you get a winning outcome with additional matching symbols, Merlin awards you another respin. As you can see, the respins can continue until, potentially, the game decides to canvass the entire reel set in one symbol of the same kind.
Basically, this is a random conversion of a random number of symbols into Wilds. The only caveat is that it can’t happen from a respin, but it is a nice way to render a non-winning spin into a near-certain win.
This feature is another way of getting a second chance and a possible big win. How so? Any losing spin can result in a random number of matching symbols laid out across the reel set.
In my experience, this feature has the same potential as the random Wilds – with the exception that you can get a great number of symbols from it.
I’ve played Merlin’s Magic Mirror multiple times and what I get from it is that the high variance is not in the red zone – which is a good thing in my view.
The machine that’s combing through the odds in the background tends to have a reasonable consistency with the winning outcome. Playing doesn’t feel like you’re bleeding coins without a feature in sight – something that experienced players have recognized.
In terms of the payout structure, Merlin’s Magic Mirror doesn’t stand apart from the majority of online slots.
You can get the standard low payouts for the better half of the low-paying symbols category. Landing three matching picture symbols can pay back your full bet or more.
The last detail is a plus because respins and symbol conversions consisting of high-paying symbols can amount to a decent payout.
The symbol values are coins multiplied by the payline bet:
Bonus type: No Deposit, Low Wagering, Free Play, Sign Up, Free Money, Welcome Bonus, Registration
Min Deposit: No Deposit
Bonus type: Coupon, Code, Welcome Bonus, Registration, Sign Up, Deposit Bonus, First Deposit Bonus
Min Deposit: $10
Wagering: 60x
iSoftBet has created a timeless game and I don’t see slot players giving up on it in the near future. The reasons for it are in the writing – it’s a fine, well-rounded online slot in all respects. Perhaps high variance thrill-seekers will think ‘meh’ about the 2,000x your bet payout potential, but I say bring on the magic mirrors.
