By Playn GO
RTP 95.78%
Min bet $0.01
Max bet $75
Max Win bet x 1756
Popularity Medium
Min bet $0.01
Max bet $75
Max Win bet x 1756
Gamble Feature Bonus game or special game, Multiplier wilds, Wilds, Scatter symbols, Volatility
Layout 5x3
Devices Desktop, Mobile
Configurable Winlines No
Volatility Medium
Progressive Jackpot No
The Samba Carnival is a spectacle – both the real thing and this online slot by Play’n GO. First impressions tend to last and I can say that I find Samba Carnival quite playable. I can’t say that the graphic design is overly dynamic but my overall experience from the game is positive.
Samba Carnival has three rows and five reels. The layout is quite standard but the payout system isn’t. The game has 15 paylines which don’t confine the winning outcomes to the “pays left to right” logic.
You can land three or more matching symbols for a win in the middle of the reel set and from right to left. In my experience, this brings an improvement to the payout rate and can shake out some fine winnings.
In addition to this, Samba Carnival reflects the vibe of the world-famous event with the help of the Wild symbol. Landing a winning outcome with the help of that symbol comes with a treat, and I’ll make a show of it in just a bit.
The game has landed me several decent winning streaks and can pay a decent total from a single bet in the pick-me bonus feature. The theoretical maximum payout is around 1,300x your bet – gorgeous, but a more realistic expectation is the bonus maximum of 150x your bet which is absolutely decent.
The premise of the game is in the title. The words Samba and Carnival resonate with a massive masquerade in Rio in all its flashy, glittery glory. The high-paying symbols reflect that vibe with their radiant hues of blue, green and purple.
Play’n GO has treated the graphic design to some animation, but nothing too serious. In this case, I like that. There are no cinematic cuts to delay the flow and this doesn’t make the gameplay any less entertaining.
My favourite part about the artistic end of the experience is the music. You can’t have a carnival without samba and there is plenty of that here. The upbeat tempo, wild drumming and the trumpets can lift you up. I settled to it quite alright and all I needed was one huge win to crown it all with a celebration.
This is the symbol I was most eager about seeing as part of a winning outcome. Simply said, this is the symbol that can make the best return on your bet outside the bonus game.
There is only one Wild symbol, but it comes with four different win-multiplier values. A value between 2x and 5x can grace any payline win or wins with one of the wilds.
As it can be expected, the 2x Wild appears on the reels with a greater frequency, followed by the 3x Wild. I’ve had only a few quad-multiplier wins and, sadly, none with the 5x Wild.
Nevertheless, the four iterations of the Wild symbol can have a great impact on your potential winning outcomes. Because the game lacks a free spins bonus, this is the next best thing and fulfills its role quite well.
The only bonus symbol is the three congas with the word Samba. You need to get three of these on the reel set to trigger a simple choosing bonus that can yield an instant cash prize between 2x and 150x your bet.
This isn’t an extra feature but I’ll just mention it anyway because it can contribute to your gaming experience. Basically, any winning outcome can be taken to the felt table and staked in a guessing game.
There are two modes – you can choose the correct card colour and double your winnings for each good guess or you can call the suit for a greater return. I tend to avoid the second option because the odds are slimmer.
I initially got into Samba Carnival because it isn’t expensive to play. You can stake a penny per payline and get a total bet between 1p and 15p as a minimum bet. To up the ante, you can use the Coins setting (between 1 and 5) to raise the value of the total bet.
In terms of the symbol payouts, I didn’t find the paytable particularly alarming, considering the Wild multipliers. Surely enough, the low-paying fruit symbols landing in threes pay a fraction of your bet, but any combination above three is actually quite decent.
I was quite surprised to find only eight standard symbols. In my experience, when there is a win-multiplier feature or something that can easily boost your winnings in the base game, the paytable consists of an array of symbols.
Samba Carnival has ‘only’ eight, so there is no clutter to take away from the odds of landing a win. Although you’ll hardly see more than three of a kind on a payline, the high-paying symbols can bring a pleasant surprise – especially if there is a Wild multiplier in the picture.
The symbol values are presented in credits, 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
My overall impression of Samba Carnival is positive, regardless of the fact it’s a simple game. The lack of a free spins bonus didn’t bother me because the Wild wins can contribute to the element of excitement and to the payouts.
My only caveat is that the 4x and 5x Wild multipliers aren’t too frequent The theoretical RTP, which is 95.78%, is slightly below the average but not overly bad.
Since the bets can be as little as pennies, I’d recommend anyone who is interested to try the game.
