
CASINO REVIEW
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Power of Thor Megaways is an amalgamation of ideas from various suppliers, together with what seems to be a new feature. Pragmatic Play has certainly unleashed itself with this Nordic mythology-themed epic!
Review by Arram Bekarian.
CASINO REVIEW
50 Free Spins on Book of Dead
€1,000
+ 100 Free Spins
50 Free Spins on Book of Dead
CASINO REVIEW
100% up to €200 + 100 Spins
Up to €200
+ 100 Spins
100% up to €200 + 100 Spins
Power of Thor Megaways from Pragmatic Play is an epic rendition of the Megaways brand. Thor’s thundering Hammer Mjölnir smashes wilds down into the reels, in the hope of creating Godlike wins. Set in an original Megaways format with up to 117,469 ways to win amidst the serene mountain landscapes of Midgard in the base game, we are moved to Muspelheim, the world of fire, as the heat builds up in the free games.
Read on for the full review.
SLOT FEATURES | Free Games, Increasing Multipliers, Buy Bonus* |
---|---|
RELEASE DATE | 1st April 2021 |
GAME PROVIDER | Pragmatic Play |
SLOT TYPE | Video Slot |
THEME | Nordic Lore |
REELS, ROWS, PAYLINES | 6 reels, up to 7 rows, up to 117,649 ways |
BET LEVELS | 0.20/100 |
MAXIMUM WIN | x5000 |
SCATTER SYMBOL | Yes – T.H.O.R. Letters |
WILD SYMBOL | Yes – LOGO |
BONUS GAME | No |
FREE SPINS | Yes |
RESPINS | No |
MULTIPLIERS | Yes |
JACKPOT | No |
RETURN TO PLAYER | 96.55% |
VOLATILITY | Very High |
When the Hammer lands in full view in the horizontal reel above the main reels, all symbols on the reels beneath are changed to wilds. If Thor’s Hammer lands during the free games (and depending on where it lands), it moves to its left and repeats the process on the next tumble, after wins from the added wilds are calculated.
Win 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, or 30 free games for 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 Scatters respectively. During the free games, each tumble increases the win multiplier by 1. Any 3 scatters in a single spin award four additional free spins.
Gameplay is tight and well-choreographed. Power of Thor Megaways has a nice, snappy reel-spin with no delays; a solid math model built on a winning formula; intuitive features and a few surprises. Typically, Pragmatic Play scores low in the originality department and, with the Megaways brand and mechanic licensed from BTG, as well as elements of Blueprint games, this game seems to fit that bill. All except the Thor’s Hammer feature. This feature is not only unique, but it also compliments the Megaways mechanic extremely well. Congratulations, Pragmatic!
In this slot, as with all Megaways games from Bonanza until now, the feature hit rate is steep. Be prepared to sit for the long haul if you’re hoping to see either of the game’s features. Having said that, you can use the Buy Bonus feature at a cost of 100x your bet in jurisdictions that allow it.*
*Not available in the UK.
Akin to many games from Blueprint, the free games feature includes a double-up style free game builder where you can risk the initial number of free games you’re awarded for more (up to 22 free games). There is one caveat, though… “Gambling can result in no free spins”. Yes, unfortunately it is possible to win zero spins (as there is no safety net), so tread carefully. This is the case for naturally triggered features as well as bought ones and, for a 100x purchase, it’s quite nasty to have your purchase forfeited.
For those willing to take the chance, in this and any other game where there is an increasing win multiplier, additional free games and retriggers become more valuable than in a game with only a static multiplier. Additional free games utilise the compounded win multiplier built up in the previous free games, whereas other games merely add more rounds to play out.
Although Pragmatic had not published its hit rates when this review was written, the game feels very similar to Bonanza.
Both the increasing free game win multiplier and Thor’s Hammer features are, individually, incredibly hungry features. When coupled together, they consume a considerable amount of RTP. For the purposes of comparison, Bonanza’s feature hit rate was pushed to 1 in approximately 450 to afford the increasing win multiplier, which is already quite high. Whereas Power of Thor Megaways has the added awesomeness of the Thor’s Hammer feature to consider.
To make it come together, Pragmatic has shaved Bonanza’s paytable a little to afford the Thor’s Hammer feature. In each prize set, one or two prizes have been adjusted down from Bonanza. In comparison, Thor has 73% of prizes at bet or less, while Bonanza has 68%. In saying this, as most wins are coinciding and its variable ways muddles individual wins, the reduced paytable is hardly noticeable.
I am confident Pragmatic intended it to occur more frequently but the opportunity cost to the paytable would have been too great.
Definitely not a game for the feint-hearted, Power of Thor Megaways is intended for the avid player looking for a serious play experience.
The music and fx are as epic as one would expect from a volatile, Nordic-themed game. However, the ambient music is extremely loud and overpowers all game sounds. In fact, it is so loud that playability is reduced. You can mute the ambient music (which leaves only the game sounds) and this helps in the base game but, unfortunately, it also mutes the feature music, leaving the experience somewhat empty. Overwhelming ambient audio seems to be a common trait of Pragmatic Play games.
The background effects include some wildlife such as birds, crickets and a fly of all things. Not sure how the fly buzzing around is meant to immerse players when flies by nature are annoying.
This game does not have a glory spin. Big wins occur frequently as the free game multiplier builds up. Sure, the game states a max win of 5,000x but, as the free games feature can retrigger and the unlimited win multiplier is theoretically infinite, the max win is capped to contain the game’s exposure to £500,000 and that is ultimately determined by the max bet of £100. The game ends the round if this value is reached, and any remaining free games are also forfeit.
Wow, what a game! The game itself is a surprise from Pragmatic Play. It has stunning visuals, solid gameplay, lots of high paced action, and a few encouraging remarks from Thor himself. Aside from a few little shortcomings, there’s little to fault in this game. Although the feature hit rate is inherently high, players have come to expect a little pain from any Megaways game. Pragmatic may have even put the thinking cap on and come up with a new feature that actually stands out. Lots of fun to play.
Power of Thor Megaways gets 78 Spins out of 100 based on the following ratings:
PLAYABILITY | 90 |
ORIGINALITY | 50 |
BUILD QUALITY | 90 |
MARRIAGE | 95 |
IMMERSION | 80 |
RUN FOR MONEY | 60 |
INTEGRITY | 80 |
TOTAL | 78 |
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