Deep Sea Frenzy

Deep Sea Frenzy: Slot Overview

Pragmatic Play is no stranger to the seven seas, but this time it has left the krakens and bass behind to focus on one of the most feared denizens of the deep: sharks. These sharp-toothed beasties appear in Deep Sea Frenzy, an online slot possessing a money symbol collection focus. That is a tad predictable given the studio's extensive experience with ocean-bound cash collection features in the past, yet Pragmatic Play has added a thrill-generator twist to the free spins round by making the money symbols themselves progressive. It's a bit different, and curious enough to encourage a closer look to see how Deep Sea Frenzy compares with its copious deep sea collector siblings.

With a name like Deep Sea Frenzy, there are no second guesses as to where the action is set. Yup, we're down at the bottom of the ocean where weeds flap in the currents, and fish dart about doing whatever fish do to fill their days. Sharks float by in the background, but even then, Deep Sea Frenzy has a very relaxing ambience, partly brought about by the fluttering colours, partly by a tune that would effortlessly fit on a relaxing, meditative-type album. At least, that's how it is in the base game. The free spins round is less laid-back, changing tracks from meditation to something more dramatically Jaws-inspired to better suit the progressive mechanic.

Deep Sea Frenzy is a medium volatile slot, played on a 5x4 gaming matrix. There are 50 paylines, awarding a payout when 3 or more matching symbols land from the leftmost reel onwards. With a max RTP of 96.52%, gamblers may stake $/€0.25 to $/€250 on each base game spin.

The list of pay symbols includes 9-A royals, a treasure chest, a boat, and three shark character symbols. A line of matching royals awards 1.6x to 3.2x the bet, or 4x to 8x for hitting a line of 5 matching high pays. Golden wild symbols appear on all reels bar the leftmost reel. Wilds substitute for all symbols except scatters.

Deep Sea Frenzy: Slot Features

The features to look out for are Money symbol collecting in the base game and free spins round, an ante bet, and a feature buy.

Money Symbols

Money symbols appear on all reels except the rightmost reel with a random value in the base game of 1x to 200x the bet. Collect symbols only hit on the rightmost reel. When 8 or more Money symbols land with 1 Collect symbol, the value of all Money symbols is awarded, and the free spins round is triggered. If the Collect symbol has a multiplier, that multiplier is applied before values are paid. If the Collect symbol has +1 Spin, an extra free spin is granted for the subsequent free spins round.

Free Spins

The round begins with 5 free spins or 6 if triggered by a +1 Spin Collect symbol. In free spins, Money symbol values are not random. They start at 1x on the first free spin and increase to 2x, 3x, 5x, 10x, 15x, 25x, 50x, 100x, 150x, 175x, and 200x in each consecutive free spin up to the 12th, remaining at 200x from then on. Whenever Money symbols hit with a Collect symbol, their values are paid. Multiplier Collect symbols multiply Money symbols, and +1 Spin symbols award an extra free spin.

Ante Bet & Feature Buy

Using the ante bet increases the stake by 60%. When the ante bet is active, free spins trigger with a Collect symbol and 7 or more Money symbols, making the chance of free spins 1.8x higher. When buying free spins, the cost is 170x the bet and players get 5, 6, 7, or 8 free spins determined by a card pick.

Deep Sea Frenzy: Slot Verdict

After going in raw, not reading the rules, and just seeing what might turn up, Deep Sea Frenzy reeled in a pretty disappointing catch. There were Money symbols, Collect symbols, the uzhe, nothing special. However, after actually browsing the paytable, the game's innovations were unearthed, and anticipation was actually built to see how bonus rounds might turn out. The base game in the meantime was nothing special, a placid pond with little ripples, until the requisite number of Money symbols and the all-important Collect symbol land to kick-start the motor.

Deep Sea Frenzy's main point of interest is, of course, the way its Money symbol values are progressive in the bonus phase. It completely flips the script. Instead of increasing a win multiplier or a multiplier for cash collection, aka Big Bass Bonanza, it puts the growing capabilities on the Money symbols themselves. The initial 5 (maybe 6) free spins might not be able to cut it, so landing +1 Spin symbols are extraordinarily sought after. Buying the round grants lucky players up to 8 free spins, which may make them a temptation, keeping in mind that even the most valuable Money symbols need a Collect in view to award their values. If that should be a multiplying Collect symbol, as well, then even greater frenzies may well commence.

So, what started as a pretty unexciting Money collect game actually turned out to be more finely tuned than first thought. With up to 16,000x the bet on the line, there is a load of loot to fish for, and the progressive Money symbol idea provides an intriguing twist to the normal collector formula, leading to an exciting sense of bonus round escalation. There might already be more than enough piscine-themed Money symbol games to create an ocean of their own, but Deep Sea Frenzy manages to squeeze out enough interest to make plumbing its shark-infested depths worth a closer look.