Buddha Megaways: Slot Overview
Some players might be wary of mixing religion with gambling, but for others who aren't fussed, here is Buddha Megaways from online slots provider Booongo. Then again, it has been argued that Buddhism isn't a religion at all due to its investigative, practical approach. Whatever it may be, one thing we do know is Booongo has a soft spot for Asian themed slots, as attested by the number of past releases. Buddha Megaways then provides the studio with the chance to channel that energy into a slot powered by Big Time Gaming's popular Megaways game engine.
They might have channelled a bit harder was our first thought when Buddha Megaways hit the screen. A tasteful green patterned wall makes up the background, behind a 6-reel game panel covered in symbols which have essentially been taken from a previous Booongo game called Buddha Fortune. That game was a regular hold-and-win type thing, and Buddha Megaways isn't much more inventive, relying on the sorts of features that have been used many times before. Basically, if you want originality, you'll be hard-pressed to find much of it here.
Exploring the ways of the Buddha, sort of, is possible on any device, where bets vary from 20 p/c to $/€20 per spin. Brace for a highly volatile game, where RTP comes in at 95.58%, and wins hit when at least three matching symbols land left to right from the first reel. Wins trigger a cascade feature which removes the winning combination, allowing new symbols to drop into the vacated positions. This process repeats, ending when no new win appears.
As mentioned, the pay symbols are mostly repeats with slight graphical upgrades. On the low side are 9-A card icons worth 0.5-1x the bet for six of kind. High pays include fish, an unidentified creature, birds, and lions. Premiums pay 2 to 10 times the stake when a six of a kind combination hits. This leaves a smiling Buddha as the wild, appearing on reels 2, 3, or 4 to substitute all symbols except the scatter.
Buddha Megaways: Slot Features
Basic is one way of describing Buddha Megaways' list of features which focuses on free spins with a progressive multiplier. In addition, the game has a free spins gamble feature, and a bonus buy option.
Landing 3, 4, 5, or 6 scatter symbols in the base game awards 10, 15, 20, or 25 free spins, respectively. Free spins start with an x1 multiplier, increasing by +1 following each cascading win. Should 3 scatters hit during the feature, +5 additional free spins are awarded. Theoretically, there is no limit to the number of free spins awarded or the value of the win multipliers.
Before free spins begin, however, players have the option of gambling them. Clicking the gamble button spins a wheel which will either grant extra free spins if it lands in a winning segment on the wheel or lose them all and send you back to the base game.
Patience might be encouraged in Buddhism, but if it's running in short supply while playing Buddha Megaways, a buy bonus function has been added. Where available, players can dish out 100x their stake to trigger the bonus round on the next spin.
Buddha Megaways: Slot Verdict
After Aztec Pyramid Megaways and now Buddha Megaways, we get the impression world domination is not at the top of Booongo's to-do list. It just doesn't feel like a huge amount of imagination went into making either game. The symbols here have been rehashed from another slot, the rest of the visuals are minimal, and the gameplay revolves around features that come with Megaways practically by default. There is nothing new to see or experience. Booongo's first foray into the Megaways sphere was Aztec Pyramid Megaways, a plain-looking, plain playing entry with a bunch of stock features. Buddha Megaways is even more so, and while there might be a segment of the market keen to play anything remotely related to Asia, few outside this fraternity are likely to have much desire to even look in Buddha Megaways' direction, let alone play it.
Critiquing the gameplay is a little difficult since the combination of cascades, free spins, and progressive multiplier is such a proven formula. However, it's so common, Megaways players can get this sort of fix in an almost infinite number of other games - more exciting games, where providers have bothered to add bits, like say, crafting original symbols or getting wild with features. There's none of that going on here. It's as if Booongo hasn't realised they are able to add their own unique touches to the Megaways template. The advertised potential isn't bad though if you were wondering, clocking in at 12,000x the bet, such is the power of the unlimited win multiplier. Anyway, enough, let's wrap it up.
Simply put, Buddha Megaways failed to make much of an impression. It's kind of hard to if a developer is going to stick to a standard set of features and averagely present them, though the Buddha angle is somewhat uncommon. Booongo were relatively late to the Megaways party already, and if they want their games to make any sort of impact, they're going to have to try harder than this.
Ultimately, the only saving grace Buddha Megaways has is that it's a Megaways game.
