Generous Jack

Generous Jack: Slot Overview

Casino game makers are, in some ways, a mirror of humanity. For one, some people are totally happy not rocking the boat, living each day as comfortably predictable as possible. Others, shoot, they've gotta be out there on the edge, doing something no one has even dreamed of before, climbing mountains just cos they're there, writing their names amongst the stars. We're certainly not judging here, by the way. However, one studio which leans towards the latter category is software provider Push Gaming. In Generous Jack, the studio once again leaves conformity behind as it engages in the sort of blue-sky thinking that leads to making the sort of games few are likely to have seen before.

Generous Jack elicited one of those 'is this a slot?' moments when it loaded, much the same way as Space Stacks did, which was another experimental Push Gaming slot released not long before this one. Generous Jack's location is open to a level of interpretation, but it came across as some sort of drinking establishment of yesteryear, as evidenced by the crowd noise and plinking piano in the background. It gives off strong Monopoly vibes and a sort of Roaring Twenties atmosphere. Visually, the action takes place on a grid made up of 4 rows, which from top to bottom, hold 6, 5, 4, and 3 positions. Restrained yet classy, Generous Jack lays in a cosily inviting environment for players to try their luck

A highly volatile gambling machine, step one before taking on Generous Jack is choosing a base bet from 1 p/c to $/€100 per paid game round. Next is picking how much of the game grid you would like to be active at the start of each base game spin. The entry-level option is having just the lowest 3-position reel active. Or, by increasing the stake via the Super Bet by 5x, 20x, or 50x, you can elect to have 2, 3, or 4 rows active at the start of each base game spin, respectively. With one active row, the default RTP model clocks in at 96.23%, rising to 96.45% for the 2, 3, or 4 active row option.

Hitting spin sets the reels in motion, landing Number Symbols (chips, essentially) displaying either bet multiplier values of 0-9, black dud symbols (which are worth nothing), or Jack symbols. The game uses what it calls a Win What You See method for awarding wins. Let's say in the active area, a 9 lands on the bottom row and a 1 lands on the second row. In this case, 10x the bet is awarded. However, if 9 and 1 land on the same row next to each other in this order, then 91x the bet is awarded. Should a dud land between the 9x and the 1x, then 10x is the prize.

Generous Jack: Slot Features

The Jack symbol also plays an important role. When one hits, it is collected on the free spins meter, and one inactive row is unlocked (if there are any locked rows on the board). When the new row is active, any Jack symbols on it are also collected, and a respin is awarded. Jack symbols collected on the newly activated row do not activate another row. For respins, Number Symbols are held in place while dud symbols are respun. A newly landed Jack symbol on a respin is collected, and another respin is awarded. When all respins have ended, a win evaluation takes place on the active rows. When the next spin starts, rows return to their original state.

Free Spins Meter

When Jack symbols are collected, they fill a random position on the free spins meter. A total of 3 free spins are awarded when 3 Jack symbols fill the first three positions on the meter. Filling the fourth, fifth and sixth portions awards 5, 7, or 10 free spins, respectively. When the respins have finished and the winnings are paid, the free spins round can begin. Jack symbols do not appear in free spins, only numbers and duds. All rows active when the feature is triggered remain active until the round ends.

Bonus Buy

If this is an option in your area of location, you can buy free spins for 150x the base bet, triggering a random number of 3-10 free spins. RTP for the bonus buy is 96.55%.

Generous Jack: Slot Verdict

Whether you love it or hate it or are simply ambivalent, hats off to Push Gaming for putting its thinking cap on to make something unique. One of the rationales behind Generous Jack's existence, in Push Gaming's own words, was to 'achieve a game that felt different and unique to stand out from the wider slot offering as well as our portfolio at Push Gaming.' This the studio has certainly achieved, and at first, it might be hard to know what to make of it; so different is Generous Jack from a regular online slot. It's worth dedicating a bit of time, if you are curious, to work out if Generous Jack is a right fit or not.

For the review, Generous Jack made a whole lot more sense after the first serious win hit the board. Till then, we'd mainly been picking up single Number Symbol wins here and there, playing around with the Super Bet and seeing what was what. The playthrough had been more positive than negative, to be sure, yet there was a feeling that perhaps Generous Jack might be perceived by some as a little on the gimmicky side. Then at some point, the aha moment occurred when 7, 9, 5, and 0 landed adjacent to each other on the top row, slinging out a 7,950x the base bet win, just like that. That was when the Generous Jack penny dropped, and its potential finally set in. Not only was there a solid return, but the game world kicked in harder after that as if we were at some swanky 1920s speakeasy, passing a few moments on a new-fangled Generous Jack device bolted to the wall.

Naturally, Generous Jack isn't going to drop circa 8k wins at the drop of a top hat. It's a game which can make you put in the work before seeing results. Especially when just one row is active, then it's fair to say there will probably be quite a lot of dead spins to wade through. However, Generous Jack also provides ample opportunities to open up the board with the Super Bet, should you so choose, and there's no doubting its ability to pour forth rewards when the going's good. Like Space Stacks, Generous Jack is a bit out there, but that's the point, really, and it should hit the spot for certain players looking for something rather unique.