King’s Mask

King's Mask: Slot Overview

Up alongside Zorro or Darth Vader, Tutankhamun's mask must be one of the most famous in history. It was discovered in 1925 in Howard Carter's famous dig and now sits in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where it dazzles onlookers thousands of years after it was made. Pretty nifty when you think about it, and according to software provider Play'n GO, the mask gives those who possess it the key to King Tut's riches. At least it does in their online slot; the Egyptian themed King's Mask, a straightforward slot that focuses on delivering multipliers and free spins.

King's Mask opens rather splendidly, displaying an indoor bathing area surrounded by columns, statues, a pyramidal structure, and stacks of gold coins just casually lying around. You only get a glimpse of the sumptuous scene, though, before the game grid pops on screen. It looks a bit like Eye of Atum in all its simplicity, but then again, a lot of these Egyptian slots from Play'n GO have a similar appearance, at times blending into one another. They are fairly attractive most of them, though, if a little dime a dozen, and a sultry Egyptian tune caps the experience off.

The gaming is held on a panel made up of 5-reels, 3-rows and 20 static paylines. All wins pay left to right except scatter wins and all pay symbols except the two most valuable and the least valuable need at least three to do so. These special three symbols payout for two of a kind for some reason. A medium volatile slot, King's Masks' return to player tops out at 96.28%, while players can select stakes from 20 p/c to $/€100 per spin.

Paytable time, and here we come across 11 regular symbols in total, split between 6 lower value 9-A royals, worth 5 to 6.25x the bet and five higher value tiles. Premiums consist of five recognisable symbols of Ancient Egypt, paying 12.5 to 37.5 times the stake for five of a kind - decent values, which can be boosted by two different multiplying elements.

King's Mask: Slot Features

There might not be a long list of features in King's Mask, but they are the kind that can deliver a solid gut punch if and when they ignite. Instrumental in creating King's Mask's exciting moments is the wild symbol, which lands on any reel. Wilds not only substitute for any normal pay symbols but they are also worth up to 500x the bet for a line of five. What's more is that, when wilds are used in a payline, they multiply it by x2.

Free Spins

Another pyramidal shape you'll want to see in King's Mask is the game's scatter symbol. This one also lands in any reel, and when 3, 4, or 5 are in view, players collect 5x, 20x, or 100x their bet, plus access to free spins. Once the bonus round has been activated, there are three options to choose from. These are 15 free spins with an x3 win multiplier, 10 free spins with an x5 multiplier, or 5 free spins with an x10 win multiplier.

King's Mask: Slot Verdict

If a studio has mass-market saturation in mind, then releasing slots like King's Mask is one way of going about it. In a vacuum, the game isn't bad at all. It looks alright, is thoroughly Egyptian, offers basic yet highly effective features, and squeezes out a few enviable numbers. If anyone else had crafted King's Mask, it might have been easier to be less critical. But they didn't, and there's a slight feeling Play'n GO phoned this one in. It brought to mind an actor who's over the whole acting thing but goes through the motions to collect a paycheck at the end of a shoot – who may or may not have even learned their lines. Play'n GO has been around the Egyptian block enough times to fire these off in their sleep, which it kind of seems like they've done.

On the other hand, it feels harsh to say this about what is solid as you like it Egyptian gaming. The features, while basic, can turn out strong results; simply by virtue of all the multipliers it is possible to pull on board. Mix a multiplier wild with a big win multiplier in free spins, and line wins can be quite impressive. As is the game's max win figure of 10,000x the bet. It's hard to shake the feeling that established developers like Microgaming were releasing this sort of thing back in the day. Perhaps, players pining for an earlier online gambling age will be thrilled to find it in such a handsomely exotic package.

So many conflicting pros and cons made King's Mask a tough game to review. There's no denying how professionally designed everything is, the extras are far from being elaborate, yet they can go ballistic, and the stats are steady as a rock. Then again, King's Masks looks and feels like a number of PnG games and ultimately lacks major x-factor, no matter how much golden splendour might be on the screen. It was difficult to stop the mind from seesawing between these two impressions. Anyway, when all is said and done, King's Mask is a well-made game for Egyptian fans, but one that is unlikely to really stay with you long term once it's done. Not to worry, though, there is bound to be another one along soon enough.