Midnight Marauder

Midnight Marauder: Slot Overview

According to Oxford Languages, the word marauding means 'going about in search of things to steal or people to attack'. If one was to engage in a spot of marauding (not encouraged, by the way), then doing so at midnight would be as good a time to do so as any. This is the premise of Midnight Marauder from developer Relax Gaming, where players join a dastardly crook as he attempts to nab gems at night in an online slot built around an ingenious Collect & Multiplier feature.

Midnight Marauder is played on a 6x6 sized game grid that uses clusters of matching symbols to form wins. The grid itself is a bit plain and can come off as somewhat generic due to the humdrum nature of the symbols, while the rest of the screen shows a building at night as a sneaky burglar constantly tiptoes around during play. Obviously, actual marauding in real life is pretty lame, so Relax has used a cartoonish, jokey, loveable burglar type approach to keep things light and breezy. If you've ever played the Microgaming classic Bust the Bank, that's the sort of vibe that's going on. It works, too, giving Midnight Marauder an agreeable feel, though, again, the game panel and symbols do look somewhat plain, which can be a deal-breaker for picky players.

Those who wish to try their hand at some pretend marauding can do so on any device, selecting bets of 10 p/c to $/€30 per spin in the process. A highly volatile game, Midnight Marauder has a default RTP value of 96.19%, rising to 96.87% when buying free spins. Kudos for the increase, but there is little separating the base and bonus game, so players don't miss much (as you will see) if they remain stuck in the main game for extended periods of time. It's also worth noting that there is a jackpot version available titled Midnight Marauder Dream Drop. It's connected to Relax Gaming's progressive jackpot and comes with an RTP of 94.0% (includes 12% jackpot contribution).

Winning clusters are formed when at least five matching symbols land in adjacent positions, vertically or horizontally. All regular pays are gems of varying shape and colour and have individual values of 0.1 to 2 times the stake. The number of symbols in a winning cluster is simply multiplied by the individual symbol value to calculate payouts. No wild symbol appears at any time in Midnight Marauders, so the only other symbol is the scatter.

Midnight Marauder: Slot Features

The main way players will be able to pull off a successful maraud is with the Collect & Multiplier feature – available in the base game and in free spins. Here's how it works. Whenever a winning cluster hits, the win is collected and stored on the grid in a single symbol position, represented by a swag bag icon. A respin is then awarded. During the respin, if a winning symbol lands in a position adjacent to the bag collection symbol, it is added, and another respin is awarded. Also, if a new winning cluster hits, it is also transformed into a single bag symbol and a respin awarded.

When respins end, the multiplier value on the bags (the total number of collected winning symbols) is applied to the symbol's value and awarded. Where it gets interesting is when there's more than one bag of the same symbol type in view. In this case, all matching bag types are multiplied together before being applied to the individual symbol value.

Free Spins

Landing 3 scatter symbols awards 8 free spins, plus you get 2 additional free spins for any additional triggering bonus symbol. Free spins operate under the same rules as the base game, and each scatter symbol that lands in view during the round awards an extra free spin.

Buy Feature

If available in your jurisdiction, players can buy free spins for the cost of 100x their bet to guarantee a game round with a free spins activation.

Midnight Marauder: Slot Verdict

Well, it wasn't quite love at first sight. There was something sparsely half-finished about the gameboard that held us back from letting go for a while. The way the board is all just gems against plain reels combined with the difficulty of assessing their values took time to adjust to. After settling in and witnessing the Collect & Multiplier feature do its thing a few times, however, the game quickly warmed up. Again, initially, just how exponential the multiplying process could be wasn't apparent. A few minor symbol wins hit, respins pulled in a few symbols to build a modest prize pot; all pretty humdrum and made more so by the drab looking reel set and nondescript gems. The slapstick burglar added charm, as did the playful soundtrack, in what was shaping up to be a so-so experience.

Then, multi clusters started hitting, and just how exponential they could be was revealed. Suddenly, Midnight Marauder came alive with possibilities, and our eyes were drawn to the symbols as they fell, scouting for potential cluster adds to swell swag bags. Then, when no more winning symbols hit, each individual bag could occasionally multiply each other into something special. The main thing to keep in mind, if you're going to leap right into the action, is that bag values are not bet multipliers. They multiply the symbol's value, which might disappoint if you weren't clear on the point.

Even then, winning clusters applied to each other can be shockingly effective. During the test round, some pretty spectacular results were achieved, keeping in mind Midnight Marauder has a max win of 30,000x the bet. With so much potential multiplying going on, that figure definitely felt achievable. Not easy mind you, Midnight Marauder can also tease, but achievable.

Like some other games Relax has done, Plunderland comes to mind here, Midnight Marauder is fairly simple, but it has a challenge factor which is hard to back down from. The way new symbols boost bags, then get applied to other matching bag types can skyrocket values in a moment, making each symbol drop highly absorbing. Eyes were constantly darting about the board in an attempt to spot potential wins, which, when it all goes to plan, can be absolutely righteous, in a Bill & Ted sense of the word. As always from Relax, Midnight Marauder is a well-built slot possessing some decent numbers, though you can't help but feel something is missing. Premiums with a bit more personality, something extra added to the base game as well as a bonus round that stands out more from the rest of the gameplay would probably have helped push Midnight Marauder beyond 8/10.