Wild Wild Romance

Wild Wild Romance: Slot Overview

Hey players, here's a question, what do vampires and the Wild West have in common? We were going to answer, 'not much until Wild Wild Romance came along'. However, after Google sucked us in, we discovered a subgenre of Western related vampirism. It does seem a bit niche at the moment, but who knows, undead gunslingers might reach critical mass sometime in the future. That brief diversion led us back to Wild Wild Romance, a slot set in the Wild West featuring guys, gals, full reel wilds, and four bonus rounds to unlock. If the game's title wasn't a hint enough, the cowboy thing is basically a front for an engine and extras on loan from Microgaming's undead classic, Immortal Romance.

Wild Wild Romance is a much brighter looking slot than its predecessor was. Not that it's graphically superior, it actually looks a little dull, but the sun is out in a dusty one-horse town that would disintegrate Nosferatu in a moment. The view might not be to everyone's tastes. Games Global buddies Aurum Signature Studios has used a style we're still trying to figure out if we like or not. There's something off, something a little Stepford Wives about the clean-cut cartoon look. Not so much the symbols - they're pretty bog-standard. Maybe it's because the buildings in town look suspiciously pristine, as if the game was made on a movie set instead of out in the weeds. Not sure, anyway, moving on.

While Wild Wild Romance's numbers might be very close to those found in Immortal Romance, there are differences to consider. The RTP is more or less the same, meaning players get a very respectable 96.8% at the highest setting, though the return value does get a bit dire at the lower levels. Volatility is high, while hits occur a shade under 1 in 3, or 31.21% to be accurate. Any device is suitable for use where stakes vary from 30 p/c to $/€19.50 per paid game round.

The cowboy/cowgirl antics happen on a 5x3 game grid which uses a 243 ways to win pay system. Symbols are all highly steeped in the Western tradition and include 9-A royals on the lower end of the table, then gold bars, and safes, followed by two female and two male characters. Hitting a five of a kind win gets you a payout worth 3.33-5x the bet for the lows, 8.33-16.67x the bet for the highs. Crossed pistol wilds land in any reel to substitute all normal pay symbols and are themselves worth up to 50x the stake for five of them across a pay line. One final note is wilds double any win when substituting.

Wild Wild Romance: Slot Features

If you've played Immortal Romance, this section will not be required reading as the two games share the same features. The names might have changed or vanished altogether, but players get Wild Showdowns and four varieties of free spins.

Wild Showdown

Originally known as the 'Wild Desire' in Immortal Romance (possibly the best random feature in the history of slots), this one draws randomly, and when it does, up to five reels turn fully wild. You can't trigger free spins when Wild Showdown is in effect, but if all reels become wild, you'll hit the game's max win anyway.

Free Spins Selection

Sadly, there are no names accompanying any of the characters or their corresponding free spin bonus rounds which makes the game devoid of any personality. No matter, landing 3, 4, or 5 scatter symbols gets you entrance to them, plus a payout of 2x, 20x, or 200x the bet. For the first four triggers, players are awarded 10 free spins where every win is multiplied by x5. After 5, 10 and 15 triggers, you can choose the first bonus round or one of these when they are unlocked:

• Wild Tumble feature – 15 free spins with random x2 or x3 multipliers. Up to x6 multiplier can be awarded.
• Rolling Reels feature – 20 free spins with Rolling Reels. Rolling Reels keeps consecutive wins going and increase a win multiplier at the same time from x2, x3, x4 before maxing out at x5.
• Wild Lasso feature – 25 free spins with Wild Lasso. Keep an eye out for the Wild Lasso on reel 3. The Wild Lasso randomly transforms symbols into wilds. This bonus round awards 1, 2, 3, or 4 free spins when 2, 3, 4, or 5 scatters land.

Wild Wild Romance: Slot Verdict

So, is Wild Wild Romance so good they had to name it twice? If you count yourself as a vampire/Wild West enthusiast or would simply prefer Immortal Romance's gameplay in a sunnier setting, the answer is pretty much yes. The jury's still puzzled by the graphics, but the soundtrack is outstandingly bleak, and the features are reassuringly familiar. It's hard not to like the Western setting in a slot, which is no doubt why so many developers continue to use it.

So does Wild Wild Romance pip the original? Oh, heck no, that would be like photocopying a major piece of art - sacrilege to even think of. Immortal Romance is one of those all-time games which comes along once in a blue moon. An inspired mix of story, drama, characterisation, Gothic mood, and hugely playable features. Wild Wild Romance has those features, it's true, and while it looks okay, it possesses a mere smidge of the original game's immersiveness. Of course, there are exciting moments to be had in Wild Wild Romance, and its max win of 12,000x the bet remains impressive, so it's not a terrible follow up by any stretch of the imagination, but does wilt in the presence of its infamous sibling.

One of the big questions is why Aurum didn't go full vampire Western instead of being so straight-edged with the theme. Imagine a Van Helsing styled sheriff, bandits dripping blood from their fangs, or townsfolk who have made the undead switch. For some, one of Immortal Romance's guilty pleasures had to have been its cheesily delightful, Twilight-ish undead romance back story – something Wild Wild Romance sorely misses. As it is, Wild Wild Romance is a decent release, but when you borrow some of the most cherished gameplay in slots and dress it up as something else, you'd have to do an exceptionally bad job to completely cock it up.