Can Tarzan be king of the slots and king of the jungle at the same time?

A good while ago, we brought you a special article that previewed the forthcoming Tarzan slot from Microgaming, but we never had time to bring you an actual review of the game, well with a little bit of time on our hands and some free space in the schedule, we have decided to rectify that and give you our view of this venerable Microgaming slot.

In conjunction with Edgar Rice Burroughs estate, who hold the rights to the famous character the author created, Microgaming had huge ambitions for the Tarzan slot (as you will know if you have read the preview article) and the question is, where those ambitions realised and what type of slot was the end product?

Was it one that could call itself the King of the Jungle slots, or did this Jungle creeper simply merge into the backdrop with all the other wild-themed slots that didn't quite cut the mustard? Well, we decided to load up the slot, strap on a loincloth and give it a few spins to see how it has withstood the test of time.

Here's what we found out.

Overview

• Game: Tarzan
• Developer: Microgaming
• Reels: 5x3
• Pay Lines: ;40 (non-selectable)
• Minimum Bet: 0.40
• Maximum Bet: 40.00
• Jackpot: 1,000x
• Free Spins Bonus: Yes
• Other Bonuses: Yes
• Progressive: No
• Volatility: Medium

Presentation

There is absolutely no doubt that Microgaming really did push the bot out when it comes to the presentation on the Tarzan slot. With its 3D graphics, superb animations, glorious colours and amusing characterisation of the key players in the slot, the game looks and sounds superb. Indeed, I would go so far to say that there are few slots from any provider that come anywhere close to matching the visuals on this slot.

The music is very good and fits in with the theme of the slot very nicely and the in-house created sound effects are not nearly as cheesy as you would expect. So in terms of an all-engrossing look and sound to the slot, Microgaming nailed it with the Tarzan slot.

One small thing to note is that if you are based in the UK and want to try a demo of the slot, you will need to find a version of the game at a casino you are registered at as due to new gambling laws in the UK, you can't play free versions of the game at other sites due to the slot having what the Gambling Commission view as a 'child-friendly theme'. This does not mean that the slot is illegal, simply that demo versions can only be played at casinos where the user has been age-verified.

What is on the reels?

There are a number of symbols on the reels and these have all been created in 3D which gives them a rather elegant and sumptuous feel. The lower value symbols, which fit in nicely with the theme of the slot, are the fruit symbols, the orange, apple, plum and watermelon. Higher value symbols are the characters, and these include a shrike, a chimpanzee, a leopard, Archimedes, Jane and of course, Tarzan himself.

You can also see a fully rendered and animated version of Tarzan stood to the left of the reels and he will interact with you as you play the slot and access different features of the game.

There are a couple of other symbols on the reel, the Wild and Scatter which we will explore in more detail below.

Wild features

The Wild symbol on the slot games is the Tarzan logo and this can appear stacked in the base game and also during Free Spins. The Wild serves two purposes, firstly it can substitute for all other symbols in the game bar the Scatter symbol to create more winning lines.

You can also land Wilds across the reels and if you can land five across a single pay line you will win the largest amount of money for a single pay line win in the game, which amounts to 20 times your total stake. The fact that this symbol is stacked however means that you can often win on multiple pay lines and this increases the overall value of your wins considerably when it occurs.

Free Spins features

The Free Spins bonus is triggered in the Tarzan slot when you land three or more of the Scatter symbol, although you don't initially play Free Spins as instead you are taken to a bonus wheel game.

With this bonus wheel, you spin it to land yourself cash multipliers, or a jackpot prize, or access to one of the two bonus features in the game, the Free Spins bonus, or the Pick-a-Potamus bonus feature.

The number of Scatters you trigger the game with will decide the level of prizes available with the more Scatters landed then the greater the value of the multipliers and jackpot bonuses available to be won. Land five Scatters, for example, and you can win up to 1,000 your stake if you hit the Jackpot Bonus on the wheel.

Land the Pick-a-Potamus feature and you are taken to a simple selection game where you pick from a dozen hippos to reveal cash prizes. You can keep picking hippos to increase the value of your win until you land a selection which ends the bonus round.

Trigger the Free Spins bonus from the bonus wheel and you receive 12 Free Spins and this has a number of features in play on it, including Rolling Reels and Growing Wilds, which sees the stacks of Wilds increase by one across each Free Spin, up to a maximum stack of 15 Wilds on the reels. Free Spins cannot be re-triggered from within the bonus round unfortunately.

Best feature of the Tarzan slot

There are so many exciting features packed into the Tarzan slot that it is difficult to pick just one that really catches the eye but if I had to, then I would say that of the bonus features you land when you hit the Jackpot Bonus game, the Free Spins bonus is the one to trigger. Sure, you can win some pretty big instant prizes with the Jackpot element of the wheel, but for sheer entertainment value alone, the Free Spins bonus is great fun to play and, of course, if you get lucky with the spins then you can land some sizeable wins in this feature too.

Conclusion

The Tarzan slot was a technological marvel when it was released but more than that, it was also a very fine and exciting slot game to play. The additional touches and flourishes to the game that Microgaming added certainly helped give the game a bit of added polish, but the undeniable factor in its longevity and success is that it is a fantastic slot game to play and offers players a very rewarding experience.

You can play the Tarzan slot at any of the Mega Moolah casinos.