Long Mu Fortunes slot released at Microgaming-powered casinos

In Chinese mythology there are plenty of incredible stories and one such tale has provided the inspiration behind Microgaming's latest slot release. Developed by Fortune Factory Studios as part of their exclusive agreement with the Isle of Man-based company, Long Mu Fortunes tells the story of a woman who brought up her own dragons.

Now, in modern culture, we are already well aware of such a lady in Daenerys Targaryen, one of the key characters in the Game of Thrones series of books and TV series. However, Long Mu's story was first introduced into Chinese culture long before the storm-born became a feature of George R.R Martin's books.

In Chinese culture, Long Mu raised five infant dragons and in doing so, saw her deified as a goddess due to the strong bond that developed between her and her dragons. Her tale is often used as a parable promoting parental love for their children in China, a virtue which resonates throughout the country to this day.

So, with such an endearing story, how did Fortune Factory go about turning this fantastic tale into a popular and playable slot? We decided to take a look to find out.

Overview

• Game: Long Mu Fortunes
• Developer: Fortune Factory (for Microgaming)
• Reels: 5x3
• Pay Lines: 10 (non-selectable)
• Minimum Bet: 0.10
• Maximum Bet: 25.00
• Jackpot: 5,000x
• Free Spins Bonus: Yes
• Other Bonuses: Yes
• Progressive: No, but does have two jackpot features
• Volatility: Medium

Presentation

The presentation of the slot, as most of these oriental-themed slots are, is easily recognisable. There is a backdrop of trees, cliffs and mountains and playing in the background of the slot is a suitably Chinese sounding theme. It is perhaps a tad too generic, to be honest these games tend to merge into one when they adopt this approach, and I would have liked to have seen something a bit more dynamic, especially given that the slot is based on dragons.

The 5x3 reel set is laid over the backdrop and the main controls of the slot are at the foot. The two jackpot prizes, the Grand and Major, are shown at the top of the reels, as is a pot containing gold coins, the purpose of which becomes clear as you play the game.

What is on the reels?

There are a number of different symbols on the reels, the lower value of which are the four playing card symbols from the Jack through to the Ace These offer wins ranging from 0.5x your bet up to 2.5x your bet.

The higher value symbols are a number of Chinese artifacts including a drum and a trio of coins. These four symbols offer wins ranging from 0.75x your bet up to 50x your bet if you can land five of the top value symbols across the lines.

However, there are a number of other symbols on the reels too, including the Wild and Scatters and all of these are linked to the main bonus features of the slot.

Wild features

There are two different types of Wild symbol in the game and they all substitute for the standard symbols on the reels, but not for each other. There are also two different types of Wilds in the game too.

The Red Dragon Wild appears only on the second and fourth reel and when landed partially on either of those reels, it will expand to fill the reel completely, offering you more chance of a win. However, in addition, the Red Dragon Wild will also trigger a free re-spin of the reels, with the Wilds locked in place.

Furthermore, if you land an additional win on the re-spin, then you will trigger a further re-spin of the reels and this process will continue until you hit a non-winning spin.

During the Re-Spin, the three other Wild symbols are available on the reels. These are the Multiplier Wilds and these are the blue, green and gold dragon symbols and these offer multiplier wins of 1x, 2x and 3x the standard amount when used as part of a win across the reels. These Wild symbols only appear on the second, third, fourth and fifth reels however.

If you manage to land two or more of the Dragons on the reels on a re-spin of the reels, then their combined multipliers will multiply, offering you a great chance of a higher value win.

Additionally, for every Red Dragon Wild you land on the reels, you will collect coins. The more coins you collect the more chances you have of triggering the Jackpot. If you trigger the Jackpot Feature, then you will win either the Major jackpot prize (100x your total bet) or better still the Grand jackpot prize, which is 5,000x your total bet.

Free Spins features

Long Mu herself is the Scatter symbol in this game and she appears on the middle three reels only. Land her anywhere across these middle three reels on a single spin and you will trigger the Free Spins bonus round.

Here you will receive 10 Free Spins and together with that, you will also receive a 2x multiplier on any wins landed during the bonus round.

The good news is that the same re-spin bonus game that you can play in the base game is active in his bonus round and all multiplier Wilds carry a 3x multiplier, which means you could win some massive multiplier bonuses during your Free Spins.

Best feature of the Long Mu Fortunes slot

While it has to be said the presentation of the Long Mu Fortunes slot isn't that inspiring, the features that make up its main focus are much more engaging for the player. The Free Spins bonus is the undeniable crown jewel of the slot for me as it offers some fabulous game-play that is spiced up considerably by the addition of those much larger Wild Multipliers to add to the 2x multiplier already in play in the bonus game. The addition of the two randomly triggered Jackpot bonuses are a nice touch too and as such, the game does engage the player.

Conclusion

After initially being underwhelmed by the sound and visuals of the Long Mu Fortunes slot, I found out that there is more substance to the game than those initial impressions conveyed. The slot has some excellent features and the way they interact together is very nicely done. The free re-spin bonus is a good touch and makes the base game and Free Spins bonus round very playable. It is a more mid-level variance slot with some higher value wins possible, but you do need to be patient to hit those bigger value bonuses.

You can play the Long Mu Fortunes slot at any of the Mega Moolah casinos.