Journey to the West

In the base game, everything is built around the standard five reels with 25 paylines. Each spin is just a spin, but not in a boring sense: quite often you can catch a chain of Wild or get small winnings even on regular spins. There are no cascading drops or any super-modifiers, but from time to time several large symbols appear on the screen at once, which adds excitement. The mechanics are as simple as possible: you place a bet, start a spin and wait for the combinations to play. Sometimes a pleasant series of wins in a row falls out, especially if several Wild symbols appear in the game - with them, the payouts are noticeably higher.

The most interesting point is the bonus round with free spins, which is triggered if three or more Scatter symbols appear on the reels. After that, you will be given a choice of several free spins options - each is associated with a specific hero and its own multiplier or number of spins. For example, one of the options gives more free spins, but with smaller multipliers, and the other, on the contrary, gives few spins, but with a large x. There is no Bonus Buy function here — everything is fair, only by the trigger. The bonus round itself differs precisely in the ability to choose a strategy, and the result, and not just chance, really depends on it.

All the symbolism here revolves around the heroes of Journey to the West - Monkey King, Pigsy, Sandy, Monk, as well as standard cards from A to J. The most valuable symbol is, of course, Monkey King - it is he who brings the maximum winnings with a full line. Wild substitutes for all regular symbols, and Scatter is needed to trigger the bonus. Among the pictures, the top symbols bring really tangible payouts, especially if you collect a full line. With small symbols (card values), most often just maintaining the balance, because they give small prizes in almost every spin, not allowing you to sag much on the balance before the bonus.

The maximum win in Journey to the West is x6000 of the bet. To squeeze out such a "cap", you need to catch the full screen of the top symbol with the maximum multiplier in free spins, which is very rare in practice. Most often, bonus rounds bring 30-100x, if you're lucky, up to 300-500x, but it still feels like a normal boost to the balance. The volatility of the slot is average, and therefore you can catch pleasant payouts even in the main game, not only in the bonus.

The graphics in Journey to the West are quite simple, but nice — the symbols are clear, the colours are bright, and the background is not annoying, even if you play for a long time. The music is in Asian style, it does not interfere or strain, it just complements the atmosphere. The effects when winning or triggering the bonus are standard, without intrusive animations. The optimisation of the slot is normal, even on not the newest devices it works without freezes.

The slot is more suitable for those who love classic slot machines with clear mechanics and do not chase high-tech bells and whistles. If you appreciate the ability to choose a bonus yourself and do not like confusing modes, then this slot will work. It will also be appreciated by those who are tired of complex modern functions and just want to play the usual format, but with a new design.

Journey to the West is a medium volatility slot, so it is quite possible to play at moderate stakes without fear of losing in 20 minutes. It is better not to go all-in and not to use auto-spins for the entire balance - it is wiser to allocate 5-10% of the bankroll for one session. The RTP of this slot, depending on the version, ranges from 96.47% to 95.50%, so players may consider always checking the indicator in a particular casino, because it directly depends on how much return you can expect in the long run.