Overview
Quickspin invites players back to the enchanting Far East in Eastern Emeralds Megaways, a highly anticipated return to their 2018 hit, reimagined with the dynamic Megaways engine. Immerse yourself in a misty, mountainous Asian setting, adorned with traditional structures, hanging lanterns, and lush trees, all beautifully refined for this release. The action unfolds on a visually stunning pagoda-like game grid, featuring 5 reels where each can hold a dynamic 2 to 7 symbols, creating up to an astounding 16,807 ways to win on every spin. This High volatility adventure is renowned for its gigantic multiplier wild combinations, which are amplified here, alongside a strategic four-option Free Spins round, a new gamble feature, and a convenient bonus buy. With a staggering 17,800x Max Win potential, Eastern Emeralds Megaways promises thrilling gameplay for those chasing colossal payouts and strategic bonus choices.
Gameplay & Features
The other important symbol in Eastern Emeralds Megaways is thephoenix-covered scatter. Scatters appear on the reels only in the base game, and landingat least 3 of themtriggers free spins. But first, players are given theoption to gamblewhat they have won if the feature was triggered with 3 or 4 scatters. When gambling, there is a 50/50 chance of winning the nextlevel up. Lose the gamble, and you lose all free spins. Gambling is totallyoptional. When collecting or moving on from the gamble section, a picker menu is put on the screen where players select one of thesefour bonus round options:
Option 1– multiplier wilds of x2, x3, x4, x5 (combines to x120 at the most) with 15, 30, or 60 free spins when triggered by 3, 4, or 5 scatters, respectively. Option 2– multiplier wilds of x3, x4, x5, x6 (combines to x360 at the most) with 12, 24, or 48 free spins when triggered by 3, 4, or 5 scatters, respectively. Option 3– multiplier wilds of x4, x5, x6, x7 (combines to x840 at the most) with 9, 18, or 36 free spins when triggered by 3, 4, or 5 scatters, respectively. Option 4– multiplier wilds of x5, x6, x7, x8 (combines to x1,680 at the most) with 6, 12, or 24 free spins when triggered by 3, 4, or 5 scatters, respectively. The lower the free spins, the greater the potential multipliers can be and the greater the volatility. Scatters are not present on the reels during free spins, soretriggers are not possible. Finally, if the option is there, players canbuy direct accessto the bonus round for the cost of90x the bet. Once bought, players can gamble what they get if they choose, or skip the wheel and go straight to the picker phase
Final Thoughts
After the success ofBig Bad Wolf Megaways, it was no major surprise to see Quickspin reach into its bag of tricks again to pull out another popular slot for a makeover. Unfortunately,Eastern Emeralds' shift to Megaways isn't quite as thrilling as the Wolf and Piggy one was. One of the main reasons is there isn't much new going on here that wasn't available before. Sure, there are more symbols on the grid and a ton of extra ways to win, but it doesn't feel like the studio had quite as much fun doing this conversion compared toBig Bad Wolf Megaways.
Then again, who knows? Maybe Eastern Emeralds Megaways was more satisfying for the studio to make, but it just didn't come across that way during testing. Hopefully, this doesn't sound like we are ragging on Eastern Emeralds Megaways. It looks more refined than the original did, making the exotic game world easy enough to get immersed in. Critically, there is plenty of fine gaming possible, too. Multiplier wilds are the stars of the show as they were in the earlier game, and combining them with a ways system rather than paylines means there are certainly opportunities for something special to occur. The max win figure wasn't available at the time of writing, but the original had an impressive figure, so it's fairly safe to assume it will be here as well.
Add it all up, and you've got a fully functional Asian-themed Megaways slot with some juicy multiplier wilds multiplying each other possibilities. The switch from a traditional game grid to one powered by Megaways has been adroitly conducted, and the crossover has occurred as seamlessly as you like. Eastern Emeralds Megaways shouldn't disappoint fans of the first; just don't be expecting some raging revolution accompanying the remake.
