Smooth Sailing

Ahoy to all the iGamers joining us for a review of Smooth Sailing, the second release from Gold Coin Studios to feature the Connectify Pays mechanic. Online slot games in the UK have been coming thick and fast this year, many of which have brought some new features to online casinos, offering you loads of winning chances. Our UK casino site loves something unique to keep things fresh, and so the innovative system used in the bonus round, although already used once before, still makes for interesting analysis. Plus, there’s up to 6,000x your stake that can be won if you strike it lucky. Let’s set sail across the five reels for a closer look.

Gold Coin Studios might be a new name to you on the online casino games scene, but if we’re being honest, you’ve likely played their UK online slot machines on numerous occasions. This is because they are a sub-studio of Microgaming which means the same production team likely works across all the aliases Microgaming has created. Titles such as Immortal Romance and Thunderstruck, which have cemented infinite fame at online casino sites, were created by Microgaming. The base game of Smooth Sailing is relatively standard, with five reels and 20 paylines. It has a nautical theme, with a captain that happens to be a seductive blonde lady. As mentioned, the Connectify Pays mechanic only occurs in the bonus, making the base game a waiting game.

The wagering window in Smooth Sailing isn’t the smallest we’ve seen, but it’s also by no means the biggest. The minimum all players will be able to wager is 20p per spin, while you’ll be able to bet as high as £40 per spin. Wagering just that little bit higher is the best chance to bring in wins that are rewarding, although a sensible strategy is to start lower and work your way up as confidence grows. Smooth Sailing is volatile and can see wins dry up at times, but the wins you land are higher paying than low volatility slots. If you’re an iGamer who likes to play while out and about, iOS and Android mobile devices are both supported.

The lady captain in Smooth Sailing is the wild symbol, and for the newer players that are unaware, the wild is a symbol that substitutes all regular symbols to help form 3, 4 and 5 of a kind wins. The only two symbols the wild can't replace is the ship scatter and the ticket scatter.

The regular symbols are all ones the wild can act as and are split into medium paying and lower-paying categories. The medium paying ones are the ship’s bell, steering wheel, anchor and captain’s hat with a cocktail and gold tickets. The lower value icons are all playing cards, being 9, 10, J, Q, K and A.

As you'll have noticed, there are two scatter icons. If landing 3 of the ship or 3 of the gold tickets on the same spin, you'll be rewarded with ten free spins. The only difference between the two scatters is that the ship can also fall during free spins. Another difference is that in order for ticket scatters to fall, you'll need to have activated Gold Coin bet, which will make wagers increase in size, but with the tickets falling, it increases your chances of landing the bonus.

The free spins play out in what is called Connectify Pays. On the left of the reels, you'll see that boat symbols show differing values and are split into pieces. You want to see symbols fall through the free spins that complete a line forming a picture of a ship. It’s here that you can potentially win the big bucks.

UK players will find the bonus feature a fine piece of innovation, but there isn’t anything else to Smooth Sailing that makes it one of the best online slot games available in our broad selection. If you like wagering high, then playing with Gold Coin bet activated will suit you just fine, as the wagers are higher, and the bonus has a 50% higher chance of activating. It’s available right here for you to try.