Reel Rush and Rainbow Riches have become some of the most widely enjoyed slots games in recent years, thanks to the combination of their bright, attractive graphics, and satisfying gameplay. Capitalising on the elements of social gaming that have helped propel otherwise simple matching games into the mainstream, developers Blueprint Gaming have incorporated similar themes into Winstar, and to strong effect. The reels are bright and colourful enough to cheer up even the cloudiest of days, and you’ll be left grinning from ear to ear if you strike it lucky with one of their jackpots.
Underneath it all, you’ll find this to be a game that combines a fairly typical five reels with 10 active paylines. The reels are made up of stars and other victorious looking symbols, alongside the usual line up of high cards which pack out the reels. There are a couple of special symbols along the way that we’ll deal with in a moment, but for most players, the real excitement in this game comes from the progressive jackpot.
For those not in the know, progressive jackpots are the biggest prizes in slots, which can run into the hundreds of thousands, the millions and beyond. Whenever they are won, they pay out truly life-changing amounts of money, and some of the biggest casino winners in history have been lucky enough to collect their winnings from games like this. It’s what takes a fairly standard theme and converts it into something altogether more substantial, and no doubt a major reason Winstar is finding itself growing in popularity amongst avid slots players.
Usually, you find that progressive slots temper their big prizes with less attractive payout percentages, effectively making it harder to win money from your slots play. Not the case with Winstar. The RTP stands at a very impressive 96.44%, which means you can relax in the knowledge you’re playing a game that’s not out to tempt you with big prizes, then stiff you with an impossible win.
The highest value symbols on the reels are the stars, and you’ll see these appearing as red, green, blue and silver stars, respectively. The silver is the most valuable, and if you happen to land five of these on a payline, you’re looking at an instant win of 500x your stake – not at all bad, especially when you consider the bet ranges up to £500.00 per spin if you’ve got the pockets for it. That means there’s potentially £250,000 to be won from the main game alone.
In terms of the feature symbols, there’s aren’t too many more to speak of. In fact, the only other paying symbol is the Winstar, which comes as a stacked symbol, and converts everything else in its reel to a matching symbol. The end result is similar to an expanding wild, in that it makes it easier for players to complete paylines when it appears.
Because there is no scatter symbol, there aren’t any bonus features as you play through the game. This is a slight disappointment for feature-heads, or for those who just enjoy the challenge of playing for bonus rounds, free spins and other goodies. But this is more than made up for by the progressive jackpot, always looming large as the main prize in this game.
By nature, the jackpot amount varies depending on how much money has built up in the prize fund since it was last won. You’ll find that the jackpot is awarded totally at random, so there’s not much you can do but cross your fingers. You’ll see the reels turning a sort of gold colour as you spin through – complete this across all your reels, and you’re in line to become the next Winstar progressive jackpot winner. That means anyone can win at any time – you only have to be playing the game when the jackpot drops to win it all for yourself.
Games like Winstar are prized amongst slots players for their generous jackpots, and it’s easy to see why they are so popular when you consider the life-changing sums of money on the table. Most players won’t win the progressive, but you’ve got to be in it to have a chance, and even the main game itself represents good value, with the RTP standing well above 96%.
The gameplay is enjoyable enough, and the Winstar symbols are a useful addition to your winnings from the main game feature. If you’re looking for a high paying progressive that gets straight to the point, Winstar is one you should probably check out for yourself.