Scarab Kingdom’s creator, Just For The Win, isn’t trying to hide the fact that it transports players to the warm world of Ancient Egypt in search of possible riches, despite the game’s name. By 2,000 BCE, scarab beetles had become a popular motif for Egyptian amulets, seals, and jewelry. Because of its association with the deity Khepri, the scarab beetle rose from its lowly status as a dung beetle to become one of the most popular amulets in Middle Kingdom Egypt. Scarabs are utilized to activate two different bonus features in Scarab Kingdom: Wild Scrolls and Cleo’s Bonus. Players not only have to worry about these two bonuses, but also free spins.
Scarab Kingdom is played on a pyramid-free 5-reel, 30-payline game grid. Just For The Win has depicted a more greener Ancient Egypt, one in which the iconic Giza pyramid does not feature. The middle of the screen features a canal leading to some old buildings, and the right side features a sphinx-like monument to help players get their bearings. The presentation is top-notch, with an Arabic-inspired music that helps drive home the setting. When the free spins feature is activated, the action shifts to a palace or temple complex that is guarded by a number of sinister sculptures.
You may play the scarab game on any device with a betting range of 20 p/c to £/€25 per spin. Variable RTP starts at 96.13% and can fall to 94.11% or lower based on market conditions. Scarab Kingdom is still a highly risky slot that pays out well, about as much as the Book of Dead. The hit frequency is 30.99%, which translates to a win around once every three spins, contributing to the game’s brisk pace.
Three low-mid pay symbols or two premiums trigger payouts in Scarab Kingdom. The J through A tiles make up the bottom end, while the lotus flower, eye, and Ankh tiles make up the middle. If an entire line of five premiums spans across the grid, it is worth up to 10 times the stake. The other two premiums can land anywhere from 1×1 to 1×4. It’s like choosing between Cleopatra and a Pharaoh. Similar to the premiums, wilds can expand to fill anywhere from one to four slots on a reel. They may also be used as a replacement for any tile that has a monetary value.
Scarab King: Slot Machine Options
During the main game, a Bonus Bar appears above the board. In addition, a Scarab Holder with three segments sits above each reel. The Bonus Bar and the corresponding Scarab Holder will both increase by one whenever a scarab symbol appears.
When a Scarab Holder is full, the corresponding reel receives the Wild Scrolls feature, making all of its symbols wild. Each time the reels are spun, the stack of Wilds moves down one position and eventually disappears.
Cleo’s Bonus is activated after the Bonus Bar has 100 scarabs. Twelve coins are used in place of the standard reel set. Players take turns picking from a group of symbols until a set of three that all match is found. There are four available, each worth between 15 and 5,000 times the initial wager. The bonus meter will reset when the event has concluded. All progress will be preserved even if participants decide to swap bets mid-game.
Scatter symbols might occur on the middle three reels. Pharaoh’s Free Spins are triggered by landing 3, and they feature a Wild Scroll on reel 3 and a multiplier of 1x. No matter the outcome of a spin, the multiplier will grow by 1, and Wild Scrolls will be triggered if a wild symbol appears. When no more Wild Scrolls appear in the active reel area, the feature will terminate.
Judgment Time in the Land of the Scarab
Overchoice was first used by author Alvin Toffler in his 1970 book Future Shock to explain the cognitive damage that occurs when individuals are presented with too many options. Few would have guessed that Ancient Egyptian-themed slot machines would be so popular in the iGaming industry some decades later. There are a lot of these, but the majority of them are really decent. Scarab Kingdom by Just For The Win is one of the better ones.
Scarab Kingdom’s flow is great for players that want consistent feedback as they work to unlock features by amassing tokens. The benefit of amassing scarabs is twofold: first, the immediate gratification of the Wild Scrolls bonus, and second, the more substantial payoff of Cleo’s Bonus after amassing 100 scarabs. Wild Scrolls help you stay in the game, but the low value symbols and small number of paylines mean you won’t win big very often.
Cleo’s Bonus is a straightforward pick-and-click game, but unlike many such games, it does not have a game over screen. If you reach the bonus level, you will definitely receive a reward. The maximum payout of Cleo’s Bonus is 5,000 times the wager. There is no information indicating whether or if this sum is playable during free spins, while the progressive multiplier is active. If you’re looking for a big win Egyptian game, you may have seen a similar feature in IGT’s Cleopatra 2, though it might be retriggered and lead to even greater prizes.
Scarab Kingdom offers something fresh to try for Egypt enthusiasts who also enjoy collecting. It’s a little different, and definitely more complicated than a standard ‘book of’ slot, but the payouts are the same if you choose the appropriate tokens.