Great Aztec: Slot Overview

Software developer iSoftBet has dived back into the jungle and come up with Great Aztec, an online slot that follows on from a bunch of games the studio has done, such as Aztec Gold Megaways. This one plays out sort of differently, sort of the same as some which have preceded it, with a Hold&Win bonus round as its central feature, set deep in the heart of a picturesque part of the Aztec empire.

Speaking of picturesque, Great Aztec and its related slots have a very distinctive look that makes them stand out from the bunch. This is a desirable trait since the Aztec slot category certainly is not short of options. Great Aztec catches the eye through the use of big colours, thick symbols, mystical glowing objects, and chunky jewellery (amongst other things) to create a satisfying solid heavy look. The soundtrack equals the visuals by being a cheerful drumbeat/panpipe-style track, punctuated with the occasional 'Ha!', so the whole audio-visual experience is a pleasantly striking one. Having said that, much of the presentation has been recycled from previous games, which might take away some of the novelty factor for seasoned players.

Aztec Gold Megaways was one of iSoftBet's earlier Megaways slots, and for the occasion, the studio went big. In comparison, Great Aztec is a relatively modest game by several measures. It's a medium volatile slot, producing a return to player of 96.01% when playing the 'Normal Game' or 96.04% with the Extra Gold feature switched on. The Extra Gold bumps up the base bet (20 p/c to $/€20) by 25% to provide a better chance of triggering the feature. Played on a 5x3 gaming matrix, Great Aztec has 20 fixed paylines awarding wins that start from the leftmost reel.

Symbol time and Great Aztec drops 9 regular pays on the grid. Starting with the lower value group, we find 10 to A bejewelled card ranks worth 2 to 2.5 times the bet for a 5 OAK hit, then a bird, snake, big cat, and glowing-eyed chap as the 4 high pays. A premium 5-symbol win awards 5 to 20 times the bet. Also present on the reels is Great Aztec's wild symbol, bejewelled as well. Wilds substitute all symbols except the Sun Disc Scatter and pay up to 25 times the bet for a 5 wild winning line. Mystery symbols also land in the game, revealing any paid symbol except Sun Disc scatters.

Great Aztec: Slot Features

While trekking through the bush, players should keep their eyes peeled for Aztec Gold Respins and the Aztec Bet. There's also Aztec Magic, which can trigger on any spin. When it does, it reveals a big win with Mystery symbols or the Aztec Gold Respins.

Aztec Gold Respins

Landing 4 or more Sun Disc scatter symbols triggers 3 Hold&Win Respins. If this triggers with the Booster modifier present, all of the scatter symbols boost to higher values. Also, if 3 scatters land, the 2nd Chance modifier can trigger, locking the reels with scatters on them, then respinning the others for a chance to land an extra scatter.

During the Hold&Win, landing new Sun Disc symbols resets the spin count back to 3 and locks them in place. Moreover, filling a horizontal line with symbols multiplies all wins by x5, while filling a vertical line with symbols multiplies all wins by x3. Also, players are able to trigger the Mini, Minor, Major, or Mega Sun Discs, worth 10x, 25x, 50x, or 100x the bet, respectively.

Aztec Bet

The Aztec Bet provides access to the bonus buy for 60x the bet or the Super Bonus Buy for 200x the bet, which has bigger Sun Disc Scatters. The RTP for the first option is 96.3%, the second is 96.45%.

Great Aztec: Slot Verdict

If there are two well-used tools in the iSoftBet utility belt, it's the Hold&Win feature and the Aztec environment the team has rolled out a few times by now. If you haven't seen one of the studio's Aztec slots before, they can be quite striking. Aztec Gold Megaways was one of iSoftBet's earlier Megaways releases, and it impressed in several areas, including its looks. However, after Aztec Gold Megaways, Aztec Extra Gold Megaways, then Aztec Gold Mines, the appearance has lost some of its dazzle. To be sure, it still looks nice, no doubt about it, but yeah, the shock of the novel has diminished. In some ways, Great Aztec gave off the impression it might even be a clone, yet iSoftBet has made so many Hold&Win games by now it was hard to pinpoint what the mould slot might be, if there is one. In a nutshell, Great Aztec does much of what Aztec Gold Megaways did, but without the Megaways part, and in a 'smaller' way.

If the previous paragraph sounded negative, it wasn't intended to be a hatchet job because, in the right hands, fun times are likely to be had while playing Great Aztec, even if the glowing outer sheen has dimmed. It'll probably be a better suit for players in the mood for a straightforward, easy to get to grips with streak respin game with a couple of minor extras tacked on for good measure. It'll also be a better match for gamblers not fussed about chasing down titanic wins. The reason for this assessment is that Great Aztec maxes out at 2,500 times the bet. In some ways, this is low when compared with a lot of other slots out there these days, yet in other ways, it feels like an appropriately sized cherry to rest on top.

So maybe don't play Great Aztec for a chance to hack through a virtual jungle on a trail chasing colossal, big win numbers, or if you're in the mood for a complex hold n' win game that throws all sorts of special modifying symbols at you when the going's good. Still, it's hard not to imagine Great Aztec's good looks and familiar features resonating well with the sort of gamblers it's got in its scope.