Description
One of Novomatic’s most enduringly popular slots, Book of Ra is themed on the exploration of ancient worlds and Egypt’s lost treasures. Played on a conventional 5×3 grid, it has up to 10 Paylines. Since its launch in 2005, this game has earned itself something of a cult status.
Join the explorer on his quest for the volume of the title as the sun sets on the pyramids in the distance. The journey will take you into a golden, dusky tomb packed with mysterious treasures.
Meanwhile, the soundtrack is the original from the game’s land-based casino days. Like Marmite, you’ll love it or loathe it!
How to play
Play mobile-compatible Book of Ra from just 10p a go up to a high-stakes £50 per spin. Create winning combos with three or more matching icons, or two of the higher-value symbols, kicking off from Reel 1. Combinations can be across any Payline you like, on successive reels.
Set Autoplay if you feel like kicking back to watch the reels spin without interruption.
You’ll find the typical less lucrative playing-card symbols 10 through K on the reels, alongside the scarab beetle, Horus god symbol, Tutankhamen and the explorer himself.
The latter is the most rewarding emblem, shelling out at 5,000x stake for five on a single Payline. He is followed by the pharaoh at 2,000x stake.
Special features
Special symbols
The Book of Ra is the Scatter, but it also serves as Wild. It fulfils the standard Wild function of replacing every other icon on a Payline.
Bonus features
Free games
This is very much the main course in the Book of Ra. Launch it with a trio or more of Scatters wherever you like on the reels. Alongside 10 free whirls, you’ll get 2, 20 or 200x stake respectively for three, four or five Book of Ra icons.
Prior to the round beginning, a random icon is chosen as an expanding symbol. When it shows up, it expands to encompass that entire reel, if (and only if) it will yield a winning combo. Land the selected icon anywhere on all of the five reels and it will take up every single position.
Scoop a further hat-trick of Scatters to bag an extra 10 wager-free whirls – the good news is you can do this an unlimited number of times.
Gamble feature
Hit a winning combo and you have two options – take the money or risk it in a bid to double your prize by predicting the colour of the next playing card to be drawn.
Jackpot
Unfortunately, no progressive jackpot is up for grabs in this slot.
Return to Player (RTP)
Book of Ra features a very high level of volatility, while RTP or Return to Player is reasonable enough at up to 95.5%, if not the most generous you’ll ever come across.
Verdict
The graphics of this game may feel a little outdated these days, and Book of Ra admittedly isn’t packed to the rafters with features. You’ll also have to handle the high volatility.
But no one plays this game for the visuals. It’s simple, clean and entertaining, with a classic theme and straightforward gameplay, so its enduring appeal is perhaps not surprising.
There are, of course, countless other Egyptian-themed slots, but this one has long stood out as one of the better (and better known) ones.
Try it out in free demo mode – and let us know what you thought.
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