Book of Atem Online Slot Machine – Free Play & Review

Ancient Egypt may be gone, but it’s not forgotten. At least, not if the wealth of slots that use it as a theme is anything to go by! It has a cool, mystical aura which immediately catches your eye. It’s this striking aesthetic that developers try to capture. And today, we take a look at Microgaming and All41Studios’ effort to bring the ancient kingdom to life!

We were immediately smitten with the visuals. The background image looks really cool. It shows a view from a balcony of a massive Egyptian building. You can see wonderful sights, all from the comfort of your very own pool. That’s the benefits of being a pharaoh: your very own balcony pool! Honestly, if this was a real place, we’d already be on a plane to go and visit it!

If you’re a veteran player, you might have guessed what the special features are from the moment you’ve seen the game’s name. The Wild and Scatter have been combined into a single symbol.

And if you get three or more of them in any position on the board, you win ten free spins. During this bonus, one icon is randomly selected to become the special expanding symbol. This icon will create some mouth-watering wins, so try to activate free spins as quickly as possible!

Developer

Microgaming has been an industry leader for as long as we can remember. Their talented team has created a wealth of popular releases which are being played even now!

In recent years, the developer has taken a back seat, and has taken on the role of a publisher. This particular slot was developed alongside All41Studios, a relatively-new software provider based in Estonia.

How to Play it

Book of Atem is played on a 5×3 board with 10 fixed paylines. You set your total bet by clicking on the coins button to the left of the Spin. Here, you can slide the meter up and down to choose your total bet. Punters can stake between $0.10 and $25 on each spin, which is a great betting spread for ten fixed paylines.

All41Studios has a great layout on desktop. It perfectly balances between sleek and functional, which makes it an instant favourite of ours. After a few clicks, even brand new players will know how to find what they’re looking for in this user interface.

One of the things the developer offers is the Autoplay function. Sadly, this iteration is subpar to one made by other developers. You can choose the stake and the number of auto spins to be played. But there’s no win or loss limit, or the ability to set a single win cap.

Symbol designs are a mixture of playing card royals and unique icons. These unique symbols include water lilies, cute snakes, proud hunting birds and pharaohs. There’s also a colourful book icon which serve as both the Wild and Scatter for this game.

Special Features

If you come across this book, you’re in luck! It serves as both a Wild and a Scatter. So if you find just one or two, they can substitute for another symbol and complete your win. And if you find three or more? That’s where the real fun begins!

Collect three or more Wild Scatters to win ten free spins. During this bonus, one icon is randomly selected to become an expanding symbol. As an expanding icon, this symbol is given a few advantages.

First, it no longer has to follow a set payline to grant a win. Instead, so long as you have three of them in any position, you win the prize! Next, if they’re part of a winning combination, they will expand to cover the entire reel they are in.

And if you’re insanely lucky, you may also manage to retrigger the free spins special feature! While this nets you more free spins, it does not allow you to get a second expanding icon.

Maximum Payouts

This release has a high variance and a jackpot worth 5000x your total stake. Book of Atem has an RTP of 96.45%, which is above the current industry average.

Summary

We really liked the visual side of this slot. It looks gorgeous, and may be the best thing All41Studios has ever created! That said, we have to dock some points for its gameplay. It’s the exact same Book formula we’ve seen elsewhere, with no new additions.