9 Masks of Fire Slot Review
First came 9 Pots of Gold and a few months later – 9 Masks of Fire slot, both developed by Gameburger Studios exclusively for Microgaming. While the original one focused on the luck of the Irish, the sequel promises to take players into a fiery furnace of big win potential, all via a scatter-based pay jackpot system. Wins of up to £1.5million are possible, should you be lucky enough to land the jackpot via free spins, but more on that later.
Boasting 5 reels and 20 fixed win lines, 9 Masks of Fire is a tribal-themed video slot that’s pretty simple to understand.
First, you select your bet, then you spin those reels in the hope of a win! Base game wins can come in the form of symbols falling as a minimum of three-of-a-kind or scatters – the fire masks. Wilds and up to 30 free spins with a 3x multiplier all wait to boost player excitement and bankrolls, so without further ado, let’s take a look at the symbols, pays, bonuses and the statistics!
9 Masks of Fire Slot Bets and Pays
Catering to both the low stakes players (20p) and the high rollers (£240 a spin!), 9 Masks of Fire slot delivers plenty of thrills regardless of the level of your bet.
Wins are designed to be frequently flowing, albeit small in value, which means a medium variance reel engine. Larger wins like to remain hidden, and this means longer periods between bigger wins, but the short sharp bursts of small values are designed to keep you playing on.
A maximum 2,000x multiplier can result in epic wins, especially when playing larger bets. As the name suggests, the larger wins are reserved for the masks of fire; aka the scatter symbols. No need to land these as a five-of-a-kind combination – as long as a minimum of three is in view (anywhere!), a scatter pay is triggered.
Paytable
The pay table of maximum scatter pays for both minimum and maximum stakes are as follows:
- 3 Masks of Fire: Pays between 20p for minimum stakes and £240 for maximum stakes
- 4 Masks of Fire: Pays between £1.00 for minimum stakes and £1,200 for maximum stakes
- 5 Masks of Fire: Pays between £3.00 for minimum stakes and £3,600 for maximum stakes
- 6 Masks of Fire: Pays between £8.00 for minimum stakes and £9,600 for maximum stakes
- 7 Masks of Fire: Pays between £20 for minimum stakes and £24K for maximum stakes
- 8 Masks of Fire: Pays between £100 for minimum stakes and £120K for maximum stakes
- 9 Masks of Fire: Pays between £400 for minimum stakes and £480K for maximum stakes
Base game wins of up to £30K are also achievable with five dazzling diamonds awarding this sum. Red hot sevens can fall as single, double or triple symbols with golden bells, dollar signs, single bars, cherries and any combination of seven symbols completing the pays.
9 Masks of Fire Slot Features
Identical to that of 9 Pots of Gold, 9 Masks of Fire offers just the two features (as well as a wild); the scatter pays and the free spins.
Scatter symbols can fall anywhere to generate a win, as long as there’s a minimum of three in view. Free spins are triggered on the presence of the tiki shield icon. A multi-coloured wheel packed with red-hot free spins and multipliers will appear on the screen. Give it a spin to see which of the following you’ve been granted:
- 10 free spins with a 2x multiplier
- 12 free spins with a 2x multiplier
- 15 free spins with a 2x multiplier
- 20 free spins with a 2x multiplier
- 25 free spins with a 3x multiplier
- 30 free spins with a 3x multiplier
9 Masks of Fire Slot Statistics
- Developer: Microgaming / Gameburger Studios
- Reels: 5
- Win Lines/Win Ways: 20
- Variance: Medium
- Mobile Compatible: Yes
- Release Date: 16.10.2020
- RTP: 24%
- Theme: Fire, Tiki Masks, Tribal, Aztec
- Minimum Bet: 20p
- Maximum Bet: £240
- Maximum Win: 2,000x
- Progressive Jackpot: No
- Free Spins: Yes
- Bonus Game: No
- Other Features: Wilds, Multipliers, Money Pot Triggers
Control Panel
Positioned beneath the 5×3 reel engine is the control panel – a long black strip with a pay-table menu, your bankroll, a bet box, a maximum bet button to climate having to increase your bet with multiple clicks, a spin button, a panel to display your winnings and an audio button.
To view the scatter pay table, simply glance to the left of the reels! Numbered 3 to 9, the scatter pays table displays the values that can be won for your current bet. Settings are housed within the main menu button on the control panel and offer the ability to view the intro screen, to adjust sounds and even background music.
What’s the Verdict?
As visually stunning and immersive as 9 Masks of Fire is, the soundtrack can get a little taxing! The constant thumping of the drums is too repetitive for my liking and found the ‘background music’ mute option a blessing! This doesn’t mean all sounds are muted – just the soundtrack. The spinning of the reels and animations from the symbols are still very much active.
Don’t like to be teased? Maybe this isn’t the video slot for you, because those masks like to tease! Landing scatter symbols will result in the remaining reels slowing down in an attempt to add to the anticipation, only more often than not, the remaining reels fall empty (other than standard symbols that is!).
When a win is found, the symbols come alive which is a nice little touch. Frequent wins may excite, but the value won’t. Unless you plan on playing for a lengthy period of time and have a bankroll to maintain that, the chances of landing more than 4 masks are very slim.
Another symbol that likes to stay hidden for as long as possible is the free spins shield. Hardly surprising given that 30 free games with a 3x multiplier are on offered to players!
