Vicky Ventura slot review

Vicky Ventura is the brave explorer who set out to explore ancient Incan ruins and we’re tasked in helping her excavating the biggest treasures!

The slot was developed by Red Tiger Gaming and released in 2019, portraying a beautiful Incan temple that frames a 5-reel, 3-row playing field with 243 ways to win. However, Vicky Ventura has the opportunity to trigger the free spins mode in which the game expands to a 5-row, 7-reel playing field and a massive 16,807 ways to win!

The adventurer theme is a pretty popular one for a lot of developers, ranging from NetEnt’s classic Gonzo’s Quest and Lost Relics to Maya by Red Rake Gaming. I found Vicky Ventura to keep up pretty well with the bigger name slots with its own character, animated symbols and a pretty unique free spins mode.

It all looked very nice, although I missed the titular character of Vicky during the base game. Seeing as the game was named after her I expected her to be a more prominent part of the slot, instead she really only appears as the Wild symbol. I thought that was a bit of a missed opportunity but it didn’t detract from the experience either!

The game’s sound design is good with a collection of jungle sounds in the background and an inspiring soundtrack you would find in classic adventure movies. The win jingles were pretty standard but all in all I found the sound to be excellent.

Symbols

The game has a range of symbols that can be split into high and low-paying categories. The high-paying symbols are unique to the game and made to fit the theme, while the low-paying symbols are simple card suits.

From highest to lowest they are:

• Totem Crystal: This symbol may reveal Wild Symbols, convert symbols or add more Totem Crystals.
• Free Spins: With 3 Free Spins on the screen at the same time the free spins mode triggers with 10 free spins.
• Wild: Substitutes all other regular symbols.
• Compass: Max. 15 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Binoculars: Max. 7.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Gear: Max. 6 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Diary: Max. 4.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Map: Max. 3 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Spade: Max. 1.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Heart: Max. 1.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Diamond: Max. 1.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.
• Club: Max. 1.5 coins with five-of-a-kind on a winning payline.

The symbols are all sharp and nicely drawn but also completely static, even when part of a winning payline. The only exception being the Totem Crystal, which would dispense its power into the totem to the side of the crystal before the power would be shot back into the reels.

Features

Vicky Ventura has a few different features that change the classic gameplay experience. To start with I’ll list them here:

• 243 Ways To Win: During the base game, a symbol appearing on consecutive reels from left to right will result in a win. When the free spins mode starts the game will expand to a 5-reel, 7-row playing field with the same mechanic, meaning 16,807 ways to win.
• Totem Crystal: The Totem Crystal can appear on the screen at any time and grant different types of bonuses to the game, including random Wilds, changing symbols to make paylines and triggering more Totem Crystals.
• Free Spins: With 3 Free Spins symbols on the screen the free spins mode activates with 10 free spins.
• Random Wilds: The Totem Crystal can add random Wilds to the playing field.
• Expanding Reels: When the free spins mode activates, additional reels are added to the playing field to increase the odds of winning.

Most of these features will be familiar to players but I think the way it combined them is what made the slot stand out. The Totem Crystal fit the theme perfectly while at the same time adding a fun extra feature to the game. It didn’t show up that often and would only change the gameplay a little but it did look great.

The free spins mode was the best time to get big wins but the free spins symbols were also pretty rare. Something I haven’t seen often is that the free spins would sometimes appear in a stacked reel, giving me 3 free spins at the same time. It meant that it would only take a single spin to get the free spins mode to activate but they showed up rarely.

The expanding reels looked really good, sliding up and the game zooming out to show them all on the screen. In terms of gameplay, the free spins mode was the best way to get some big wins. Considering the game’s High Volatility I found this to be particularly lucrative.

All in all, I found the different features to work well together. I did find it strange how low the different coin wins were but as I played I found that the 243 ways to win helped in getting bigger wins and they would keep my funds pretty stable.

In Conclusion

Vicky Ventura is a good slot made by one of the smaller developers, living up to the expectations set by the bigger names in the industry. Although it still lacks some polish, namely in the way the animations are done and the inclusion of an actual character, it shows the developer could be on track to become another big name in the industry.

The slot itself stays relatively close to the classic slot experience while adding some additional features to differentiate itself. The expanding reels were rare enough to feel separate from the rest of the game which leaves a rather standard game during most of the time playing.

I found the additional features the slot has to work quite well. You can pick a quick spin but it makes the spin really fast, so be aware that you should choose a bet that isn’t too high or it’ll evaporate before your eyes. As a player, you can pick a bet between £0.10 and £100 per spin. The maximum win of 10,000x your bet is quite a big jackpot!

All in all, Vicky Ventura will appeal to most players since it doesn’t really pick a direction it wants to focus on. The gameplay is pretty standard for classic slots while the features keep the game interesting for more modern players. You can’t really go wrong with this slot so give it a try!