Roman Colosseum Slot Review

The life of a gladiator in ancient Roman times was a tough one. It’s reported that during its history, some 400,000 people lost their lives in the Colosseum in Rome, with even more animals also breathing their last within its confines. Renowned for its bloody history, Novomatic take players back to ancient Rome to witness a gladiator, prepared to fight to the death and bring rich rewards to the spectator.

Roman Colosseum video slot uses the great software by Novomatic to bring an ancient Rome theme into the online casino arena. Beautifully crafted, the design team have used excellent 3D graphics to bring the colosseum back to life as it once looked before the ravages of times took its toll. It only has 10 paylines and these are fixed along the 5 reels that are housed in a stone frame backed by fluted columns. Punters looking to spin the reels will require a wager to be placed with the lowest possible amount being 40 and the top stake being 10000. The large betting range will appeal to a spectrum of players; low or high rollers and the steady in-betweens.

The Tournament Is Announced

The life of a gladiator was tough, training was rigorous and the weaponry and armour could be very heavy. Appearing on the reels are some of the items that the gladiator would need for survival along with items demonstrating the affluence of the Roman gentry. Full details are available in the pay table which is accessible by a quick click of the button along bottom left, and the nice thing is the values all change according to bet size wagered. Most of the symbols will pay for 3, 4 and 5 of them on a win line running from left to right along the reels.

There were generally two types of gladiators, those that were heavy fighters called the Murmillo, and lightweights called Retiarii. The Murmillo wore helmets and one of these is seen on the reels in a symbol with a value of 100 for 5 lining up on a win line based on a 40 credit bet. The swords symbol also shares this value. For protection, the brave fighter needs a shield and this one is worth 1500 for a full payline of 5 for a similar bet. Two more symbols of a golden drinking chalice and a bag of gold coins belonging to the Emperor will payout for 2, 3, 4 or 5 of them.

The Arena Awaits

The gladiator steps into the arena prepared for a fight to the death. He is wild and will fight to bring help to other symbols, making rewarding matches by replacing them. He has a high paying value but only symbol he will not replace is the scatter symbol. This is an image of the magnificent colosseum, standing in all its glory, just as it did when it was new and the only place around for the masses to enjoy some top entertainment. As a scatter, it doesn’t rely on the paylines and only has to appear anywhere on the reels in a single spin. It has a very high value in terms of prizes but for 3 or more, a free games feature is triggered of 16 free spins.

The gladiator now transforms into a wild scatter as the fight begins and will double up prizes when completing a winning line. Upon every payout, there’s an extra chance to gamble the prize for those who are feeling fearless and inspired by the gladiators. Click on gamble and a new screen opens. It’s a refreshing change to see an online slot that has paid attention to detail for this generic game of chance, with a beautiful landscape image of Rome on show.

Gladiators in Abundance

Themes based on ancient history remain popular, and there is no shortage of Gladiators waiting to step into the arena. Call of the Colosseum by NextGen Gaming is a great game on the same theme. With a range of bets from 0.03 to 625 coins, it has plenty of symbols for matching with up to 25 win lines to play for. The free games feature offers up to 10 double paying free spins but these can be boosted by the appearance of the emperor with thumbs up or down to award further spins. It also gives the chance to further gamble successful wins which is an example of the generalised game of chance as previously mentioned.

The style of a casino card table is about as far away from the gladiatorial arena as it can get and it’s a real shame that so many developers go down that same route when adding a gamble feature. We played this online slot on a computer, but the game both looks and sounds great on mobile too having given it a quick spin on iPhone.

Fillupus Pockets Maximus

The detail in Roman Colosseum is beautiful to behold with lovely little animations and exciting music adding to the drama and tension of it all. The Gladiator is fierce as he swings his sword into action when doing his job to help fill up pockets to the maximum. In our experience, some of the ancient Rome themed slots have a tendency to overdo it with trying to cram as much into the theme as possible. It’s nice to see Novomatic rein things in a little and go with the old motto of less is more. With a medium to high variance, it has universal appeal for newbies and old timers to gamble, and in terms of spinning your payroll, what better way to expand a balance than by having a prized Gladiator doing it for you.