The Great Albini

Magic is a rare talent, one that can be perfected only by the very best. Repeating each trick for hours on end until you master it, then adding your own personal twist. In this Microgaming release, we join The Great Albini as he prepares to woo the crowd! Each trickster has his secrets, but this slot’s very best tricks are its smooth gameplay and fun bonuses. The game is played on a 5×3 board with 25 fixed paylines. Available special features include mystery boxes, re-spins, free spins and the Wild Lily bonus. Most of these you have to grind for, but you can outright buy free spins if you feel impatient.

Graphics are a mixed bag. We like the slow zoom-in to the stage when the title is first launched. The tricks Albini performs with his staff while standing next to the reels are also impressive. The downsides are the completely static background and icons. The small highlight effect that appears during a winning combination simply is not enough to excite us. The slot is played on a 5×3 playing field. Wins are paid when three or more identical symbols appear consecutively from left to right. Payouts are only granted if these icons follow one of the 25 active paylines. The reel size and number of paylines is doubled during the free spins.

Players can set their wagers between $0.25 up to $50 per spin, which is a decent bet spread. The title has high volatility and an RTP of 96.6%, placing it slightly above the current industry average. The maximum win is 4,000x your total stake.

We like the implementation of playing card icons in The Great Albini. Each one comes with a handful of cards that show that symbol, and match its colour. Players will also find lucky cups, knives on a dartboard, a canary, Lily the assistant and the magician Albini! A red-gold symbol icon with the word Wild written on it is Wild. A green box with a question mark is the mystery symbol. And finally The Great Albini and Lily in a joint icon is Scatter. When a full stack of mystery symbols appears on the reels, it activates the re-spins bonus. All boxes are locked in place, while three re-spins are played. Each time a new mystery icon appears the re-spin counter resets to three. This continues until only mystery boxes remain, or no eligible icons land to extend the re-spins.

After re-spins complete, the mystery boxes all open at the same time and reveal the symbol within. This can be any icon except Wilds or Scatters. Landing the Scatter on the second, third and fourth reel wins 12 free spins. While this special feature is being played, the Wild Lily bonus can also be triggered. The playing field also expands to be a 5×6 board with 50 fixed paylines. If Lily Wilds appear on the second, third and fourth reel, and cover them entirely, it activates the special feature. All wins are multiplied by 2x and any Lily Wilds that land award re-spins. While re-spins are being played, the number of free spins does not drop.