San Quentin xWays

Have you ever played an online game that pays homage to a prison?

Well, here's your chance, as the creative squad from NoLimit City has created a 5-reeled online slot machine that features one of the most famous prisons in the USA as they kept pushing the boundaries with their innovation!

The game is full of chaps you definitely wouldn’t want to bump into in a dark alley, but, do not worry, here they can only get you some impressive prizes, going up to 150000x the stake! 

Theme and Symbols

You have probably heard the name San Quentin in movies since it's one of the famous, maximum-security prisons in the USA.

The action takes place exactly on this notorious place, with reels set against a concrete wall with barbed wire and various surveillance cameras overlooking the main prisoners on the reels - Crazy Joe, Heinrich 3rd, Loco Luis, Biker Bill and Beefy Dick.

The sky is limit for these developers, as they have managed to create semi-realistic, cartoonish visuals, while the soundtrack that accompanies the action sounds pretty heavy, following the theme perfectly!

As for the other set of symbols on the reels, there is a toilet roll, handcuffs, shivs, Zippo lighter and a bar of soap, while a police badge is the Wild, and San Quentin prison tower stands for the Scatter.

Betting Options and Other Functions

Before you start attempting a prison break, you will need to set your bets that range from €0.2 to €32 per spin, which may not appeal to high-risk players.

Not only is this an extremely dangerous slot machine, but it is also extremely volatile, coming with a default return to player percentage of 96.03% and a surprisingly high hit frequency of 34.25% (see here).

But, here's the kicker!

This crime-themed online game comes with an impressive maximum prize of 15000x the total bet!

The paytable starts with the low-end symbols - a toilet roll, handcuffs, shivs, Zippo lighter and a bar of soap, paying 1.5x to 2x the stake for a five of a kind. 

The main protagonists are slightly more desirable symbols, as they may give 2.5 to 5x the bet for five of a kind.

The Wild police badge substitutes for all regular symbols, while a San Quentin prison tower Scatter serves to trigger a feature. 

Plus, you will see the Enhancer Cells on the top and bottom of the reels that can show special symbols - Razor Splits and xWays.

Special Features

The feature pack of this prison-themed online title is full, so let's dive in straight away!

The first one to mention is randomly-triggered Enhancer Cells. When they become activated, they will open to reveal either a high pay symbol, Wild Razor Splits or xWay symbol.

The first two options are pretty clear, while Razor Splits serves to double all of the symbols on its reel, and all xWay symbols will reveal the same pay symbol, stacked four high!

Now, should you manage to land at least three Guard tower Scatter symbols, you will trigger the Lockdown Spins!

Here, you will see the Jumping Wilds popping up onto each free spin. Plus, during these extra spins, Enhancer Cells of the reels that featured scatter symbols will be opened the whole time. 

But, before this bonus round starts, it will select the number of free spins you’ll receive, as well as...

...a special symbol multiplier!

Besides, if 1 or 2 scatters land again, they will turn wild while opening their respective Enhancer Cells.

Now, what do these Jumping Wilds do?

Not only can they replace regular symbols and move into random positions on each spin, but they may also have multipliers applied to them. 

So, when a wild symbol lands on a reel displaying a Razor Split symbol, its multiplier will be doubled - and hopefully for up to x512!

Lastly, if you are too anxious to wait for the feature to be triggered, you can also choose to click the Bonus Buy option and not only buy some free spins but also increase the slot's RTP percentage!

Verdict

Though parody prison online games exist in excess, nothing with this kind of brave realism has ever been created before. That's why even the devs at NoLimit City have stated they were not sure at first whether punters will be ready for this online release!

Yes, the hardcore convict theme may be too much for someone, but a great pack of features and the impressive maximum potential of 150,000x is something that will attract everyone!