3 Secret Cities

Overview 3 Secret Cities

4 The Player is one of the most promising up-and-coming games design studios to have hit the industry in recent years. Their work is primarily mobile-based and focuses on slots and table games. The company was started in 2018 by a handful of experienced industry experts and has gone from strength to strength since its first release. 3 Secret Cities is their latest game and one that looks very attractive indeed. One of the defining gaming dynamics included here is the Bonus Up mechanic, which progresses you through different levels in the game. The level you are currently on determines a range of things, including the number of free spins awarded and the various modifiers that are active.

This game has 3 exciting features to trigger. The first as we have discussed is the Bonus Up feature which rewards you with improving bonuses the longer that you stay in the game. The feature offers progressive cash prizes and chances to reach the next level. The next feature is the 3 Secret Cities’ Temple Free Spins bonus, which awards players several free spins as well as a multiplier and stacked symbols. Lastly, there is also a bonus buy feature which for a price will catapult you directly into the bonus round of the level of your choosing. The higher the level the more expensive the buy-in.

Theme and Symbols

The theme for 3 Secret Cities is one of Aztec/Inca adventure. The whole game has a feeling of El Dorado about it. This is perhaps because players spend their time in the game wishing that they can be taken to the Gold City level. The graphics and visuals in this game are unbelievably good. Even though everything is still cartoon in style, the level of detail is superb and helps to elevate this game above other poorer quality games with the same theme. Starting 3 Secret Cities you instantly get a feeling that 4 The Player are playing in another league.

The background for 3 Secret Cities changes depending on the city level you are currently on. For example, when you are playing at the Lake City level, the background is full of torrents of water, cascading waterfalls, and a placid pool of calm water. When you move onto the Jungle level, however, the background becomes full of dense tropical forest, thick hanging vines and verdant canopies of trees. Then finally in the gold city, the background is full of riches and the temple in the centre of the reels is yep you guessed it – gold.

The board for this game has been created to look as though it is the entrance to one of the many amazing and mysterious temples in Meso America. Its gold outlines are indicators of exciting rewards to come.

Symbols for this game are as ever split into low-paying, high-paying and special symbols. The lowest value symbols are the A, K, Q, J and 10 royals, each of which have been styled in a way to make them fit with the theme. Next up in terms of value are the picture symbols, these are the knife, treasure map, adventurer hat, grapple hook and compass, basically all the paraphernalia of the female explorer character in this game. Up again from these are the gold snake, necklace, black panther, the adventurer, and the Aztec priestess. These final two symbols can appear stacked on the reels. The Aztec priestess is the most valuable symbol. The specials are the gold coin Wild symbol and the Free Spins temple scatter.

Game Play

3 Secret Cities is played on a 5-reel, 4-row playing window with 1,024 ways to win. To create winners in this game, players must match a minimum of 3 low-paying card symbols or 2 high-paying animal symbols across a pay line starting on reel 1. To change your betting level per spin, use the bet adjuster tool located at the bottom of the playing window. The betting range is 10p to £20 per spin.

Further information regarding the slot, including a display of the paytable, can be accessed by clicking on the settings menu. The spin button is located on the right-hand side of the reels. You can set up auto spins in the game’s menu.
The volatility for 3 Secret Cities is rated at the highest end of the spectrum. The return to player percentage for 3 Secret Cities is 96.5%, which is better than average. The biggest payout that players can win on one spin is 50,000 x your total stake.

Features

The first bonus feature for this game is the Bonus Up feature. As you progress through the game, you will move through 3 different cities, with each one offering a better prize than the previous one. These levels are the Jungle City, the Lake City and the Gold City. To be given the chance of winning an instant cash win or to progress to the next city, you must land a scatter symbol on reels 1 and 3. Picking a scatter from the two will either reveal one prize or the other.

Once you have completed all 3 levels you will be taken back to the start where the chance of triggering the free spins bonus is the best.

Speaking of the free spins bonus, to trigger this feature players must land a scatter on reels 1, 3 and 5. Doing so will move you through to the Temple Pick screen, where you are given one chance to select a block from each row. Choosing a block will reveal one of the following modifiers:

A number of free spins
A multiplier for the free spins
A symbol that will appear super stacked on the reels
An ‘X’ which ends the picks and begins the free spins

The modifiers which are on offer in the free spins round are also dependant on the current level of the player. The top prize at the gold level is 50,000 x stake. When you are in a free spins round, landing additional scatters on reels 1 and 3 will provide you with between 5 and 10 additional free spins.

Lastly, there is the bonus buy feature. This gives you 3 different options of buying your way into the free spins bonus feature. The price for entering the bonus round for each level increases as the prizes are also greater. To instantly trigger the free spins round in the Gold City, you must pony up 200x your stake.

Conclusion

The quality of this game’s visuals, the gaming mechanics and the huge prizes on offer make this game a premium pick for slot reviewers all over the internet. The RTP, top payout and slick gaming experience will have players coming back every week for more. The icing on the cake is that this game has a bonus buy feature, so that you can effectively negate the high volatility by just buying your way into the lucrative bonus features, instead of having to wait for them to be triggered organically.