Mega Pearl Gigablox

Mega Pearl Gigablox Overview

Designed by ReelPlay, a studio powered by the larger provider Yggdrasil, Mega Pearl Gigablox is a new game that combines the ever-popular generalised Asian theme with an exciting Gigablox dynamic. We are afraid to say this game doesn’t offer anything particularly original compared to its predecessors. However, if you enjoy games set in ancient China that come with re-spins and a decent max win, you might get on with this one. We would like to say that there is more going on than this, but in truth, this is much like a lot of ReelPlay’s products, just with the addition of the Gigblox mechanic.

The features start with the aforementioned Gigablox dynamic. This bonus is available on every spin. It creates outsized symbols of 2x2 or 4x4 anywhere on the grid. The idea is that by taking up more space, a symbol is easier to match win, and therefore more wins are due to follow. These larger blocks also count as if they were their constituent parts. They can also be any symbol in the game, including specials. The other main bonus here is the re-spin bonus triggered by landing six or more of the pearl scatters in the base game. This is your straightforward Hold and Win bonus. Finally, there is also a bonus buy option. All features will be explained in greater detail later on in the review.

Theme and Symbols

Although it might look like any generalised ‘Asian’ theme, the theme for this game actually has plenty of clues that distinguish it as distinctly Chinese. For starters, the characters found on the gold coins and on the various tiles of the board are in Mandarin, one of the principal languages of China. Next, you have the dragon character, which is a significant symbol in Chinese mythology. Then there is the liberal use of gold and red, which are special colours in China that represent wealth, prosperity, power and fortune. Finally, this game also sports paper lanterns, which, although adopted throughout the world, originated in China.

The background for this game is a view that looks out onto a misty mountaintop and an azure sky that becomes wreathed in clouds the further you look. In the bottom half of the screen, there is a low-lying forest, only just visible through the thick cloud, which we can assume is being generated by the trees themselves. The whole scene is very reminiscent of the wild countryside of China. Although few details can be picked out, the image creates an effective backdrop to the action on the reel and is calming in its simplicity.

The playing board for this game has been designed to resemble a typical Chinese pagoda with columns decorated by silver dragons.
The symbols for this game are split into low-paying, high-paying and special symbols. The low-paying symbols are the four different types of Chinese characters. The orange character is the most valuable, paying out at 1.25x the stake for the top combination. On the other hand, the more valuable symbols are the lotus flower, the paper lanterns, the golden coins and the gold hats. The gold hats are the most valuable of these, paying out at 5x the stake for the top combination. The specials for this game are the mystic ball scatter and the golden dragon wild. The golden dragon is also the most lucrative symbol in the game, paying out at 7.5x the stake for the top combination.

Game Play

Mega Peal Gigablox is played on a 6-reel, 4-row machine with 40 fixed pay lines. To win combinations, players must land three or more matching symbols on pay lines moving from left to right, starting from the leftmost reel.
The betting range for Mega Peal Gigablox is 20p to £14 per spin. To adjust their bet levels, players can toggle their stake up and down using the tool located at the bottom left-hand side of the screen.

Further information, including a short tutorial and a display of the paytable, can be found via the menu button in the right-hand corner of the screen. The spin and auto spin buttons are located in the centre of the screen.
Volatility for this slot is rated in the low range. The return to player percentage of Mega Peal Gigablox is 95.03%, which is below average. The biggest payout that players can win on one spin is 16,297x your stake.

Features

The first feature in this game is the Gigablox feature which can come into play on any spin. This bonus creates large, blocked icons of 2x2 or even 4x4 in size. These icons can appear anywhere on the reels and help to form wins by taking up larger spaces on the reels. Each block that falls is calculated as if it were the number of normal symbols it takes to put it together.
The next feature is called the re-spins bonus. It is triggered by landing six or more scatter symbols in the base game. When this happens, all of the symbols are locked onto the reels and are all given a new value of between 1x and 1,000x the stake. You will then be given three re-spins. If new symbols land, they will also lock in place, and your re-spins are refreshed. If a pearl icon lands within a larger formation of a 2x2 Gigablock, they will combine to form a Mega Pearl symbol. These are very valuable. The bonus round terminates when you either run out of re-spins or all positions become full.
Finally, this game also has a bonus buy option that allows you to purchase access to the re-spins game. However, this option is not available in the UK.

Conclusion

Chinese themed fun with a half-decent set of features - this is a fairly run of the mill game. Winning potential wise things aren’t all they could be. Yes, the volatility is low, and the top win is actually pretty sizeable. However, the RTP is really poor, and for a game like this, you need it to be at least over the 96% mark. All in all, this is a decent slot but still has plenty of room for improvement.