SunTide Slot
SunTide is a 5-reel, max 9-pay line online slot from Microgaming. This game is a sun-blessed, traditional slots machine – well, as 'traditional' as a five-reel video slots game can get. All the symbols used are sun-kissed versions of symbols you'll probably recognise from one-armed bandits – oranges, lemons, strawberries, diamonds, melons, lucky sevens, bells and 'bar' symbols. The colour scheme used is very bright and dazzling (orange is the predominant colour) and should put you in the mood for sun-kissed beaches, barbecues and falling asleep in front of the cricket. If you're in the UK, then just for your information summer time in 2016 begins at 10am on August 8, and ends at 6.20pm, August 9.
There are a couple of additional symbols that add to the game play – a golden coin and a blistering palm-tree beach scene that acts as the scatter. There are only nine pay lines in total, and all are selectable by clicking on the numbered icons on either side of the screen. Your coin size can be anything from 0.01 to 2.50, and your final wager is always your coin size multiplied by the number of lines that you have in play. When you're ready to cover yourself in sun lotion, his the 'spin' button.
Payout & bonus rounds
Payouts commence at three times your bet-per-line for three cherries on an active pay line from the left-hand reel onwards. This will win you double your line bet. The jackpot prize is for five diamonds, which will win you a whopping 1,000x your bet-per-line.
The golden coin symbol acts as the wild symbol in this game. It substitutes for all other symbols except for the scatter symbol. During the base game, if you land a wild symbol on the central reel then it may expand to fill the entire reel. During free spins, a wild that appears on any reel aside from the two outside reels may expand in a similar fashion.
The golden sunset symbol acts as the scatter symbol in this game. If you land two anywhere on the reels then you win a cash prize, but if you land three or more you win fifteen free spins. Free spins can be re-triggered.
Like a British summer, the time you spend getting accustomed to this Microgaming slot should not be very long. It's a very simple base game, with the added attraction of expanding wilds and scatters. If you're a new traveller to the world of online slots, then this is an ideal game for you to use to get your feet under the table. If you've already a few stamps on your online gaming passport, then you'll probably want to look elsewhere.