Jamaican-A-Fortune Pokie
The bright colours of the Jamaican flag, a reggae soundtrack and a happy Rastafarian in a big woolly hat welcome players to Microgaming’s Jamaican-A-Fortune pokie.
Although its’ only got 3 reels and a single payline, this game packs in loads of extra features, such as gambles, guaranteed wins, nudges, holds, a number trail that leads to the Easy Life bonus round and random multipliers.
A fairly fussy design shouldn’t dissuade anyone from playing this game, as it doesn’t take long to work out what does what. The reels are surrounded by information on the different potential features as well as a payout table that lists what rewards come from winning combinations, while underneath the game is a control panel that lets players select a wager from 0.10 to 10.00.
That’s not a great bet range however, so Jamaican-A-Fortune is aimed more at casual players rather than high-stakes gamblers.
Starting with the main paytable, we see some of the classic pokie symbols, with cherries being worth 2x the stake when they land across the payline, while lemons are worth 4x, plus a line of oranges will pay 8x and coconuts treat players to 10x their bet. The Jamaican flag is up next, and a full line of them is valued at 16x, watermelons at 20x and the big speakers are worth 30x for a line of them.
Jamaican-A-Fortune
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The last of the regular symbols is the cash bag, and whenever the payline is filled with them, players win 50x their bet amount, but should our friendly Jamaican stop across the line, they win the jackpot of 500x the stake.
A speaker dominates the left side of the game as well, and around the business end of it runs a circle of lights. After any win, these could light up, and if the lights stop on red, players get the win doubled, while a green light means the win stays the same.
All the lights on the speaker will fill up as play progresses and once the circle is complete, players get a guaranteed win.
Some of the symbols will have numbers attached to them, and these slowly fill up the line of numbers that runs below the reels. Once it has been completed, the main feature of this game will begin. Players will see several 3-reel games that they spin to win any of a number of bonus features such as free spins, multiplier payouts, or nudges and holds.
The reels will keep spinning as long as a winning feature is triggered.
Other bonuses include Spin-a-Win, which is basically a guaranteed winning spin, Win Again, which is pretty much the same thing, Cash Selecta, where players click on a reel and if the cash bag symbol stops on it, they win an extra prize, and Nudge Mania, where they can move reels up and down to create winning combinations. Up to 15 nudges can be won, with the option to gamble them or bank them for another time.
Holds are where a reel can be locked in place while the others spin, which can result in a further win.
Throughout the game, there’s a dazzling array of flashing lights to highlight any bonuses, with the reds, greens and yellows of the flag being particularly eye-catching. It’s not a game for those players who like the more sedate 3-reel pokies, as this is among the most action-packed games out there.
The Verdict
It could even be a little too much for some people, as feature after feature is triggered, and it can take a little while for anyone who isn’t used to this type to get their heads around how it all works. But stick with it, as Jamaican-A-Fortune is a quality pokie that comes from a developer who are experts in the field.
The only real criticism is the low maximum bet amount, although with the 500x jackpot being worth 5,000.00, there’s still the potential to walk away with a decent prize.