Winning Wizards Pokies
The wizarding world may be back in fashion thanks to a certain Mr Potter, but Winning Wizards, from Microgaming, seems like a pokie from another time, with very basic symbols, design and gameplay.
Those looking for a less challenging game, where the only requirement is to click and spin the reels could find that a spell on Winning Wizards is just what they were looking for, but others could decide that the magic just isn’t there for them.
However, if basic games are your thing, read on and find out what the 5 reel and 5 paylines of this pokie can reward you with.
Wand-ering to the Game
There are modern games, older games, and positively prehistoric ones, and Winning Wizards is definitely in the last category. It’s presented in a fairly simple style, with two-dimensional pictures making up the main symbols as well as an equally simple gameplay, making this a pokie that can be mastered in minutes.
Like many older games, there isn’t much in the way of a background image, in fact, there isn’t anything, as the reels and payline indicators take up the whole area. As there are only 5 lines, they just run horizontally across the reels, but unlike most games where symbols must line up across the reels running from the left side, here players will win when the line runs from the right side as well.
This effectively gives 10 paylines and while it’s not a bonus round or anything, it certainly counts as a feature and a potentially rewarding one as well.
Below the game is the standard Microgaming control panel, with players having the option to stake 0.25 up to 5.00 per spin. This isn’t a particularly wide range and there’s no option to activate anything less than all 5 lines, but it should be alright for the majority of budgets.
Winning Wizards
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Wizarding Winnings
The paytable lists how much each winning combination is worth, with a slightly creepy-looking wizard standing to one side of it, casually throwing coins at players. The playing card icons 10, J, Q and K take up the lower part of this table, although they are all designed in a fancy style that may not be an exact match for the theme, but is a slight nod towards it.
Only 2 examples of the 10 symbol are needed to return 1x the line bet while 3, 4 or 5 of them have a return of 2x, 10x or even 100x. Higher value card symbols equal higher value wins and by the time we get to the K, the rewards are 5x, 50x or 500x for landing 3, 4 or 5 across a line.
Picture symbols are worth even more, with a gold ring paying 10x, 100x or 1000x the line bet and a bottle of potion, book of spells and sceptre each bringing in bigger rewards. The wizard is top dog here, paying out 100x, 1000x or the jackpot of 10,000x when he lands on 3, 4 or 5 adjacent reels on a line running from either side.
Although the picture symbols are a little basic, they become slightly animated when making up a winning line, with the ring and sceptre flashing reflections of light for example. It’s not exactly high-spec CGI, but a nice touch anyway.
Usually there would be a section here about the bonus features that players can trigger, but there are none whatsoever in Winning Wizards. This is a game where no input other than deciding a bet level and spinning the reels to see what symbols line up is all we have, which is just how many players like it.
The Verdict
Anyone who likes classic 3-reel pokies and wants to try 5-reel games could find Winning Wizards is an ideal introduction to the format. It’s as simple as they come, but that shouldn’t be seen as a criticism because it’s been around a few years, catering to a pool of players who appreciate the easy way it all works.
With some decent payouts coming from landing the symbols left to right and right to left, it can actually be quite satisfying to play this pokie for a spell.