Gameplay & Design
As with many online slots, in order to win a spin you need to match three, four, or five symbols across one of the paylines. The symbols that appear as part of the Mega Moolah slot can be broken down into two categories: playing cards and animals. Playing card symbols are far more common than animals, and therefore produce lower payouts.
Mega Moolah also has two specific symbols with special effects.
The lion is the wild symbol, meaning it can substitute for any other symbol and complete winning paylines. Not only can the lion substitute for other symbols, it also doubles the amount won on that particular payline. Because of this, lions are particularly useful when contributing to different paylines on the same spin.
The monkey is the scatter symbol, which allows you to win back double, triple, 20x, or even 100x your bet depending on how many monkeys there are anywhere on the reel, with a minimum of two. Additionally, if you’re lucky enough to get three monkeys in a row, you can access the bonus round, which gives you 15 free spins and in which all wins are tripled.
It gets even better in that the bonus round can stack on top of itself, so if you happen to get another three monkeys during those free spins, you’ll get even more free spins with tripled earnings. There may be low odds of this happening, but if you’re playing for real money, it can translate to significant casino rewards.
In terms of design, Mega Moolah is bright and colorful, with each of the animal symbols being instantly recognizable and standing out against the sunset orange and earthen brown of the game’s background.
Despite the complicated nature of the information being conveyed, paylines are displayed in bright colors, greens and pinks, and it’s easy to trace them from one side of the reel to the other.
The sound design in Mega Moolah is excellent, featuring tribal drum patterns, realistic animal noises, and a background of birds chirping and other ambient savannah sounds.
If the foundation of great pokie design is how clearly it communicates information to the player and how much its graphics and sounds contribute to its theme, Mega Moolah gets top marks. Sitting at your computer or playing on your mobile, you probably won’t think you’re actually in Africa, but it is a strong approximation.