Play Rise of Merlin

Merlin has spent centuries building a reputation as one of mythology's great sorcerers, and Rise of Merlin from Play'n GO gives him eight free spins to prove the point. Our fantasy themed 5x3 slot uses up to 10 paylines, a Crystal Ball Wild Scatter and randomly chosen expanding symbols during the bonus. Retriggers add both extra spins and further expanding symbols, so the magical education becomes considerably less basic once the crystal balls start cooperating. 

The setting takes us into a medieval fantasy world filled with stone halls, tall pillars and the faint suggestion that somebody nearby owns an unnecessarily large collection of spell books. Merlin naturally takes centre stage among the symbols, accompanied by red and white dragons and a watchful owl. 

Blue and purple tones dominate the interface, while gold framing gives the reels a more traditional fantasy appearance. The Crystal Ball stands out through its bright blue glow, and the bonus becomes visually busier when expanding symbols begin covering full reels. Among fantasy themed slots, the artwork feels conventional rather than experimental, but the dragons, wizard imagery and magical atmosphere establish the theme without much ambiguity. Nobody's likely to mistake this for a fishing slot, which already puts us on solid ground. 

The card ranks occupy the lower half of the paytable, followed by the owl, two dragons and Merlin himself. The premium symbols can create potential payouts from two matching symbols, while the lower group requires at least three. 

• Crystal Ball Wild Scatter: The Crystal Ball substitutes for regular paying symbols and also functions as the Scatter. Three, four or five Scatters create potential payouts of 2x, 20x or 200x and three or more activate free spins. As a Wild combination, three, four or five Crystal Balls can produce potential payouts of 10x, 100x or 500x. 
• Expanding Symbol: Before free spins begin, one regular paying symbol is randomly chosen for this role. Qualifying appearances expand to cover their complete reels before potential payouts are evaluated. 

Free Spins 

Three or more Crystal Ball Scatters activate eight free spins. Before the first bonus spin begins, one regular paying symbol is randomly selected as the expanding symbol for the round. 

Whenever enough copies of that symbol appear to create a qualifying combination, the symbols expand vertically to cover their entire reels. Potential payouts are then calculated across the active paylines. 

The structure keeps the initial bonus simple, but retriggers substantially change what can happen during the remaining spins. 

Free Spins Retriggers 

Three or more Crystal Ball Scatters during the feature add another eight free spins. The retrigger also randomly chooses another regular paying symbol to become an expanding symbol. 

Further retriggers repeat the process, meaning several different symbols can eventually gain expanding status during the same feature. Up to nine expanding symbols can become active, turning later stages of a long bonus into a rather crowded magical convention. 

Additional expanding symbols remain active for the rest of the feature once selected.

The base layout consists of five reels and three rows, with up to 10 selectable paylines. Regular potential payouts require matching symbols to appear on adjacent reels from left to right, beginning with reel 1. 

The number of active paylines determines which patterns can produce regular combinations. Premium symbols can start paying from two matching positions, while card ranks require three. 

Most of the mechanical variation sits inside free spins. Expanding symbols cover complete reels when qualifying combinations appear, while each retrigger adds another possible expander alongside the extra spins. Compared with the base game, the bonus therefore grows progressively more complex without replacing the familiar payline structure. 

Fantasy gives us better comparisons than simply looking for another expanding symbol mechanic, so our closest matches come from slots built around magic, mythology and larger than life characters. 

• Le Prechaun: The magical setting shifts from Merlin's medieval world to Irish folklore, with enchanted woodland, a leprechaun disguise and supernatural symbols creating a similarly playful fantasy atmosphere. 
• Medusa's Madness: Greek mythology replaces Arthurian style magic here, but gods, monsters and supernatural powers keep the comparison firmly inside mythological fantasy. 
• Barbarian Fury: The scenery moves towards a harsher medieval inspired battlefield populated by warriors and wild animals, making this a darker thematic alternative to Merlin's magical surroundings. 

Rise of Merlin gives us a familiar expanding symbol structure dressed in convincing fantasy clothing. The first eight free spins don't reinvent much, but retriggers make the bonus considerably more interesting by adding another expanding symbol every time. A sufficiently extended round can therefore look very different from the one we started with. 

The base game is the weaker half. Beyond the Wild Scatter, there isn't much happening before free spins arrive, so anyone familiar with this format will know the routine quickly. Across online casinos, expanding symbol slots are hardly rare creatures these days. Still, the progressive addition of extra expanders gives Rise of Merlin a useful distinction, and the wizard, dragons and crystal balls make the surroundings pleasantly coherent. Merlin doesn't rewrite the spell book, but at least he adds a few pages.