Release the Kraken Megaways is a video slot developed by Pragmatic Play that immerses players in a thrilling underwater adventure. The game's theme revolves around the mythical sea creature, the Kraken, and its perilous encounters with pirates and explorers. The atmosphere is dark, mysterious, and filled with a sense of anticipation as players navigate the treacherous depths of the ocean. The game's visual design is stunning, with vibrant colors, detailed graphics, and animations that bring the Kraken and its underwater world to life.
The Kraken, a legendary sea monster, is the central character of the slot. Its menacing presence looms large throughout the game, adding to the suspense and excitement. Other characters featured in Release the Kraken Megaways include pirates, sailors, and various sea creatures.
Core Game and Mechanics
Release the Kraken Megaways is played on a 6-reel grid with a variable number of symbols per reel (2-7), offering up to 117,649 ways to win. The game utilizes the popular Megaways mechanic, where the number of paylines changes with each spin, adding to the excitement and potential for big wins.
The core gameplay involves matching symbols across adjacent reels to form winning combinations. The game features a cascading reel mechanism, where winning symbols are removed and replaced with new ones, potentially leading to multiple wins on a single spin. This feature adds to the game's dynamism and increases the chances of landing larger payouts.
Bonus Features
Release the Kraken Megaways offers a variety of bonus features that enhance the gameplay and increase the potential for significant wins. These features include:
- Mystery Symbols: These symbols can appear randomly on the reels and transform into any other symbol, including high-paying ones. This feature adds an element of surprise and can lead to unexpected winning combinations.
- Wild Respins: When three or more wild symbols land on the reels, the Wild Respins feature is triggered. During this feature, the wild symbols become roaming wilds, moving to different positions on the reels between respins. Each new wild symbol that lands during respins awards an additional respin, potentially leading to multiple wins and increasing the overall payout.
- Guaranteed Win: On random non-winning spins, the reels will reshuffle to produce a guaranteed win worth at least 10 times the bet. This feature ensures that players are always rewarded with a win after a certain number of losing spins, providing a safety net and maintaining engagement.
- Free Spins: The main bonus round is triggered by landing 3 or more scatter symbols, awarding 6 initial free spins. Before the round begins, players pick from a selection of chests, with the number of picks equal to the triggering scatters. These chests can reveal various upgrades, such as additional free spins, starting with an extra roaming wild, increased global win multiplier, or a guaranteed minimum number of ways to win for each spin. During free spins, any wild that lands becomes a roaming wild, and the global multiplier increases by 1 if two roaming wilds occupy the same position. Landing a scatter on the rightmost reel awards an extra free spin and an additional chest pick.
- Feature Buy: Players can opt to purchase direct entry into the free spins round for 100x their bet (with 3 scatters) or 150x their bet (with 4, 5, or 6 scatters). This feature allows players to bypass the regular game and access the bonus round immediately, although it comes at a cost.
One of the standout features of Release the Kraken Megaways is the chest-picking bonus round that precedes the free spins. This innovative mechanic adds an extra layer of excitement and player interaction, as players choose from a selection of chests to reveal various upgrades. The ability to influence the outcome of the free spins round enhances the overall gameplay experience and provides a sense of control for the player.
The slot is part of the “Release the Kraken” series, following the original Release the Kraken and Release the Kraken 2. Each entry in the series has presented a different take on the mythical sea monster theme, with this latest version incorporating the Megaways mechanic for increased winning potential. Unlike its predecessors, which fluctuated between terrifying and cute depictions of the kraken, this version strikes a balance, creating a more neutral tone.