Goddess Rising Slot Review
Novomatic released the mobile-optimized video slot Goddess Rising in October 2018; The matrix is a 4×5 reel, standard for many online slots. It offers 40 fixed paylines per spin and players can adjust the wagers using the Total Bet button and use the Autoplay slider for hands-free spinning.
As can be expected, the setting is ancient Egypt, and thematic features include pharaohs, Anubis, Horus, scarab beetles, feathers, and whips. Players will also see the basic alphanumeric playing card symbols J, Q, K, and A. Among these symbols, the highest-paying one is the pharaoh, yielding up to 4x the wager for a matching combination.
The game only has one wild symbol, which is the goddess Isis (hence the name of the game), who can rise in a spin only in the 2, 3, and 4 reels. Isis is one of the most powerful goddesses of Ancient Egypt. She is the goddess of the moon, healing, life, and magic, so it is to be hoped that her appearance will breathe new life into what could very well be a dead duck. The wild card expands for a potential fully wild combo, which means players can potentially benefit from 3 fully stacked reels of wilds for each spin.
Goddess Rising Slot Features
Like with most popular video slots, Goddess Rising gives players a chance to get a whole bunch of free games. A player can trigger this feature by nabbing scatter BONUS symbols, which appear to be golden representations of the winged Isis herself. Getting 3, 4, or 5 scatters will multiply the wager by 2, 10, or 100, respectively while giving the player 12 free games. It’s no Amazon Queen, for sure.
While the free game feature is active, the appearance of 1, 2, or 3 wild cards will add 1, 3, or 5 more free spins to the clock, respectively. There are no limits to how many times a player can hit these bonuses as long as the free game feature is active, which is great.
Additionally, an expanded wild will transform symbols into higher-value ones. Falling on all pharaohs during a wild change multiplies a wager by 200.
Goddess Rising also offers players a chance to win the Jackpot, which represents the player can see on top of the reels. Jackpots come in four different variants. Two are fixed and called The Mini and The Minor, which multiply the wager by 5 and 20, respectively. The third type is a progressive jackpot called Major Jackpot, where it finally becomes interesting because it starts at 400. The fourth one is also progressive, and it is called the Grand Jackpot, which starts at 5,000. A Grand Jackpot can get into the 5-figure territory. The prospect of these last two progressive jackpots makes up for the rather paltry maximum win of 200x the wager in the base game.
The appearance of Isis on the matrix can randomly activate the Jackpot feature. When the Jackpot is in play, the reels will be replaced with 12 coins, each of which hides a jewel. Each jewel represents one type of jackpot. Matching 3 jewels means winning that particular jackpot.
Pros
- Unlimited number of possible free spins
- Four types of jackpots, two fixed jackpots and two progressive
- Big payout with the Grand Jackpot
Cons
- High volatility with relatively low potential rewards
- Return to player lower than the industry average
Goddess Rising Slot Review Summary
The visual design of Goddess Rising is nothing extraordinary. They could have done so much more for the appeal of the game by making the background a little more than the faded profile of Isis or a bit more animation when players hit a bonus. Even the sound effects lacked imagination.
Overall, Goddess Rising is not a particularly exciting game, although it is mainly because the potential payout in the base game is a bit disappointing rather than its physical attributes. Even with the expanding wilds and potentially unlimited free spins, the multiplier effect of winning combinations is just not high enough to be really interesting.
The low maximum bet only makes it more of a slog to get into interesting numbers. Add to that the high volatility of the game, which dampens the chances of winning combos or activating bonus features, and it is almost not worth playing the game.
Of course, incurable optimists might feel attracted to the prospect of getting a Grand Jackpot. Other than that, Goddess Rising might not be the best video slot to whet the appetite of new players and low ballers for video slots.
