All things shiny and expensive make great online slot themes, which is why every decent slot developer has at least one treasure-themed game in its repertoire. Playtech’s Desert Treasure offers a fantasy quest for gold and riches through the hot and dangerous sands of the Egyptian desert. Released back in 2006, the reels on this game don’t provide the most breathtaking of graphics, but the bonus round is more fun and the well constructed setting provides a nice playground for the imagination. This Playtech slot is a little more poised and self-assured, perhaps, than some of its comic-book superhero games with their fanfare and noise.
Setting the scene
This adventure takes place in view of the great Egyptian pyramids. In the background the sun scorches the sand dunes as you spin the reels in search of treasure and water – the essence of life. With your trusty compass and map in hand, and a camel for transport (what else?) you’ll encounter beautiful Egyptian princesses and a mysterious Bedouin merchant bearing gifts. That’s not to mention prickly cacti and all the dangerous and nasty creatures that lurk in the desert.
Symbols
- The wild symbol is a golden statue of a hissing Cobra with ruby-red eyes. The wild replaces all symbols except the scatter or bonus.
- The scatter symbol is a mysterious dark-haired beauty. If you’re in luck she just might wink at you. In real-money mode she’ll multiply your payout by your total bet. If she online casino pops up three times on the reels after one spin, you’re rewarded with ten free games and tripled winnings.
- A compass and map make up the bonus symbol. When triggered in a payline the compass needle jumps. Land three to five consecutive bonus symbols on any active payline starting from the left, and this activates the bonus round.
- Other specialty symbols include a little oasis of water surrounded by palms, a camel, and a Bedouin merchant in traditional dress and headgear. The camel walks, when activated, and the water and palms trees pulsate (blowing in the desert breeze perhaps?).
- The rest of the symbols are high value playing cards from 10 to Ace. The royal cards are represented by one golden letter only (J, Q, K, A). Each card has its own little visitor though: check out the beetles, hairy spiders, scorpions and snakes. All the playing card symbols pulsate when triggered.
Wagers and jackpots
This is a five-reel, 20 payline slot. The maximum jackpot (for five wild symbols) is 10,000 coins and the minimum is five coins. Coin values range from 0.01 to 5 in the relevant currency when playing for real money. Note that unlike some of Playtech’s more recent releases, there is no automatic spins feature on Desert Treasure.
Other Ways to Win
- Bonus Round – welcome to the secret oasis! When the bonus round is triggered you are automatically whisked away to the shore of sparkling blue lake fed by a waterfall. A Bedouin merchant welcomes you and asks you to select three gifts. Click on your three selected items (you have vases, treasure chests, etc. to choose from). The amounts revealed are added to your winnings.
- Dollar Ball Progressive Jackpot – play Desert Treasure in real-money mode and you’ll be able to join progressive jackpot side game. You can enable or disable the progressive with just a click of your mouse; then you select five numbers, and the progressive works away in the background as you play. Numbers are drawn automatically for every spin. If all five match your chosen numbers, the whole progressive is yours (there are smaller prizes too for matching just one or two numbers).
Music, audio and graphics
Playtech have added a few Middle Eastern-style jingles to the bonus round and paylines, which lend the game some fun and atmosphere. The graphics themselves are fair, and animation is a little on the light side, but don’t forget that this is an older slot. Sometimes less is more in any case.
The Last Word…
All in all, for a 2006 release, we think Desert Treasure is not bad and still has general appeal. We give it 7 out of 10. Extremely playable.
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