Is Diamond King Jackpots King of the Pokies?
Lions are magnificent creatures, the proclaimed king of the jungle. They make their way into the world of pokies frequently including in Diamond King Jackpots.
Diamond King Jackpots is the latest addition to Microgaming portfolio. Microgaming is one of the industry’s biggest software development companies. They have some incredible pokies on their books, but many, many considered average. Where does its new Diamond King Jackpots rank?
Diamond King Jackpots Fundamentals
All the fundamentals point to Diamond King Jackpots being a very good poker machine. It runs on a 5×4 layout, which makes a change from everyone using a 5×3 system. That board comes with 1,024 paylines so it feels like you win more frequently.
Microgaming set the RTP of Diamond King Jackpots at 96.44%, which is slightly better than average. The machine’s maximum payout is anything but average because it weighs in at 10,912-times your bet. With a minimum and maximum bet of $0.10 and $25 respectively, the biggest payout weighs in at $1,092.10 and $273,025.
There’s no progressive jackpot with Diamond King Jackpots, but there are four standard jackpots. We’ll touch on that quartet later so keep reading!
What Are the Diamond King Jackpots Symbols?
Diamond King jackpots takes place on an African savannah with the titular King present and correct. The backdrop is basic but effective and the lion’s animations are cool.
Microgaming has gone with the tried and tested royals for the low-value symbols. Nines-through-aces need three on a payline to pay out 0.20x. Landing five awards a 1.00x payout.
Wild animals are the premium symbols on this machine; you only need two to trigger a payment. Meercats and zebras pay between 0.20x and 2.50x. Rhinos and elephants award between 0.50x and 5.00x. Lions, the king, pays out between 1.00x and 10x for landing five.
The full payout table is shown below.
| Symbol | 2 landed | 3 landed | 4 landed | 5 landed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 through Aces | 0.20 | 0.50 | 1.00 | |
| Meercats and Zebras | 0.20 | 0.50 | 1.00 | 2.50 |
| Rhinos and Elephants | 0.50 | 1.00 | 2.00 | 5.00 |
| Lions | 1.00 | 2.00 | 4.00 | 10.00 |
Two other symbols deserve your attention. Diamonds act as wilds and substitute for all symbols except Bonus symbols. An African sunset scene represents that Bonus symbols. Landing 3, 4, or 5 awards 10, 15, or 20 free spins respectively.
What Are The Features, Bonuses, and Jackpots?
The Diamond Meter is one of the first things you’ll notice about Diamond King Jackpots. It’s displayed next to the glorious lion and fills a little each time a diamond wild lands. The Diamond Jackpot feature triggers when this meter fills to the top.
Twelve diamonds appear on the screen and you need to match three jackpot symbols to win that jackpot. Mini pays 20x your bet, Minor 50x, Major 200x with the Mega Jackpot worth a cool 5,000x your stake.
Free spins are the main feature of Diamond King Jackpots. You need at least three sunset symbols to start the free spins round. Any diamond wild that lands anywhere on reels 2, 3, or 4 comes with a random multiplier of 2x, 3x, or 4x. These multiply each other and apply the final total to any wins on that spin. Our playthrough saw us enjoy a 12x multiplier which yielded a 108x win.
It is possible to buy the feature for 50x your stake but only in some areas. The United Kingdom, for example, doesn’t allow the bonus buy feature. We tested this feature out and essentially broke event from our six attempts.
Conclusion
We were worried this pokie would be just another bog-standard Microgaming machine. Our fears were proven correct, unfortunately. It’s not that the machine is bad, it’s average and middle of the road isn’t acceptable in a world where there are some superb pokies.
The machine grows old quickly but it does have some positive points. We are fans of medium-to-high volatility and the Power Range during free spins can dish out big wins. It’s just a shame the king of the jungle didn’t get a machine worthy of his name.
