Rich Wilde and The Wandering City

Rich Wilde is quickly becoming a household name in the gambling sector, still the favourite wanderer amongst many despite John Hunter trying so earnestly to take the crown.

The team at Play’n GO have sent Rich, and even his daughter Cat, on so many quests we’re starting to wonder if he ever gets any time off, but it seems the constant adventuring has started to take its toll as he’s now got a beard, flecked through with grey. Either that, or he’s just preparing for the subzero temperatures he has to endure in today’s adventure – Rich Wilde and The Wandering City.

With wins on offer up to 10,000x bet, this highly volatile release boasts 243 ways to win, and a default RTP of 96.20%.

Rich Wilde and The Wandering City Base Game

Things have taken on an Aztec theme this time around as we explore a city hidden in the valley of the Andes between mountains of diamonds and gold – the Wandering City, to be exact.

As Rich hunts for treasure we’re treated to views of snowy mountains with sunlight shining brightly from the top, and snowflakes falling around us.

Rich Wilde and The Wandering City Base Features

Taking place across 5×3 reels, Rich Wilde and The Wandering City features 243 ways to win, with wins formed by matching at least 3 non premium or 2 premium symbols on adjacent reels, beginning with the leftmost reel. Symbols available begin at the lower paying end, with 9, 10, J, Q, K and A, awarding wins between 0.2 and 0.3x bet for 3 of a kind wins, up to values between 0.8 and 1x bet for 5 of a kind wins.

At the premium end, daggers and statues award wins between 0.2 and 2.5x bet for wins between 2 and 5 of a kind, whilst skulls award wins between 0.3 and 3x bet, again for 2 or 5 of a kind matches. Rich Wilde himself is the highest paying symbol, rewarding players with wins of 0.4x bet for 2 of a kind, up to 4x bet values for 5 of a kind matches. Finally, diamonds are both Scatters and Wild symbols, awarding the same win values as Rich Wilde.

Rich Wilde and The Wandering City Features 243 Ways to Win

Multiplier

Within the base game, a cumulative multiplier is available on the middle 3 reels – each x2.

When these reels light up, if a win occurs on that reel, the multiplier will be applied to the win.

If more than one reel lights up and wins occur across multiple reels, the multipliers are multiplied together before being applied to the win – giving a potential for multipliers of x8 within the base game.

3 Scatters Trigger Free Spins

Rich Wilde and The Wandering City Bonus

Land 3 or more Scatters to trigger an initial 10 free spins. At the beginning of free spins, a special expanding symbol is randomly chosen.

On every spin, the chosen symbol will expand to cover all ways to win, provided a minimum of 2 land in view if it is a premium. 3 special symbols are required to land in view to expand if the chosen symbol is a non premium. Symbols will expand after all normal wins have been calculated.

During free spins, the 3 middle reels can continue to light up and activate multipliers of x2, which will also be applied to any expanded wins that cover these reels.

Multipliers are multiplied together if more than one is activated, for a potential of x8. Landing 3 Scatters during the feature will award +10 additional free spins.

Free Spins Feature an Expanding Symbol

First Impression

You always think you’ve seen everything when it comes to ‘book’ style releases with expanding symbols. Often, this feels truer than ever when we see release after release with the same mechanics, the same features, and no changes. Rich Wilde and The Wandering City does add a few tweaks, beginning with 243 ways to win rather than the usual 10 fixed win lines.

Next is the idea of 3 win multipliers present in the middle reels, multiplying together when all are activated – not unlike Dr Toonz. As you can see from the screenshot above, this does add a huge dose of potential in the bonus – even without 5 of a kind wins, and without a premium symbol revealed as the expanding symbol. With the potential to expand premiums on all 5 reels, multiplied by x8 it’s easy to see how wins up to 10,000x bet are available in this release.

On a statistical side, volatility is high at 9/10, and default RTP is 96.20%, but other settings are available so if this is something you’re passionate about, be sure to check. Graphics are smart and although the theme isn’t ground breaking, it’s nice to see a book style release without the Egyptian backing. Overall, a nice release from the team, and a good option for players who do love expanding symbols.

*The screenshots taken of games reviewed on this site are taken from Demo Play, as reviews are often written before games are released for real play.