Marlin Masters Demo
Marlin Masters Slot Review
“Give a man a fish and he eats for a day; teach a man to fish, and he eats for a lifetime” These are the wise words of popular provider, Hacksaw Gaming, which resonate in their latest release, Marlin Masters!
Take to the open water and learn the art of fishing in Marlin Masters, where the biggest fish are found to be worth a fortune. According to our knowledge, Marlin Masters is the first Fishing Slot from Hacksaw Gaming, but it’s not the first on the iGaming market.
Software providers such as Nolimit City, MaxWin Gaming, and 4ThePlayer have taken the plunge, but it’s Reel Kingdom who holds the crown for the most notorious fishing series.
The Big Bass series has influenced most providers when creating their own fishing slot, but has Hacksaw Gaming also used it for inspiration? Let’s play on and find out!
Base Game & Features
Marlin Masters is a 5-reel, 4-row Video Slot with 14 active pay lines and a variety of bet sizes between £.€0.10 and £.€100 per spin. Wins are established when 3 or more matching symbols land from left to right, starting from the leftmost reel.
Of the 4 High-paying (fish) symbols, the highest-paying produces payouts between 1x and 7.5x your bet. Low-paying symbols fall to A, K, Q, J, and 10 card suits. Wilds substitute for all paytable symbols.
Alongside the High Volatility rating, Marlin Masters also includes an overall RTP of 96.24% and a max win cap of 7,500x your bet. There is also an Autoplay and Turbo Mode option for non-UK players.
Lootlines
Special Marlin symbols are dynamic Cash Prize symbols between 1x and 1,000x your bet. The value displayed on the symbol represents the actual payout that is awarded if the Marlin symbol is collected.
If the value of a Marlin symbol is too large to display, it will appear shortened to 2 decimal places. The displayed value will always be the minimum amount you can be awarded. The full amount may be greater than the displayed value, but never less.
Catch Them All! Feature
The collection of Marlin symbols requires 3 or more to land within a winning pay line. If there is at least 1 Fisherman symbol on the grid, it will gather up each Marlin symbol and its value individually.
The Fisherman symbol may also land with a Multiplier between x1 and x20, which is applied to the value of Marlin symbols upon collection. Fisherman symbols cannot collect the value of other Fisherman symbols. Please note, that a maximum of 1 Fisherman symbol can land on each reel at any one time.
Bonus Buy
- Bonushunt Featurespins: Each spin is 5 times more likely to trigger a Free Spins mode (3x your bet)
- Fishy Featurespins: Each spin guarantees at least 1 Fisherman and 2 Marlin symbols to appear (50x your bet)
- Reel It In: Awards 10 Free Spins with the Marlin Progress Bar (65x your bet)
- Off The Hook: Awards 15 Free Spins with an extra powerful Marlin Progress Bar (200x your bet)
Reel It In!
Landing 3 FS Scatters in the base game triggers the Reel It In Free Spins mode, awarding 10 Free Spins.
During this round, the Marlin Progress Bar is displayed above the main reel set. Each Fisherman symbol that hits is collected, which is displayed on the Marlin Progress Bar.
The collected Fisherman symbol increases the bar by +1 Step. This happens regardless of whether the Fisherman symbol collects Marlin symbols or not. Every 4th Fisherman collected causes the round to retrigger, awarding the following:
- Upgrade 1: Awards +10 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x2 which applies to all Marlin symbols collected
- Upgrade 2: Awards +10 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x4 which applies to all Marlin symbols collected
- Upgrade 3: Awards +10 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x10 which applies to all Marlin symbols collected
Off The Hook!
Landing 4 FS Scatters in the base game triggers the Off The Hook Free Spins mode, awarding 15 Free Spins. This round guarantees Fisherman symbols land with a minimum Multiplier of x2.
In this round, the Marlin Progress Bar from Reel It In has been given even more powerful upgrades – these include:
- Upgrade 1: Awards +15 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x4 which applies to all Marlin symbols
- Upgrade 2: Awards +15 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x10 which applies to all Marlin symbols
- Upgrade 3: Awards +15 Free Spins and guarantees a Multiplier of x15 which applies to all Marlin symbols
Plenty Of Fish In The Sea
Landing 5 FS Scatters in the base game triggers the Plenty of Fish in the Sea mode, awarding 10 Free Spins.
In this feature, all Marlin symbols are guaranteed to hit with a value of 5x your bet or more. This round also guarantees that at least 1 Marlin and 1 Fisherman symbol appears with each spin.
Our Verdict
It doesn’t seem like long ago when Fishin’ Frenzy was the biggest fish in the sea. Nowadays, Big Bass Bonanza is what comes to mind when you think of fishing slots, of which there are plenty, perhaps even too many. Few can escape the clutches (or finns) of the bass or marlin, with even the likes of Nolimit City jumping on the bandwagon with their unconventional fishing offering with Ugliest Catch.
Perhaps fishing slots are just a rite of passage, and though late to the party Hacksaw Gaming has arrived with their offering, which seems to be fairly conventional. It’s not just conventional in theme, but in function as well. Marlin Masters is very similar to Big Bass Bonanza, and the ‘super’ version of the bonus doesn’t seem to be as different from the normal round as others in the Hacksaw Catalogue are.
Many of their games offer completely different modes, but this one simply increases the multiplier of the fisherman and makes the multiplier increments between upgrades larger. The best bonus round here does feel quite effective with Marlin symbols that have a guaranteed x5 multiplier. but again it’s more or less the same bonus round.
Overall, Marlin Masters feels very safe, not that inventive and almost an obligatory release from Hacksaw Gaming. It’s the result of no great brainstorm or a drawing board full of ideas, but rather an amalgamation of the ideas of others sprinkled with a touch of their own. If you like Fishing Slots then Marlin Masters will suit you fine, but if you’re a fan of Hacksaw Gaming for their innovative prowess then Marlin Masters might disappoint.
