Rise Of Samurai Megaways Slot Review
A shrine gate of carved and gilded timber stands against a sunset bleeding from orange into red, blossom trees catching the last light on a misted hillside. For a game this calm-looking, Rise of Samurai Megaways hides an unusually fussy grid: an extra-deep middle set of reels with a top row that spins on its own, backwards, right to left. It’s the one Megaways layout where the reels themselves are doing something worth watching.
Pragmatic Play built it on six reels with up to 200,704 ways to win, running at 96.56% RTP with medium volatility and a 5,000x ceiling. Bets span 0.20 to 300 per spin. The sequels took the idea further; Rise of Samurai III and Rise of Samurai IV are both worth a look if this one lands well.
Reels, Ways and Symbols
This is Megaways with an unusual quirk. Reels one and six hold up to seven symbols, while the middle four hold up to eight, and the top row of reels two to five spins independently, right to left. On a full board that adds up to a maximum of 200,704 ways, counted live on every spin. All symbols pay left to right on adjacent reels, and only the highest win per combination counts.
The independent top row is the part worth noticing. Because it rotates on its own, a symbol sitting there can complete combinations that the rows below it don’t line up, and it changes independently of the cascade beneath.
It gives the grid a little more movement than the standard Megaways layout without changing how anything is paid. The WILD crest appears on reels two to six and substitutes for everything except the scatter. Every win it helps to form is doubled, in both the base game and free spins. It’s a flat 2x, not a stacked or growing multiplier, and it’s the only boost the base game gets beyond the tumbles.
Wins are multiples of the total bet. The paytable from the top down:
- Red/orange armoured samurai: 1x for two, 2x for three, 4x for four, 10x for five, 20x for six
- Silver-haired warrior: 1x for three, 2x for four, 2.5x for five, 3.75x for six
- Dark-haired woman: 0.3x for three, 0.5x for four, 1x for five, 2x for six
- Blue warrior: 0.3x for three, 0.5x for four, 0.8x for five, 1.5x for six
- Beads/888 symbol and purple flower crest: 0.2x for three, 0.4x for four, 0.5x for five, 1.25x for six
- Blue crest circle: 0.2x for three, 0.4x for four, 0.5x for five, 1x for six
- Green crest, gold crest and arrow/axe crest: 0.1x for three, 0.2x for four, 0.4x for five, 1x for six
- Scatter: 5x for three, 10x for four, 20x for five, 100x for six, paid anywhere
Tumble Feature
After every spin, winning symbols are paid and removed. Everything left falls to the bottom of the screen and new symbols drop in from above to fill the gaps, at the same size as the symbols they replace. Tumbling continues as long as new wins keep forming, and the lot is banked once the sequence ends.
Because each tumble can create fresh combinations from symbols that were already on the board, a single spin sometimes runs for several steps. That’s where the bigger base game results come from: a wild landing mid-sequence doubles whatever it touches, and the tumble keeps moving around it.
Free Spins and the Wheel of Fortune
Three or more scatters anywhere on the reels trigger the free spins round. Before it begins, a Wheel of Fortune spins over two slices, one carrying free spins and one carrying multipliers, and awards a random combination of the two for the round ahead. The multiplier landed applies to the total win of every free spin, and special reels are in play.
Retriggers work the same way. Three or more scatters during the round spin the wheel again, adding a fresh random count of spins and a fresh multiplier to the current values. There’s no limit on how many times this can happen, so a long round can keep compounding on itself for as long as the scatters keep landing.
The win ceiling is enforced mid-round rather than at the end. If a free spins round’s total win reaches the cap, the round stops immediately, the win is paid in full and every remaining free spin is forfeited. It’s a clean cut-off: no limping to the finish on a round that’s already peaked.
Ante Bet and Buy Free Spins
The ante bet raises the stake from a 20x multiplier to 25x. In exchange, the chance of triggering free spins naturally is doubled, with more scatters present on the reels. It runs at 96.67% RTP, a touch above the standard game’s 96.56%.
Alternatively, the round can be bought outright for 100x the total bet, again at 96.67% RTP. The two can’t be combined: with the 25x ante enabled, the buy option switches off. One or the other, never both.
Each route suits a different sort of patience. The ante is the slower spend, raising every spin slightly for a better shot at a natural trigger.
The buy is a single payment for a guaranteed wheel spin at the full base stake. Either way, the round that follows is decided the moment the wheel stops.
Our Honest Verdict
Overall Rating: 7.2/10
Sessions here are quiet ones. You watch a beautiful grid tumble, collect small pieces, and wait for scatters, and the single reason to sit through that is the wheel: the round’s shape and its multiplier are decided by chance in one spin, before a single free game plays, which gives every trigger a small gamble-within-a-gamble the sequels’ fixed spin counts don’t have.
That wheel, plus unlimited retriggers that stack fresh spins and multipliers onto a round already running, is the game’s best idea by some distance. The weakness is everything around it: the base game has a 2x wild and nothing else, and the 5,000x ceiling is modest next to what later samurai entries grew into.
This suits players who’d rather have their bonus round dealt at the wheel than assembled spin by spin, and who like a calm, painterly grid to look at while they wait. Anyone after escalating sticky-wild drama is better served by the sequels. The shrine gate is still open for those who want the simple original.
Rise Of Samurai Megaways FAQs
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What is the RTP of Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
The RTP is 96.56% in standard play. With the 25x ante bet enabled, or when buying free spins, it rises slightly to 96.67%. -
Is Rise Of Samurai Megaways medium volatility?
No, it’s a medium volatility game, which pays out steadily with a range of pays that varies from low to very high. -
How many paylines does Rise Of Samurai Megaways have?
It uses the Megaways system, with up to 200,704 ways to win on a full board. The live counter shows the exact number of ways on each spin. -
What is the grid size of Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
Six reels with variable rows. Reels one and six hold up to seven symbols, while reels two to five hold up to eight, with the top row of those middle reels spinning independently from right to left. -
What is the minimum and maximum bet on Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
Stakes start at 0.20 and top out at 300.00 per spin. -
Can you buy the bonus on Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
Yes. The free spins round can be bought from the base game for 100x the current total bet. The buy option is disabled while the 25x ante bet is switched on. -
How do you trigger free spins in Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
Land three or more scatter symbols anywhere on the reels. A Wheel of Fortune then awards a random combination of free spins and a win multiplier for the round, and three or more scatters during the round retrigger it with no limit. -
What does the wild symbol do in Rise Of Samurai Megaways?
It’s a crest icon found on reels two to six, standing in for every symbol apart from the scatter. Any winning line it contributes to is paid at twice its normal value, both in the base game and during free spins.
