Ariana is both the name of a slot machine that is offered by Microgaming, and of the main character and symbol that is used inside, a beautiful mermaid. The beauty of the ocean is well known to anyone that has ever tried scuba diving or watched a documentary at some point, and the game does its best to bring that beauty forward. You will notice the corals, plants and schools of fish in the background and among the symbols, but there is also the ever popular treasure chest among them.
Ariana’s 5 reels get a total of 25 paylines, both being typical for a modern slot’s layout. The symbols have among them a wild and a scatter, and they can give you free spins. The stacked symbols are much more common in this game than in other slot machines, another point in the game’s favor. A top jackpot of $12,500 is advertised as well.
Features of Ariana
The two main features of Ariana would be the scatter and the wild symbols, along with the things they can bring you, like the free spins. There are stacked symbols as well, which can be triggered in certain conditions.
All the symbols come stacked on the first reel of the game, and if you get it to occupy all three positions then it turns the highest value symbol from each reel into an expanding symbol. This can result in some high value prizes, or it might not, depending on what symbols are present. One of the symbols is stacked on all the reels, not just the first one, and it’s the image of Ariana that does that.
The wild symbol comes in two forms for the base game, regular and stacked. The stacked version appears only on reel 1 and during the free spins, while the regular wild is available at all the other times. The Ariana Logo is the one chosen to act as the wild and it can substitute for any other symbol, with the one exception being the usual scatter. The wild can also create its own combinations, of up to $1,250.
The Starfish is the other major symbol of Ariana, used as the scatter symbol and awarding both cash prizes and free spins. You get up to $12,500 with its help, when up to five of these scattered Starfish are present on its reels. A minimum of two symbols are sufficient to trigger some sort of prize.
Free Games Feature
While cash prizes need 2+ Starfish, the round of free spins needs a minimum of 3. You get 15 free spins, no matter how many scatters are in place, as long as the minimum requirement is met. The wild symbol comes stacked on the first reel for the duration of the free spins.
Betting options and jackpots
The things you need to decide on in this game include the denomination of the coins and how many of them should each payline get. Up to 10 coins of $0.50 can be used per line, so it goes up to $5. The wager reaches $125 when all the lines are maxed out with their bet. The minimum denomination is at $0.01 and 25 coins will be enough to trigger a spin (all the lines have to be selected).
The game has a $12,500 top jackpot, offered with the help of the scatter symbol. The paytable values change each time you modify the wager, so you always know how much you can win. Regular symbols only give you up to $1,250.
Design and symbols
The design is one of the great things about a properly done slot machine where the action takes place under the ocean’s surface. The plant life and the schools of fish go great together, and they’re both visible in the background picture. The symbols, while they include a certain number of playing cards as well, have the ocean themed images for the higher paying positions, and they’re quite well drawn.
Symbols: Ariana Logo (125x, wild), Starfish (250x bet, scatter), Ariana (100x), Plant (87.50x), Treasure Chest (75x), Coral (62.50x), Ace (30x), King (25x), Queen (20x), Jack (15x) and 10 (12.50x).
Is It Worth Playing?
The game looks great, and it does a decent job with the features and the overall gameplay. Its unusual stacked symbols and the way they can influence the rest of the reels also contribute to the game, so overall I’d recommend it to anyone that’s looking for something interesting.
The Ariana slot machine is offered through the Microgaming platform, so if you want to play it for real or just to practice, look out for casinos that use it.
