Streetball Star

Basketball is one of the most popular American sports and while the stars of the NBA may be among the most famous and highly paid athletes in the United States, there exists a counter-culture of players who play the game at grassroots levels across the major towns and cities in the country.

These games, often played with some kind of incentive to win, are often called Streetball and they are the games where many of the top NBA stars of today cut their teeth in the game.

This new proprietary slot from Bodog is based on this more elemental form of the game and it is set in New York City, complete with the sound of honking car horns. The game itself has a number of features including Stacked Wilds, Rolling Reels, Free Spins and a Wild Event bonus feature that is randomly triggered in the base game.

There's no doubt that the Streetball Star slot takes its cue from Microgaming's Sporting Star selection of slots but there's no harm in that. Some of the best slots have been inspired by other games and used similar features and as a result, if you enjoyed the Microgaming series of games then you will love what Bodog have put together here.

So how does this new slot from Bodog shape up? Is it a big three pointer that is all net, or does the ball bounce around the rim before somewhat disappointingly dropping just outside the basket? Let's take a closer look at the key aspects of the slot and find out for ourselves.

Overview

• Game: Streetball Star
• Developer: Bodog
• Reels: 5
• Pay Lines: 243 Ways to Win
• Minimum Bet: 0.50
• Maximum Bet: 100.00
• Jackpot: 250x
• Free Spins Bonus: Yes
• Other Bonuses: Yes
• Progressive: No
• Volatility: Low to Medium

Where can I play the Streetball Star slot?

If you are looking for a top-quality casino to play the Streetball Star slot at then look no further than Bodog Casino. New players can qualify for a massive 500% Super Play Welcome Bonus which has a maximum value of $5,000. Simply make your first deposit with the casino (up to a maximum of $1,000) and Bodog Casino will match your deposit with a 500% bonus, offering you the potential to play with six times more than you deposited. This bonus does have a maximum cash out value and a 35x play through requirement.

You can also elect to take a 100% No Max Welcome Bonus which sees you land a 100% Double-Your-Money starter bonus when you make your first deposit, but when you have completed your 25x play through requirement, there is no limit on the maximum amount you can cash out with this bonus.

You can also get similar bonus deals available if you fund your account using bitcoin. There's a 600% Super Play Bitcoin Welcome Bonus available which offers customers a massive 600% Bitcoin Bonus on their first deposit (up to a maximum of $6,000) and you can cash out a maximum of 10x your deposit on this bonus.

There's also a 150% No Max Bitcoin Bonus which as the name suggests does not have the maximum cash out value attached but which offers you a smaller initial bonus when you start playing.

Presentation

The presentation of the Streetball Star slot is, to be honest, lacks a bit. The sound is of a typical New York street, complete with voices and car horns, but there's little in the way of basketball noise and the music that plays when you spin the reels is somewhat ill-fitting to the game. The graphics are clear but a little simplistic and the lack of dynamism in the background is also a shame as a bit of animation showing a street basketball game in play would have given the slot a real lift.

The reels have been animated nicely and the different bonus features do give the slot a touch of excitement but the game could have been a little more pleasing on the eyes and ears. Don't let this put you off as there's some great features in this slot as you will find out if you continue reading!

What's on the reels?

There are a total of nine different standard symbols on the reels and each pays out when you land three or more across the reels from left to right. Wins for three symbol combinations though are very small starting at just 0.02 per spin (at the 0.50 bet) which is a tiny amount and indeed any 3-symbol win won't offer you a pay out of any more than 60% of your total bet. It is only really when you start to hit five-symbol combinations across the reels that you start to make profitable wins.

All the symbols are based on New York or street basketball and include a NYC graffiti piece, the Statue of Liberty, a pair of sneakers and several shots of street basketball players in action.

Wild features

The main Wild symbol is the Streetball Star logo, and this can appear on all the reels but on the third, fourth and fifth, the Wild symbol can be stacked which can result in multiple symbols appearing on these reels (or even turning it totally Wild). The Wild symbol substitutes for all the symbols on the reels apart from the Scatter although it does not award a multiplier when used as part of a win which is a little disappointing.

Free Spins features

The basketball is the Scatter symbol on the slot and when you land three, four or five of them across the reels you will win a cash prize of 5x, 50x or 250x your bet. In addition, you will also trigger 15, 20 or 25 Free Spins depending on the number of Scatter symbols landed. During Free Spins a progressive Multiplier Trail is in play as we will explore below.

Other bonus features

The other bonus features on the slot to note is the Rolling Reels feature which triggers on any win and which will see the symbols part of that win, covered by spray paint and they then disappear, allowing symbols to drop down from above and potentially create additional wins from the same spin.

During Free Spins this Rolling Reels feature will trigger a progressive Multiplier Trail on successive wins which will increase the value of the wins from the standard 1x up to a maximum of 10x the stated amount and this can lead to some of the bigger value wins available on the Streetball Star slot.

The other bonus feature to look out for is the randomly triggered Wild Event bonus which is where one or two reels out of the middle three reels can turn completely Wild on a spin and offer you a chance at a better value cash prize.

Best feature of the Streetball Star slot

Although there are lots of great features on the Streetball Star slot, including a fine Free Spins bonus, plentiful Wilds (including stacked Wilds and the chance to turn up to two reels Wild with the Wild Event bonus), for me the best feature is the Rolling Reels aspect of the game as this can turn any win into a series of wins and during Free Spins will trigger a Multiplier Trail which can massively increase the value of subsequent Rolling Reel wins.

What does the Streetball Star slot lack?

For me the Streetball Star slot doesn't really lack anything in terms of the content of the game itself, but what it does let itself down with is a rather lackluster presentation. When you consider how dynamic street basketball is, the fact that the slot is static and unchanging is a little disappointing and the low value wins in the base game, which can be as little as 1/25^th of your bet are another aspect of the slot that is aggravating, although you can put together several lower value wins to increase the overall value of a win thanks to the Rolling Reels feature.

Conclusion

The low value of some of the wins aside, and apart from the fact that the presentation lacks just a bit in oomph, the Streetball Star slot is a fine effort from Bodog. I do like the different bonus elements and what works well is how they combine with the Wilds and Rolling Reels features to increase the value of those lower value wins. Overalll, this is a slot you will keep coming back to play time and time again.

Ratings

• Presentation: 12 / 20 - It's clear that the developer for this Bodog proprietary game has tried to get a 'New York' feel with a towering skyline and a backdrop of sounds including beeping car horns and voices, but the overall effect is somewhat underwhelming and the lack of dynamics in the background together with an uninspiring choice of music means that the presentation of the slot isn't the best.
• Game-play: 15 / 20 - Where the Streetball Star slot does score well for me is in terms of the game-play. This is a low to medium variance slot and wins come along frequently and with the Rolling Reels feature (or whatever you care to call it), these wins can create additional wins from a single spin and the good thing is, they do occur relatively frequently and you can put a run together of wins from a single spin which combines several smaller wins into a bigger value win. The bonus features give the game added excitement especially the stacked Wilds. This is a game that doesn't look like much but is good fun to play.
• Bonus Features: 15 / 20 - Part of the appeal of the Streetball Star slot is the fact that it does have some excellent bonus features. In the base game this includes Stacked Wilds on the reels (which are useful in triggering plentiful wins) and a special Wild Event bonus which can turn up to two reels Wild. Add to that a decent Free Spins round where up to 25 Free Spins can be won and it is easy to see why the slot does hold your attention when playing.
• Entertainment Factor: 15 / 20 - If you are a fan of the Microgaming series of sporting star slots (such as Rugby Star, Football Star for example) then you will love the Streetball Star slot. This is Bodog's version of those kind of games and in truth, it has just ported the main aspects of these games into a street basketball setting. If imitation is the most sincere form of flattery then Streetball Star is paying a big compliment to the Microgaming series of games.
• Play Value: 14 / 20 - You normally get great play value on Low to Medium variance slots but there's one thing that slightly holds back the Streetball Star slot and that is the low value of some of the wins. It is a bit of a disappointment when you wager say 0.50 per spin and you end up with a win of 0.02. That's just 1/25^th of your bet and that is a very small winning amount. These smaller wins can add up due to Rolling Reels, but they do mean that the value for winning isn't quite the same as similar slot games.
• Overall 71 / 100 - Streetball Star is a fun game to play. It may not look the most impressive, exciting or dynamic slot in terms of presentation, but the slot has it where it counts most in terms of a fun and easy to follow game play, nice bonuses that work well with the game and the chance to win up to 250x your bet if you can hit the five scatters. Base game wins tend to be small, but the Rolling Reel feature can increase their value and that does work well. This is a fun and enjoyable slot to play for all sports fans, especially those that love street basketball.

Good Luck!

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