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Ah Begorrah! Another Irish slot I hear you cry and probably with good reason. In the slot world, while companies have tried hard to come up with some new ideas on tried and tested slot themes, when it comes to the Irish, we tend to be enveloped in a rush of pots of gold, shamrocks and lush green fields and, yes, Irish Charms slot does tend to follow this tried and tested theme.
Of course, a lack of originality doesn't mean that this is a poor slot. Admittedly there is a great deal more you could celebrate about the Emerald Isle than these facets time and time again, but it very much depends how the incumbent parts of the slot have been put together as to whether it hits the mark with players. So with that in mind and with a pint of Guinness in hand, let's take a closer look at whether these Irish Charms are going to seduce you.
Overview
Where can I play the Irish Charms slot?
If you are looking for a top quality casino that offers the new 3-reel Irish Charms slot (as opposed to the entirely different 5-reel slot of the same name from a different developer) then look no further than the excellent Spartan Slots Casino.
The casino offers an outstanding new player bonus which sees you earn 25 spins absolutely free when you sign up and then when you make your first deposit, you will receive a 200% bonus. Furthermore you receive 100% bonuses on your following three deposits and on your fifth deposit, you will get a whopping 175% bonus.
Presentation
If you are looking for a slot that pushes the boundaries of technological development then Irish Charms is not going to wow you. What you have here is a slot that is unashamedly harking back to the days of mechanized three reel 'one-armed-bandit' gaming. For some, this slot may be too simplistic, for others it harks back to simpler times when machines could be played for just pennies (as Irish Charms can be) and where things were a whole lot simpler.
Everything you need to see and understand on the slot is on the main screen, the reels are to the right and to the left are the full list of pay lines, running down from the 6,000 coin top prize down to the 2 coin smallest prize for a single scatter symbol anywhere on the reels.
The slot is set against a backdrop of an Irish Shamrock patterned green backdrop and it all looks rather pleasant, although the sound effects and music (or lack of them) does mean that the slot does lack a little atmosphere.
What's on the reels?
All the symbols on the reels are to do with lucky, good fortune and are linked to this or Ireland in some way. The lowest paying symbol is the Beer Mug (which is a scatter symbol and we'll explain how this works in the Other Bonus Features section below). There are three medium value symbols of a Leprechaun's hat, a four-leafed clover and a horse shoe which offer payouts of 15, 25 and 50 coins respectively when landed on a pay line.
However, you can win a smaller value 5 coins when you land any three of those middle value symbols on a pay line which is a nice touch and does give you more wins than you would ordinarily land.
Higher value symbols include the pot of gold (200 coins for three of these on a pay line) and the Lucky 7 symbol is the highest value win offering 1,000 coins if you wager one coin, 3,000 coins if you wager two and the jackpot 6,000 coins if you wager three when playing the game. For this reason alone it makes considerably more sense to wager three coins per spin as opposed to one when playing.
Wild Features
In addition to offering the highest value wins on the Irish Charms slot, all the Lucky 7 symbols on the reels are Wild and will replace any of the other symbols to help create additional winning pay lines, however it should be noted that the Wild symbols don't land as often in the Irish Charms slot as they do on other comparable games.
Free Spins Features
There are no free spins features on the Irish Charms slot as this is a retro-styled game that offers somewhat more simplistic style gaming than a modern video slot.
Other Bonus Features
The only other bonus feature on the reel is the Beer Mug symbol which acts as a scatter symbol in the game. When you land one of the Beer Mug symbols anywhere on the reels it triggers a payout of 2 coins, whereas 2 Beer Mug symbols triggers a 4 coin payout. Land three across a pay line and you trigger a 10 coin payout.
This bonus does tend to land relatively frequently in the game and is one of the more regularly triggered wins on the slot, although its return value is relatively small.
Best Feature of the Irish Charms slot
The best feature of the Irish Charms slot for me is its simplicity. This is a game that will definitely polarize opinion. Some people won't like the lack of bonus features and feel it is too basic in its outlook, however if you are a fan of retro gaming and remember when slots like these were all the rage then Irish Charms is a nice trip back in time.
The ability to wager just small amounts means that this is a slot aimed at the lower stakes player for sure but with a big value jackpot available to be won (especially if you wager 0.50 per pay line) this is a slot which does offer some big value rewards too.
In short, Irish Charms is an unapologetic retro-styled slot. If you love these types of games, especially if they offer simple gaming and a big jackpot to chase, then you will undeniably be seduced by these Irish Charms for sure.
What does Irish Charms slot lack?
The Irish Charms slot lacks many things, it isn't a slot for medium to higher stakes players, the game-play is very simplistic, it only has three reels and a maximum of three pay lines in play and it doesn't boast any free spins round or modern bonus features (other than a simple Scatter).
However, in its defense, Irish Charms never intended to have any of those features as it is not trying to be a modern slot, so I am not going to criticize the slot for that unduly.
That said, I do feel that a bit more care could have been given to the presentation. The sound in particular is not very appealing and lacks any form of atmosphere and excitement to draw you into the slot and I feel that this is a more valid criticism of the game.
Conclusion
Irish Charms is a slot that as soon as you load it up you can start playing as it is so easy to understand and play. The pay lines are so easy to follow and the game-play is quick, simple and cheap enough for everyone to afford without an issue.
It is a low variance game which offers rare big money rewards on the odd occasion but for the most part your wins will be from the bottom half of the pay table, but they will come along regularly and you won't see your bankroll take a hammering.
Irish Charms may lack some of the trappings of more modern slots, but as a retro-styled game it does the job nicely, although a little more thought and work could have gone into improving the sound of the slot in particular.
Ratings
Good Luck!
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