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I decided to try out one of the casinos running Rival software. The casinos are Cocoa, Da Vinci's Gold, Paradise8, and This Is Vegas.
*** SLOT GAMES ***
The big claim to fame here is the "I-slot" interactive slots, supposedly the most revolutionary, cutting-edge slot games ever. When I played a few days ago there were two options: "As the Reels Turn" and "Reel Crime: Bank Heist." A third I-slot game, "Reel Crime: Art Heist" has just been added.
Possibly I overlooked or failed to understand some elements, but I was baffled. "As the Reels Turn" is a soap opera themed game. It's a typical video slot with a couple of different second-screen bonuses. A particular combination on the reels will trigger an advance to a new game level. Between levels, a video depicting the soap opera storyline is shown, and between some levels, a second-screen bonus is awarded.
I didn't bother watching the videos. The bonus games were entirely unremarkable, typically involving a choice of symbols to reveal a hidden bonus amount. Bonus amounts tended to be quite low.
After reaching and continuing past the final level, I was returned to level 1, but apparently they plan to release additional levels in the future. However game play is the same at each level. The only differences are the between-level videos and bonuses.
The Bank Heist game is a little different, and a bit more complicated. The game includes a chase level featuring different symbols on the reels. For no apparent reason, the player is required to lock in a particular bet amount before playing the chase level. The bet amount is a mandatory 5 coins per line, so although my original bet amount was 15 cents, I was required to play at least 75 cents per spin if I wished to continue.
As best I could determine, my only alternative was to never play the Bank Heist game again. There's a button to reset back to the beginning of the level, but no way I could see to back out to the main level.
During the chase level, car symbols on the reels cause either the pursuing or getaway vehicle to move forward. The level ends when the getaway vehicle either is caught or reaches the finish line. The car symbols act as blockers for most payouts, so this level seemed to suck money.
A bonus round is awarded at the end of the level, and the bonus feature differs depending on the outcome, but the bonus for getting away doesn't appear to be any better than the bonus for getting caught. I don't know, maybe the developers wanted to teach the lesson that crime doesn't pay.
Between various levels and features are annoying videos, which I would expect to get old very quickly, although they are skippable.
The regular slots are better. The three-reelers are typical examples of their type, but they treated me very well through prolonged play.
The regular video slots are typical 15-line games, but with a few oddities. An example is the "Metal Detector" game. The pay table is unusually proportioned. A typical symbol may pay 10 for two symbols left to right, only 15 for three of the symbol, and maybe 40 or 50 for four. The result is a lot of small hits and a few large hits, but very few medium payoffs.
The bonus feature requires maneuvering a man holding a metal detector along a beach. A buried object is then revealed and a bonus amount is awarded. There's no rhyme or reason to this. In one instance the buried object is a safety pin and the payoff is 200 coins. Next time OMG it's the Ark of the Covenant! And the payoff is ... 100 coins. WTF!?!
Summing up the slot games, I didn't find any of them revolutionary. But I noticed that every game and every feature is totally luck-based, which in my estimation is a huge limitation on creativity. Admittedly luck-based games are the norm, but to really reward continued play and crank up the loyalty factor, I think the designers need to consider incorporating elements of skill.
*** VIDEO POKER ***
The video poker is like going back in time to a Microgaming casino in 2004. Games are available in either single-line or 4-line options, and with the exception of single-line Deuces, all pay tables appear to be the same as Microgaming. (Rival uses the good Deuces payoffs for both single and 4-line.)
Graphics are slightly flashier than Microgaming, but the overall experience is essentially the same. Kudos to Rival for offering both 5 and 10 cent coin amounts.
Missing from the Rival software is a perfect-strategy autoplay feature. That's OK with me because I think it was a mistake for Microgaming to offer it. The ability to play skill games perfectly effectively turns Microgaming's video poker into 99.5% slots. (Or 99% or 98.5% depending on the game.) Which has largely killed the ability of Microgaming casinos to offer decent incentives.
*** TABLE GAMES ***
Didn't play any, but they offer the usual assortment.
*** CASHIER AND ACCOUNTING ***
The software offers excellent tracking of comp points. According to support, the comp rate ranges from 0.1% for BJ & VP all the way up to 0.4% for slots. But for some reason I earned at the 0.1% rate for all games. I thought it might be because I was playing with a bonus, but the 0.1% rate continued even after the bonus and my withdrawal had cleared.
Bonuses are activated prior to depositing, somewhat like the RTG software. The active bonus information and terms continue to be accessible via the cashier until the bonus has cleared.
The software has a unique feature to prevent bonus abuse -- excluded games are allowed to be played, but bet sizes are limited. I assume this is to prevent a player from doubling up at a table game before clearing a bonus at slots.
Wagering progress toward a bonus does not appear to be trackable within the software, although the comp point counter may be useful for this. Support wasn't especially helpful. They claimed the cashier area would tell me when I was finished. After another inquiry to support, I was advised that I was clear to withdraw, but the software continued to display the active bonus.
Then after some confusion over ID verification, I cashed out successfully.
*** MISCELLANEOUS ***
The software doesn't appear to download any games automatically. Each download initiates when a game is launched for the first time, and it's not possible to play other games while waiting.
I found the slots autoplay feature to be somewhat slow. It would occasionally speed up, but I was never able to achieve consistently rapid play. May have been my computer though.
*** SUMMARY ***
This may be reflective of my reduced expectations after multiple unsatisfactory casino experiences, but I liked the casino and would play there again. For non-bonus play I would still choose a Microgaming casino instead, but a few incentives would swing the pendulum in favor of Rival, at least some of the time. And the Rival casinos do appear to be more aggressive with their bonus offers.
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Originally Posted by sal monella
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