Of all the rodeo sports participated in today, bull riding has to be one of the more spectacular. Not many people would want to be in the same pen as one of those nostril-snorting monsters, but brave riders strap themselves on and attempt to last at least 8 seconds without being bucked off. Some of those beasts can buck alright, and it takes a certain kind of person to even think about wanting to ride one. It also takes a certain person to want to fire up Black Bull, an online slot from software developer Pragmatic Play. This is an American nature slot full of wild animals, dreamy landscapes, and a money symbol collection feature.
If you've ever played Pragmatic Play's slot Treasure Wild, then you'll have a good handle on the features and mechanics on offer in Black Bull since they are more or less the same. On the theme side of things, Black Bull has a Wild West, US Prairie thing going on. So, if you are accustomed to a game like Wolf Gold, then Black Bull's set-up should feel familiar. A 5-reel, 4-row, 20 payline game grid has been placed out in a prairie/desert destination, where birds caw and the sky blazes as the sun sets (or rises). It's all pretty mainstream stuff, and the most rootin'-tootin' thing about Black Bull is its enjoyably energetic rock-infused soundtrack.
>Riding a bucking bull has got to be something of a volatile experience, and so is Black Bull, Pragmatic Play slapping on a 4 out 5 rating in terms of volatility. The RTP is variable, ranging from a maximum default value of 96.51% moving down to a minimum of 94.24%, market dependent. Stakes of 20 p/c to $/€100 can be selected, and players can cling to the virtual bull on any device they prefer.
Collecting money symbols is one of Black Bull's highlights, made more so in free spins due to a progressive element. Until then, the other way of extracting coins is to hit line wins, made up of three to five matching symbols. All pay symbols pay in adjacent reels, left to right, starting from the leftmost reel. Jack to Ace card royals are up first, worth 2x the bet when a five-of-a-kind win lands. These symbols are followed by lizards, a horned creature, an eagle, a wolf, and a black bull as the most valuable of the lot. Hitting a five of a kind premium win is worth a payout of 4-25 times the stake.
>Two other key symbols in Black Bull are the wild and the money symbol. When money symbols land, they display a random value of 0.5 to 50 times the total bet. Money symbol values get collected when wild symbols also land. Every money symbol value is collected by each wild symbol in view. As well as collecting money symbol awards, wilds can also substitute for all normal pay symbols and are worth the same as the bull premium when making winning wild lines.
Landing 6-11 money symbols awards 6 free spins, 12-17 money symbols get you 8 free spins, while 18-20 money symbols in view triggers 10 free spins. Before free spins begin, all values from the triggering money symbols are collected and stored as the starting value for the bonus round's progressive feature.
During the round, when money symbols land, they add their value to the collected amount, and when wilds hit, each one awards the current collected value. In addition, for every 6 money symbols that land during the bonus round, +2 free spins are awarded.
If you'd prefer not to wait for 6+ money symbols to land on their own, and the opportunity is there, players can elect to buy free spins for the cost of 75 times the stake. The RTP when buying free spins increases to 96.69%.
Taken holistically, Black Bull is a step up from Treasure Wild, which was woefully underwhelming in many regards. Black Bull has a lot more life to it, and not just because of its high-paying animal symbols. The theme, if cliched, has been handled well, which is to be expected, really, given Pragmatic Play's expertise in designing North American outdoor slots. Visually it ticks the right box, but it's the music that really brought the game to life. Close your eyes, and you can literally imagine steaks sizzling on a BBQ, a neighbour tossing out cans of root beer from an ice box, fireworks exploding in the distance, while Old Glory flutters in a warm July breeze. Yeah, it sounds like the US of A.
Mute the game, and Black Bull starts to wilt as its gameplay just isn't all that strong. The base game follows a standard money symbol collection formula, but things can heat up in free spins thanks to the progressive aspect. It could be interesting having a decent chunk of change sitting in the pot, getting doled out whenever a wild symbol hits. Like the previous slot, Treasure Wild, Black Bull has the same win cap of 4,500x the bet. However, Black Bull does have a much more favourable max win probability, though, of 1 in 1,140,698.
Compared to much of the competition, those aren't bad odds, all things considered. Black Bull's other stats, such as RTP, are solid as well. When factoring in the head-bobbing tunes and the comforting visuals, there should be a certain level of entertainment value for the right person here. Pragmatic Play has put the features to better use this time around, and Black Bull might appeal to players keen on a Big Bass Bonanza alternative or have had it up to here with fish.
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