Far West Slots
Far West sounds like the latest child in the Kimye dynasty, a spoilt sibling destined to join North West in living a pampered life of excess and indulgence. That may yet come to pass, but as it stands, Far West is in fact a 5-reel slot from Portomaso Gaming.
Playing it won’t furnish you with the riches and reputation of Kanye West, but that’s not to say you can’t become rich by most people’s standards. Play your cards – or rather your reels – right, and who knows what could happen? There’s money to be made and fun to be had, but to achieve either, you’ll need to gen up on what makes Far West tick. Here we go then…
Panning for Gold, Way out West
Far West is a colourful and feature-rich slot from Portomaso Gaming. The Malta-based company produce sophisticated slots that feature eye-catching graphics and smooth animation. Far West certainly achieves all that, even if it doesn’t hit the heights of Portomaso Gaming’s finest creations.
The action unfolds in a one-saloon town somewhere in the back of beyond. This is the gold rush era, when Americans ventured west in their thousands in search of fortune and adventure. The cartoon graphics, reminiscent of Looney Tunes, include every cowboy stereotype that’s synonymous with the genre: cactii, bulging money sacks, pistols and saloon doors that bang in the wind.
West is Best
The sound effects are every bit as chirpy as the characters who feature in Far West, bleeping merrily every time you roll the reels or land a bonus, while a banjo strums away insistently.
Five reels and 25 lines are where the action unfolds, as you chase not one but two jackpots: the game’s mini jackpot and a significantly larger mega jackpot. Before you can set your sights on the big one, there are a few basic settings you may wish to tweak.
The purple spin button, with two arrows interlaid, occupies the bottom centre of the screen, with a small blue cutaway built in. This is the autoplay feature. When hitting spin, be careful not to trigger it by mistake and rattle through all your credits. Also along the bottom of the screen are controls for setting the maximum bet, the number of active lines and the number of coins per line. This will be familiar stuff to anyone who’s played a video slot before. Between 1 and 10 coins can be staked on any payline, while the total bet amount can vary from 0.01 to 50.
There’s a New Sheriff in Town
In Far West, you play as Wes Flagstaff, the sheriff tasked with restoring law and order to this lawless town. The game’s other protagonist is Dynamite Buck, the dastardly gold thief. Other symbols you’ll see spinning into view include a totem pole, a sheriff’s star, a bottle of whiskey and a horse.
Activate the bonus game by lining up 3 bonus symbols and you’ll be taken through to a feature that calls for putting your money where your mouth is and proving you’re the fastest hand in the west by shooting the bottles. Look out for the appearance of Jack the barman, who’ll furnish you with a bonus plus a couple of fingers of stiff liquor for your trouble.
While the animations are subtle and subdued in regular gameplay, Far West comes to life once you score a win on an active payline, with sound effects and flashing symbols galore. Look out for the wild symbol, which can substitute for any of the symbols except for scatter and bonus. Scatters will secure win spins, with 3, 4 and 5 notching 10, 15 and 20 free spins, accompanied by a multiplier of 3.
Going for Gold
Far West proves to be a highly entertaining game, one that is certainly more rewarding than first impressions may suggest. It’s hard to find fault with the amiable characters and upbeat sound effects, while the prospect of two jackpots to chase provides ample incentive to keep on spinning those reels.
With a difficulty level that’s pitched just right – the bonus game comes around often enough, and the wild and scatter symbols aren’t shy either – Portomaso Gaming have come up trumps again. It’s not the most original slot out there, but it might just be one of the most fun, and that’s good enough. Far West isn’t worth purposefully seeking out, but if it’s featured in the online casino where you’re playing, look out your sharp-shooter and mosey on over.
