Starmania

Starmania – our review at a glance

Starmania is a slot that may not shine in terms of originality. But maybe it doesn't matter much when the game offers nice winning chances, a high theoretical payback and an overall really nice gaming experience?

We approached this slot with a certain hesitation – isn't it that the whole thing is a bit reminiscent of the Starburst Slot Machine? Well, we actually think that the similarities are actually a bit many, both in terms of game features and appearance. It would have been more fun to see a little more innovative thinking from developer NextGen on this point.

If we ignore this, however, Starmania is a stable slot that is worth testing if you like this type of Game. If we continue the inevitable comparison with Starburst from NetEnt, then Starmania falls relatively flat on the graphic plane. In return, you have better chances of winning, which is perhaps more important for many players.

Among the game's features we find paylines that pay out both ways, stacked wilds and free spins with extra wild symbols.

Win both ways

We have already noted that during the development of this slot machine seems to have sneaked a lot on Starburst. And just like in Starburst, here we find 10 paylines, where you can win both from left and right and vice versa.

This is a nice feature that makes the gameplay a bit more lively and engaging, but at the same time it's nothing we haven't seen before.

Stacked wild symbols

In Starmania, the wild symbols are stacked, which simply means that they sit together three by three. In this way, an entire reel can be covered by wild symbols, which of course results in significantly increased chances of winning.

Otherwise, the wild symbol works as in most other slot machines. They can substitute for all other symbols, with the exception of the Bonus symbol. For example, if you have matching symbols along a Payline on reels 1 and 3, a wild symbol on Reel 2 can complete the combination and ensure that you get your win.

Scatters and free spins with extra wilds

The game's scatter symbol is labeled "Bonus". This symbol can bring winnings regardless of the position on the reels – it is thus independent of the bet lines. 3 or more scatters anywhere on the reels is enough for a win, and you can get up to 200 times the bet.

3 or more scatters also activate the free spin mode, where you get 10 free spins. During these free spins, more stacked wild symbols appear on the reels than in the basic mode. You can trigger more free rounds during ongoing free spins.

Summary

Ptja, what should we say? Starmania is not a bad slot machine-not at all. The game offers a bunch of special features and symbols such as stacked wilds and free spins, as well as a really nice theoretical payback of 97.87%.

What draws down the impression is the lack of originality. Starmania simply feels too much like a clone of the already turbo-popular Starburst Slot Machine. And despite the release of Starmania in 2015, the game cannot compare with Starburst purely graphically. However, we should say that the theoretical payback in Starmania is higher, which may be a reason to at least test the game.

Ultimately, we can only hope that NextGen shows off a little more originality and rethinking in the future. They obviously have the ability to make good and fun slot machines – if they dare to bet fully instead of imitating old successes, they have a bright future.