NetEnt is back after what seems like an indefinite vacation to release a new version of one of their iconic slots powered by Big Time Gaming’s Megaways platform. The laid-back gem-filled spectacle Dazzle Me has been revamped this time around. Everything about the original has been probed, stretched, or extended in the new version, and it’s not as chill as the old one was. The end effect is a true 2.0 experience, so visually stunning that even die-hard fans of the original will want to wear sunglasses.
NetEnt’s Dazzle Me Megaways is the company’s fourth slot machine to feature the Megaways format; the other three were all reimaginings of older games. With the exception of Divine Fortunes Megaways, which was met with mixed reviews, all of the others, including Dazzle Me Megaways, have had a fruity, sweet, and cheerful mood. The sixth reel has been moved to the outside of the grid, which is the first thing that players will notice is different. The number of possible winning combinations has increased to 99,225 because to the new 3-3-4-4-5-5 layout. On every spin, reels hold anywhere from 2 to 9 symbols each, upping the suspense factor. The remainder of the screen is still the same, consisting of a haze of lights or whatever.
Gambling from as little as 10 pence up to £/€50 per spin is allowed on any device. NetEnt’s games, as has been the usual, provide many RTP iterations, the default being 96.10%. Meanwhile, volatility is guaranteed to be greater than the initial low setting, albeit perhaps not to a ludicrous degree. Dazzle Me Megaways may be able to trigger when the appropriate symbols fall into place, but doing so proved challenging in our tests. The difficulty of gaining access to bonus spins is the primary factor.
The paytable is full of good cheer, with its four-leaf clovers, hearts, bells, and 7s joining the six low-pay gem symbols. Six of a kind is only worth half to three times the bet, so you’ll have to hit some high numbers to make any headway. The large, glistening diamond wild is ready to assist you by replacing any symbol other than the scatter.
Features of the Slot Machine Dazzle Me Megaways
To win Megaways, you need only get matching symbols on adjacent reels, starting with the leftmost reel. With a gratifying pop, the avalanche function sweeps away winning combos to make way for new symbols to fall into the empty cells below. It is possible to win many times, and this will continue to happen until no more winning combinations appear.
Dazzling Wild Reels replaces the outdated connected reels feature that NetEnt removed. Sparkling Wild Reels can appear on any spin in the main game and are always in play during free games. When this feature is engaged, up to three of the reels (2–6) are chosen at random before each play to become Dazzling Wild Reels. Avalanches of losing symbols are possible in the main game, and wild symbols come on the first spin.
When you get four scatters in any location, you get eight free games. If there are more than four scatters in view, each additional scatter awards an additional four spins. A chamber with orange lighting, similar to that seen in BTG’s Star Clusters, serves as the new setting for the bonus game. In the free games, wilds might occur either on the Dazzling Wild Reel itself or in avalanches, and there will always be at least one of these reels in play. Each Dazzling Wild Reel has a counter above it that indicates how many wild symbols have appeared there. Each counter begins at 2, and gains 1 for each winning combination that includes a wild symbol appearing on that reel.
Slot Review: Dazzling Megaways
While I enjoyed my time with Dazzle Me Megaways, I don’t think it has a lot of staying power. The gameplay is OK, and the visuals are pleasing but lifeless. After a while, it does start to sound the same. Dazzle Me Megaways may not be for you unless you were already a big fan of the original Dazzle Me slot or you’re looking for a Megaways slot with an unusual layout. It would have been nice if there was some sort of added bonus, like free spins or something. It’s interesting to see that rather than coming up with new concepts to tag the Megaways name to, NetEnt continues to favor makeovers, and fans of older games are no doubt lapping them up.
So far, bonus games have been relatively hard to activate in all three of NetEnt’s Megaways makeover games. Dazzling Wild Reels and other bonus features were consistently present, forming winning combinations and keeping players’ spirits high. Bonus rounds, huh? They ended up being a much tougher obstacle. So much so that it cast a shadow of dread over even thinking about playing Dazzle Me Megaways again and again. To lighten the mood of what can be a slog, perhaps this is why every makeover game so far has had a bright, fluffy, positive look. Of course, if you make it to the bonus round, there are rewards waiting for you, up to 10,000 times your initial wager.
Dazzle Me Megaways is a successful upgrade to the Megaways system. It improves upon the features of the original Dazzle Me slot and skillfully blends in Megaways into the non-standard grid layout.