Fruit Smasher Slots
Fruit Smasher is, as far as we know, the only video slot to take place in a packing factory. That’s right, a packing factory. You got a problem with that? The fast-paced 5-reeler from Stakelogic has 10 fixed paylines and lets players form wins in both directions, from right to left as well as left to right. The return-to-player percentage is 96.29%.
Fruit Smasher might sound like an old-school pub fruit machine, but in fact, it’s a highly animated and modern slot built for the 21st century. The title has a wild multiplier feature, whereby a special multiplier wild can modify wins, increasing the pay-out tenfold.
There’s also a dropping wild feature, which sees the designated dropping wild consume the entire reel, with re-spins awarded and the wild reels dropping a position. Lastly, there’s a free spins feature, furnishing players with up to 30 free spins in the base game and even more during the bonus stage.
Welcome to the packing factory
You might think that a packing factory is a peculiar setting for a video slot, and in all honesty, you’d be right to think so. Nonetheless, the busy, machinery-clogged warehouse provides a pleasant backdrop, with the foreman standing off to the side of the reels in his work gear. The graphics are needle-sharp and all 15 squares on the grid are populated by packing crates in the colour of fruit. There are eight base play symbols: cherries, pears, lemons, pineapples, strawberries, oranges, melons and berries.
The aim, of course, is to find matching combinations of three, four or five symbols. The coin values stretch from 0.01 to 50, and you can stake between one and ten coins per line. The paylines are fixed at ten.
It must be said that the pay-table is somewhat measly. Even at the top end, you’re looking at just 15 for three, 30 for four and 50 for five watermelon icons – the highest-paying symbol in the game. It’s hardly going to send casino players into hysterics, is it? The rest of the icons’ pay values aren’t even worth dwelling on.
Smashing Wilds
Where Fruit Smasher is hoping to get you is the bonuses.
As stated, Fruit Smasher features two different types of wild. The crate embossed with a white question mark is the multiplier wild and appears on the middle reel. Just like any old wild, it can stand in for other symbols in the game to help you make wins. When it forms part of a matching combination, that payout will be randomly enhanced to the tune of 2x, 3x, 5x, 7x or 10x. Hence the term ‘wild multiplier’.
The dropping wilds, which can land on reels two or four, are essentially expanding wilds, infecting entire reels. When this occurs, the player will be granted a re-spin, after which the wild symbols drop down a position on each reel. This will continue until all the wilds fall off the grid. Wild symbols can substitute for any regular icons except for the scatters.
The fish tank symbol (is that Nemo swimming in the bowl?) is the gateway to unlocking the ubiquitous free spins feature. Simply land three anywhere on the reels and you’ll be gifted an allocation of 10 free spins. Hit four and you’ll be given 20. Five, and the plunder is a generous 30 free spins. Whenever the fish tank scatter lands during the feature, you’ll be provided with extra spins. Every symbol will add an extra spin to your overall tally.
Fruit for Thought
At heart, this is a fruit-themed video slot. The developers can try and dress it up all they like, but the moment you see orange, yellow and cherry-red symbols flying across the reels, you’ll know what’s up. There are pros and cons to this game, as with any other.
The payout numbers, for instance: they aren’t particularly high for all symbols. Take the cherry: it grants just eight credits for five in a line. Eight measly credits for a combination of five matching symbols!
However, the wins come along fairly often. When you factor in the generous multipliers, they can certainly impact your bankroll in a positive way. It’s all about taking the bad with the good and the good with the bad. Why not give this one a go on demo mode to see if you get a feel for it?
