Wild Ape is a colorful, jungle-themed video slot with 5 reels and 20 paylines from iSoftBet, a London-based gaming studio that managed to quickly build an impeccable reputation in the online gambling industry. It is known to create high-quality video slots with top-notch graphics, innovative designs, and varied, fun themes. Wild Ape is no exception, taking players to a thrilling adventure in the jungles of Africa.
The slot features beautiful graphics and animations, vibrant colors, and lovely tribal music in the background that intensifies when players hit a winning combination. This happens quite regularly despite the high volatility, cited by the provider. The chance for frequent wins is increased with the re-spins that occur randomly in the base game, stacked symbols, and free spins. Wild Ape is available on all devices from £/€0.20 to £/€20 per spin – while the number of paylines is fixed, the coin value is adjustable from £/€0.01 to £/€1.00.
| Wild Ape Slot Summary | |
|---|---|
| Software Provider | iSoftBet |
| Paylines | 20-40 |
| RTP | 96.01% |
| Min Bet | €0.20 |
| Max Bet | €20.00 |
| Wild Symbol | The gorilla symbol can transform into a Wild. |
| Scatter Symbol | The image of the wheel functions as a Bonus/Scatter symbol, triggering the Free Spins Feature. |
| Bonus Features | When gorillas appear stacked on 3 reels, they activate the Wild Ape Respins, while the Free Spins Feature is triggered when 3 Bonus symbols land on reels 1, 3, and 5. |
| Jackpot | 1,000x |
Symbols and Winning Combinations of Wild Ape Slot
The game is set against a stunning rainforest backdrop where the Ape is the King but along with the gorilla, which is the main character here, plenty of other symbols bring various payouts. There are several regular, low-paying symbols – 10s, Jacks, Queens, Kings, and Aces, that could win up to 200 coins (200x the bet per line). The themed symbols include a toucan bird and a lemur – to form a winning combination, players need to land 3 or more identical symbols on a payline. Getting 5 toucans wins you 250 coins, while 5 lemurs pay 300 coins.
The high-paying symbols are the crocodile and the gorilla but players need just 2 of each type to appear on a line. If 5 crocodiles land on a payline, they pay 400 coins and if 5 gorillas are hit, the payout is 500 coins or 25 times the total bet. The gorilla is not only the top-paying image in the game – it can also transform into a Wild symbol, substituting for all regular symbols in winning combinations.
Normally, the gorilla appears in stacks of 3 images, covering an entire reel. To become a Wild, however, it needs to land in 3 consecutive stacks, triggering the Re-Spins. Along with the Wild gorilla, the slot comes with a Bonus symbol, which appears on reels 1, 3, and 5. It does not pay separately, though, and its only function is to activate the Free Spins Feature.
Bonus Features of Wild Ape Slot
This jungle-themed slot by iSoftBet comes with several bonus features and the first one to notice is the Wild Ape Respins feature. It triggers whenever players land 3 reels full of gorilla symbols. The feature awards players with 3 Respins, during which all gorillas become Wild substitutes. Moreover, the gorilla smashes the reels, extending them to a larger 5×4 reel set. The feature massively increases the winning chances but it does not occur frequently.
The other amazing bonus feature in Wild Ape is the Free Spins round. To activate it, players need to land the Bonus symbol on reels 1, 3, and 5 at the same time. When this happens, the Bonus Wheel will appear on a new screen. Players need to spin it and they can receive up to 20 free spins, which are played automatically at the same bet level.
Once again, the reels are extended during the free spins, while the number of paylines is doubled to 40. But that is not all – up to 50 Wild gorillas can be won on the Bonus Wheel and added to the free spins.
Verdict
Wild Ape is an entertaining and visually appealing game, but more importantly, it is more rewarding than one would expect from a typically highly volatile game. It has a decent theoretical return of 96.01%, while the hit rate is 20.8% as calculated by the iSoftBet team themselves. This means that players are likely to hit a winning combination once in four or five spins.
The best thing about this video slot, however, is the Free Spins Feature, which not only expands the standard reel set but also increases the number of paylines to 40. This way, it effectively doubles the chances of winning.