Jade of the Jungle

Jade of the Jungle: Slot Overview

Developer Stakelogic and independent associates Jelly are the teams behind the Central American themed slot Jade of the Jungle. This part of the world is a regular haunt of slots designers, so doing something out of the norm is practically a must if a game is to have any chance of finding an audience. In the case of Jade of the Jungle, the makers have squeezed in two independently spinning game grids instead of one. It's a technique that is gaining traction, but it's not an everyday occurrence, so could this method be the thing to make Jade of the Jungle stand out? Only one way to know.

Right in the middle of Jade of the Jungle are two 3x3 game panels, separated by a swirling stone statue. They are surrounded by trees, vines, bushes, and a step pyramid in the background, so players will have no problem identifying where in the world they are. Overall, Jade of the Jungle is a nice-looking game, not particularly striking, though pleasant all the same. The soundtrack is relaxing too, all panpipes and whatnot while the action is static, before layering a rhythmical drumbeat over the top when the reels are spinning.

Each reel set in Jade of the Jungle has 7 fixed paylines to land winning combinations of matching symbols across. This is a medium-high volatile game, producing a theoretical RTP of 95.30%, which isn't bad in itself, yet when combined with the averageness of everything else, doesn't quite add value. Be aware that RTP comes in a number of lesser configurations, bottoming out at 88.06% in some markets. Regular stakes may be set from 25 p/c to $/€125 per spin or doubled when clicking on the Super Stake bet option. Activating Super Stake unlocks a feature which is not available when playing normally.

Now, a run-through of regular symbols, where from low to high we find four Aztec-y icons, a serpent, a bird, two faces, and a sparkly piece of jade - values for the three most valuable symbols are 4 to 10 times the stake. The final symbol for now is the wild which lands anywhere to replace all symbols except the scatter.

Jade of the Jungle: Slot Features

There are two features to cover here, one being the Super Stake feature players pay extra for, while the other is free spins with a symbol removal system.

Super Stake Feature

If you've switched Super Stake on, there is a chance an extra feature randomly appears. When triggered, a regular paying symbol is chosen. All other symbols except for wilds or the chosen symbol are removed from the reels. Players get 1 spin with additional chosen symbols and wilds added to the reels. Just so you know, the RTP remains the same whether Super Stake is switched on or off.

Free Spins

Scatters appear on reels 1 or 3 on both reel sets. When landing 3 or 4 scatter symbols across one or both reel sets, players are awarded 8 or 12 free spins, respectively. During free spins, whenever a scatter lands, the lowest paying symbol is removed from the reels for the remainder of the feature, and +1 or +2 additional free spins are awarded. The point here, obviously, is to have as many symbols removed as possible until you are only left with the most valuable ones.

Jade of the Jungle: Slot Verdict

Most developers in the slots industry continually push for novelty in an effort to entertain players hungry for new ideas. Sometimes a new concept works, and a studio hits it out of the park, creating the next big thing. Other times it lands somewhere in midfield to entertain for a while, or, a new feature utterly misses the mark, passing by on its way to the great slots garbage compactor never to be seen or heard from again. Jade of the Jungle hovers around the middle while teetering dangerously towards the compactor. Its six reels provoked a minor stab of interest, as did the Super Stake feature and symbol removal free spins, causing the game to start on a positive note.

Interest wanes once you realise Jade of the Jungle is just two 3x3 slots spinning at once. There is little interaction between the two-game panels as well, which is surprising but not a requirement of using multi-grids to power the action. If you were waiting for synced reels or symbol swaps, there's none of that. Nor do they link up in the bonus game into one large 6-reel grid, which is what we first suspected before checking the rules. No, it's just two-reel sets spinning next to each other. Two for the price of one? Kind of, though not really, since the RTP is a little lower than usual and getting hits on both reel sets at once doesn't always happen. The duel reel method might work for players who prefer a longer spin time though we could be grasping at straws now. One exception was when the Super Stake feature triggered and wins generally hit on both grids, sometimes producing better payouts than what we squeezed out of free spins.

It's interesting, Jade of the Jungle's home screen advertised a bonus game that consisted of five win spins a la Pimped with a x5 multiplier on hand boosting payouts. However, Jelly or Stakelogic must have changed their mind during the construction phase and switched to the symbol upgrade system instead. This free spins system works okay when you've knocked out a bunch of the lower-paying symbols - just don't expect Jade of the Jungle to really step up, as the most you can win here is 2,976x your bet.

In the end, Jade of the Jungle was okay for a few spins, a quick trip back to Central America and all that. Yet there's nothing which quickened many pulses. Despite supplying two simultaneously spinning grids there's no major advantage over having just one, creating a gimmicky, 'look at me' impression as much as anything else.