The loading page for Black Gold Rush is a unique sort of theme. When I initially opened this web page, I wasn't quite sure what the theme exactly was, besides presuming it's somewhat about gold and riches. It's a basic loading screen with the words, Black Gold Rush, against an array of gear symbols, with an orange sunset on the horizon, and some shadow figures of some sort of digging site. Again, I'm not sure if this theme will be obvious to many younger slot users, and they might be more drawn to other 3D slots that feature vampires or something more cartoonish and fantasy-based. This is by the Wagering Gaming Technology software company. When you press play, a black screen with a small orange loading bar pops up. It loaded fairly fast and without any glitching so far. Once I opened up the board, it became clear the black gold they were referring to is oil, and that the shadows on the initial screen are depicting some sort of oil mine. This game will be desirable for older men, who may live in southern sections of the united states. So far it seems like Wagering Gaming Technology aims their slots for older folks. This game isn't a basic one-line, three-reel game though. This game has more substance than those and looks a lot newer than some other Wagering Gaming Technology slots I've played.
Animation, Pay Lines, and Themes
The actual board game is way more interesting than the name or loading screen leads on. The animation is almost 3D, nearly resembling the very popular computer animation that's taken over much of the visual animation market, which is also one of the reasons I know this game is newer. The game doesn't play any music in the background while you spin, but there are some subtle yet enjoyable sound effects. This is a traditional five-by-three-reel. Once I loaded the game, any glitches were very minimal if there were any at all. You can tell a lot of care and effort was put into this slot, so it's far from lazily made. The board is laid against a rugged background, resembling a rural and far-out oil mining field, complete with a rusted roof and wood panels. In the corner of the screen, staring at you menacingly is a funny-looking short old man with white a mustache and a brown cowboy hat. His arms are crossed, and he stares at you like he wants you to get off of his property because this is his oil, not yours! But that's not going to stop me, plus the rewards seem lucrative at this point in the game.
Help Section and Navigation - Time To Dig For Oil!
To check your balance, turn your attention to the left corner of the screen. There are several mini windows all next to each other in a row. Almost always, they usually put these sort of buttons towards the bottom, so right away this is slightly more unique than other slots I've played, and I've played a lot at this point. The only thing located towards the bottom of the screen is more atmosphere animation, you can see the very tops of a few silver oil barrels and a crate with mysterious contents. The bet button is located at the top of the screen, smack dab in the middle. You can't change your bet using any of these buttons, nor can you adjust or customize any other features in this game. The top mini windows are just displays to be watched mid-game. On the right side towards the top display your winnings, which should change after every spin, so ensure that you keep an eye on that button. At first glance it appeared like there is no auto-spin in the game, which is disappointing because manual spinning gets boring for me, still, it didn't spin a long time or get caught in any glitching as some of them do at times. Then, when I clicked the setting section later I found there was an auto spin option for me to enable, but it's not easily visible to folks who don't open up and click around all the features of this board. I would have preferred it to be more visible, but they included a lot of visuals to make up for that, so this was a plus rather than a negative. On the left side of the screen, above the grumpy oil tycoon, is a green box with three bars. If you click this box, this. is where you can customize all elements of the game. You can turn the music or sound effects on and off. You can also view the paytable which explains the values of each symbol, and most importantly you can adjust your bet here. This game comes with a great coin range, and some betting size options include $0.10, $0.25, $0.50, $1.00, and $5.00. The maximum bet is small and easily paid for most folks with a job - just a meager 30 dollars per maximum game.
Symbols On This Board
Payouts in this game are awarded from left to right on this reel, all line pays are multiplied by the line bet, and only the highest paying win is paid per selected line. The most valuable icon is the oil tycoon with the mustache, the second seems to be his trusty animated horse, who has huge eyes and resembles a character you would find in a computer-animated Disney classic. The third most valuable icon on this board is the picture of several blue oil barrels. The fourth most valuable is the cowboy hat next to stacks of money because I guess this old-school oil tycoon isn't one for credit cards or bank accounts. The lower value symbols on this board, in order of highest value to lowest value, are as follows, an ugly, rusty fossett dripping oil, wall-mounted antlers and fur, and the last being a red rusted no trust passing sign with a skull and crossbones. I think the creators are aware of the humor and greed within this industry, so there is subtle political commentary located within this slot. I initially thought there was only one line, but once I opened up the options I saw there are 30 lines you can play. You can also select as many auto spins as you choose, going from 5 auto spins to 10, 15, 20, or 25. This is handy because a lot of boards' auto spin is fixed and you don't have this kind of customization option. You can set a maximum loss number, so if you are multi-tasking, you can set a number of how much you are willing to lose, that is why you don't set it to auto-spin and break your bank. Similarly, there is also a "stop on win" option, which is where you can select a number to stop the auto spins on. You can also turn on a quick spin option. These options are great for those who like to play slots while saying, working their day job, because you won't get ripped off or lose out, but also don't need to sit down and pay attention to every aspect of the slot and give it your full attention.
How To Win Real Money and Free Spins
To win in this game you should aim to match symbols. Even as little as two symbols on an active payline can trigger a win. This only applies to the first six symbols, however. For the remaining symbols, you'll need to trigger an identical number of three to reap any award benefits. This game also features a free spins feature! You can win anywhere from two free spins to a generous 20 free spins, and this depends on how many free spin symbols you match. You'll have to trigger five identical free spin symbols to receive the 20 free spins I mentioned above. The wild symbols act as a substitute and can represent other symbols within the reels to increase the number of wins
Hidden Bonus Features
There's also a hidden bonus included in this game, which can be unlocked by playing a regular play game. You don't need to trigger a special combination to access this feature, you just need to fill up the pipe with oil. Every time you roll a bonus symbol, a little more oil is dripped into this virtual pipe. Once it's at full capacity, the bonus game begins. I liked this feature because you don't need to trigger a combination in one spin, so it was refreshing and unique. The bonus game opens and you'll see three oil derricks, and you have to select the winning one. If you are lucky enough to pick the correct oil derrick, you'll win coins as a prize and be able to continue. There are three rounds to this game, however, the game will stop if you pick wrong.
