Crusader

No matter if you're a fan of Saladin’s wisdom, Richard’s strength or Barbarossa’s military power, one thing is for sure – you will simply love this release! 

As its name suggests, Crusader is a video slot inspired by the medieval expeditions of Western nobles to the Holy Land. Introduced by ELK Studios it features expanding grid mechanics and up to 98 paylines. 

Nudging wilds, re-spins and free spins can be triggered even from screens of your mobile devices, so…

…are you ready to defend pilgrims or retake the Holy City? 

Theme and Symbols

This time we’ll travel to the north of the Holy Land to attend one of the most important battles of the 13^th century – the siege of Acre. 

Although inspired by the Crusades, graphics motifs indicate that this story is directly influenced by the famous medieval order – the Knights Templar. 

Their seals, daggers, shields, the Holy Grail, and the Ark of Covenant are just a few that point to the former glory of famous monk-warriors.

At the low-end of the paytable you’ll find card royals offering up to 2x bet for 5 of a kind landed. You’ll benefit from wilds and expansion symbols too. 

Deus vult! 

Betting Options

Can we move to the technical side of things, if the History class is finally over? The battle is fought on 5 reels, 4 rows and, and 26 paylines, but…

…it can be extended during bonus rounds. 

You can place bets between 0.20 and 100 coins or you can activate one of the four betting strategies (Optimizer, Leveler, Booster, or Jumper). 

Besides fairly high volatility, this one-armed bandit comes with a theoretical return to player (RTP) of 96.1% which is slightly above average. 

The main prize of the game is 2.500x and it can be won either during the base game or bonus rounds. 

Features

The crusader symbol is the Wild that’ll replace any of the regular symbols in order to form a winning combination. If you land it partially, you’ll get a Re-spin and nudge until the symbol comes into full view. 

To trigger the Free Spins round you’ll need to land two Crusaders on both reels (1^st and 5^th) simultaneously, and…

…you’ll be awarded 8 freebies. 

But, there’s more! 

During the feature, all wilds will remain locked on their position and the extension symbol will enter the scene. Whenever it lands, it’ll grant additional free spin and expand the grid by adding one extra row. 

Keep in mind that the grid can be extended up to 12 rows high which will result in 98 paylines. 

Wrapping Up

The battle is over, time to collect the spoils of war! 

Like all other ELK Studios releases, Crusader features a great design, solid payouts, and simple yet entertaining features. 

Of course, the game’s main highlight is the extension symbol that can upgrade the grid and award some pretty juicy rewards (up to 2500x bet).