Star Gems

Ever since Starburst game out the topic of stars and gems seems to has been one of the favourite themes for software producers. There have been quite a few copies of the aforementioned, and it is not hard to tell that Star Gems tries to level the classic from the top spot as well. However, does it bring anything new to the table, and are the prizes worth chasing?

Theme

The first thing that hits you with this slot is the music. Booongo has done a spectacular job there, this being one of the rare games where you don’t want to eventually mute the audio effects. The theme itself is well done and encompasses what the title lays down: space and stars on the background and gems on the lines. The style is beautiful and fits perfectly on all devices.

Betting Options and Functions

The paylines are fixed, there are ten of them, and they all run from left to right and right to left. The betting is done by selecting one of the several options ranging between 0.20 and 100 coins per spin. The playfield offers the usual five reels and three symbol positions. This combination means that the basic prizes are not unusually high, and the variance is pretty much high. The player also has a few settings that he or she can such as muting the game, autoplay, or checking play history.

The two most important symbols are borrowed from the classics: the bar and the sevens. The latter pays between 20 and 140 times your line bet, and the former 50 and 250 times the line bet. With the gems, these wins go down a notch, but you can still at least win your bet back in most instances. The five bottom tier symbols pay out between 5 and 60 times the line bet.

Features

There is only one special feature here, and that comes with the wild. This is a bit of a let-down as if you are going to challenge Starburst you should seek out to add some more value to the game beyond improved graphics. In any case, the feature does make for bigger wins. The expanding wild shows up on reels two, three and four, and covers the entire reel every time. Given that wins are calculated from both ends this can result in some massive pays. The wild also comes with a free re-spin, which can be triggered up to three times in a row.

Our Take

There is not enough here to challenge the reigning master. Still, this is a good slot with plenty of replay value and chances to win big prizes. The lack of any real special feature does hamper the long-term spins, as does the lack of truly massive jackpot. Good for short bursts of gaming, though you might want to try the demo mode before signing up on a casino to play for real money.