Samarkand's Gold Overview
Samarkand's Gold is a Silk Road-themed slot by Endorphina, set on a 5x4 grid with 1024 fixed pay ways. Released back in August 2022, it takes you on a treasure hunt through an ancient Asian city. The visuals are proper nice, with ornate architecture in the background and themed symbols like phoenixes, horses, swords, and an emperor.
I found the overall vibe quite relaxing, honestly. RTP sits at 96.05% and the volatility is high, so expect some quiet patches between bigger hits. Max win goes up to 7680x your stake, which is decent for a game of this style. Nothing revolutionary, but a solid setup if you fancy something with a bit of history and some good bonus potential.
Symbols and Paytable
Low-value symbols are your standard royals: 9, 10, J, Q, K, and A. For the higher payers, you get a bow and arrow, a sword, a mythical bird, and a horse. The emperor is the best regular symbol, paying 7.5x your base bet for five of a kind. The horse comes second at 3.75x for five. Not massive base game payouts, if I'm honest.
Wild is the golden city of Samarkand itself. It substitutes for everything except the Scatter, but only shows up on reels 2, 3, and 4. The Scatter is a golden lion coin, and landing five of those pays 20x your bet on top of triggering Free Games. Wins form left to right across adjacent reels, and every matching symbol per reel creates its own separate way.
Symbol Payouts
Free Spins and Bonus Features
Land 3, 4, or 5 Scatters and you trigger 8, 15, or 20 Free Games respectively. Here is where things get interesting. During Free Spins, every Wild that lands carries a Wild Multiplier of x2 or x3. If you get multiple Wilds on the same spin, those multipliers stack together, potentially reaching 27x on a single win. Free Games can also retrigger, which is a nice touch.
On top of that, there is a Classic Risk Game you can use after any win. Pick a card, beat the dealer, and your payout doubles. You can go up to 10 times, but lose and you lose everything. Classic Endorphina gamble feature. A Bonus Pop feature is also included, though availability depends on your region.
Bonus Buy Options
Free Games with Wild Multipliers
3, 4, or 5 Scatter symbols trigger 8, 15, or 20 Free Games respectively. During free spins, Wilds carry x2 or x3 multipliers that stack up to 27x total. Free Games can be retriggered.
After any win, players can gamble in a card-based double-or-nothing game. Pick a card that beats the dealer to double your win, up to 10 times.
Additional bonus feature available in the game, though availability may vary depending on jurisdiction.
Volatility and RTP
RTP is 96.05%, which is a touch above average and fair enough for most players. Volatility is high, so your bankroll can take a proper beating during dry spells. The max win of 7680x is where the excitement sits, though reaching it requires those stacked Wild Multipliers to line up perfectly during Free Games. Bets range from 0.40 to 100 per spin, which suits most casual budgets.
