Merlin: Journey of Flame Slot Overview
Merlin: Journey of Flame is a high-volatility 'book of' style slot from Play'n GO, released on 13 July 2023. It runs on a 5x3 grid with 10 paylines in the base game, but the numbers shift once you trigger the bonus. A locked 6th reel opens during Free Spins, expanding the layout to 6x3 and lifting the max win ceiling to 7,500x your stake. From a math perspective, the default RTP sits at 96.28%, which is above the industry median. The bet range spans 0.10 to 100 per spin.
I see this game as Play'n GO's latest iteration on the formula they popularised with Book of Dead. Same DNA: base game with no extra features, scatter-triggered free spins, randomly selected expanding symbol. The twist here is that extra reel. Whether that alone justifies a new release depends on how much you value incremental upgrades over genuine mechanical innovation.
Symbols and Payouts
Nine standard symbols populate the reels plus one dual-purpose icon. Five low-paying rune stones in green, blue, red, orange, and yellow pay between 4x and 200x per line for 3 to 5 of a kind; with the 6th reel active, 6-of-a-kind wins reach 15x to 20x the total bet. Premium symbols are the Potion, Book, Staff, and Merlin himself. For 5-of-a-kind lines, premiums pay 50x to 500x. During free spins, 6-of-a-kind payouts range from 100x up to 750x for a full line of Merlin symbols.
The Dragon Egg acts as both Wild and Scatter. It substitutes for all standard symbols and has its own pay values: 0.5x for 2, 5x for 3, 50x for 4, 250x for 5, and 375x for 6. Looking at the paytable structure, this dual role keeps symbol count lean. Only 10 unique icons exist, which means hit combinations rely heavily on the Wild appearing in the right spots.
Symbol Payouts
Dragon Egg
Acts as both Wild and Scatter. Substitutes for all paying symbols and triggers free spins when 3+ land anywhere.
| 6 | x150 |
| 5 | x75 |
| 4 | x12.5 |
| 3 | x1.25 |
| 2 | x0.2 |
Free Spins and Bonus Features
Landing 3, 4, or 5 Dragon Egg scatters anywhere triggers 8 Free Spins and awards an instant payout of 2x, 20x, or 200x your stake respectively. The 6th reel unlocks immediately. Before spins begin, the game randomly selects one symbol as the expanding icon. When enough instances of that symbol land to form a win, every instance expands to cover its entire reel. Crucially, these expanded symbols do not need to sit on adjacent reels to generate payouts.
Retriggers are unlimited. Each set of 3+ scatters during the round awards another 8 spins. The numbers tell you this is where the 7,500x cap lives; base game max win on 5 reels tops out closer to 5,000x. A Gamble Feature lets you risk any win up to 250x by guessing the colour (double) or suit (quadruple) of a playing card, up to 5 consecutive attempts.
I should flag that the base game has zero supplementary features. No random wilds, no respins, no mystery symbols between triggers. For a high-volatility slot, that means long dry stretches. Players accustomed to modern slots with base game modifiers may find the grind tedious.
Bonus Buy Options
Land 3+ Dragon Egg scatters to trigger 8 free spins. The 6th reel unlocks and a random symbol is chosen to become the expanding symbol. Expanding symbols cover full reels and do not need adjacent positions to pay. Retrigger with 3+ scatters for 8 additional spins, with no limit.
After any win, guess the colour of a face-down card to double your win, or guess the suit to quadruple it. A wrong guess forfeits the win. Can be used up to 5 times in a row, with a cap of 250x stake.
RTP, Volatility, and Win Potential
Default RTP is 96.28%, but Play'n GO ships multiple RTP configurations, so operators can run this slot at lower return values. Always verify which version your casino hosts. Volatility is rated high, and the max win of 7,500x is modest by 2023 standards; many expanding-symbol slots now reach 10,000x or more. Still, the 6th reel does push the ceiling above the typical 5,000x seen in older 'book of' titles.
From a math perspective, the gap between base game and bonus potential is stark. Premium 5-of-a-kind pays cap at 500x; add the 6th reel and you jump to 750x per line before factoring in multiple winning lines from expanded symbols. The real EV concentration sits inside those free spins, which makes bankroll management critical for sustaining sessions.
