An increasing number of games these days changes hands and gets launched by two or more different software providers, often with very few differences amongst themselves. One such game is “Crocodopolis,” a great game with a less than interesting and over-exploited theme – ancient Egypt. It was first distributed by Chartwell to its licensees, and now it has made its way to Microgaming’s stables, where it will surely be cherished for some unique features that it introduces.

To be truthful, the two versions of “Crocodopolis” are virtually the same – the game remains a 5-reel, 25-payline slot, it keeps all the same characters – the picturesque crocodiles, styled to look like Egyptian pharaohs, ancient scrolls, Egyptian crosses, etc; even the features are almost all the same – it still has the unique and interesting Slide A Wild feature, (which gives players a chance to choose their own type of wild and allows them to have their say in how they win), as well as regular scatters that trigger free spins with multipliers. But to make the game more thrilling, Microgaming has decided to introduce a Gamble feature, to satisfy those hungry for extra risk.

Another notable difference in the Microgaming version of “Crocodopolis” is the selection of coin amounts at players’ disposal. Here, the choice is reduced, so punters can choose a coin denomination from $0.01 to $1; but it is still quite enough to cover most of the playing preferences and financial abilities.

Special Features:

In the whole sea of Egyptian-themed games, “Crocodopolis”, with its simple and straightforward graphics would not stand a chance. However, thanks to the fact that its creators have an innovative approach to creating games, it may turn out to be one of the most beloved titles of such theme. As mentioned above, its biggest advantage is the unique, Slide a Wild feature, which allows players to choose their favorite type of wilds, represented by pharaoh crocodiles - a different one on each reel. So, if they choose the crocodile wild on reel 1, they will get a doubled prize when the wild takes part in a winning combination; the croc wild on reel 2 will triple the prize won with its help; if you choose the one on reel 3, whenever the wild appears, the whole reel will be turned wild; on reel 4, the reel goes wild and prizes are tripled, whereas on reel 5, you get stacked wilds. It’s worth considering carefully which wild you’ll choose, as the prizes brought by them can sometimes be quite nice.

In addition to this feature, there are also standard scatters in shape of a pyramid, three of which will trigger a round of 12 free spins with a 2x multiplier. The crocodiles picked in the triggering spin remain the same during the free spins, so here’s another reason why it’s important to choose carefully. Finally, you can take an extra step and risk your winnings once again in the second screen Gamble feature. Here you can choose whether you want to double or quadruple your winnings by picking the right color of the next card or its suit, respectively. But be careful – one wrong step and your hard-earned winnings will be gone!

All in all, we can say that this version of “Crocodopolis” is only a little different from the Chartwell one, which means that the game has maintained its original spirit that keeps attracting player attention despite its theme, which overused as it is, is its only downside.

- reviewed by Latest Casino Bonuses, last updated 2011-12-20