Theme

The Wild West used to be a super popular concept. To be fair, it still is nowadays, but not nearly as it used to be. Cowboy movies used to be all the rage – they built the careers of certain actors, like Clint Eastwood, and were just everywhere at some point. So while the popularity may have fallen away, the idea of cowboys, the vast desert, and sheriffs enforcing the law in their own little town.

So sit down by the table, draw your revolver and a pack of cards, and prepare for a fun night at the Showdown Saloon. Gamblers have access to mystery symbols which reveal matching symbols, a re-spin special feature, which happens when two to four reels are stacked with the same symbol, and a free spins bonus, which is rather self explanatory.

Symbols include playing card icons 10, J, Q, K and A, as well as a pair of dice, a bottle of alcohol and two glasses, three stacks of coins, and a loaded revolver. Special symbols include a hand of cards as the Wild, and a cowboy as a Scatter.

Developer

When it comes to slot developers, NetEnt has always been on top. But if there was one company that you could describe as a serious rival, it’s Microgaming. They’ve been one of the oldest and most recognised online casino software suppliers, having been in the business as far back as 1994, when they launched their first online casino. Microgaming saw a large expansion of its business with the release of its Viper software.

The developer offers a huge selection of titles, with over half of their portfolio being comprised of video slots. Their titles are available in over 100 casinos. With multiple studios working around the clock producing high quality titles, Microgaming is pushing full steam ahead – and are poised to take over the leadership position if NetEnt ever stumbles.

How to Play it

The game is played on a 5×3 playing field with 15 fixed paylines, which means gamblers cannot turn some or all of them off at will to lower their minimum wager – instead, they can only do so by changing their total bet. You can tell this is an in-house Microgaming release, as it uses their standard user interface, rather than that of their partners. We have no complaints – with everything easily accessible, and only two or three taps away, it’s hard to find any faults in Microgaming for structuring it in such a way.

Players can bet between $0.20 up to $100 per spin, which is an awesome bet spread that should please both casual players and high rollers alike with its offering. The title also has an Autoplay option, which just allows you to pick the amount of auto spins, with no win or loss limits, or single win thresholds available.

We like the visuals available in the game. The background image really does feel like a high stakes card game, but instead of just losing your chips, you may also lose your head. There’s a loaded gun on the table with bullets thrown around haphazardly with the credit chips. There aren’t any cool looking animations, which was a bit disappointing, but the title manages to look cool without it, regardless.

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Special Features

Every reel has a stack of mystery symbols on its surface. On each spin, a single symbol will replace the stack of mystery symbols. During normal gameplay, only the two left-most reels will be effected, while during free spins, the same symbol replaces all the mystery reels.

If you manage to land at least two matching stacked symbols, you win a re-spin during which you get another chance to get that stacked symbol on the reels again, increasing your odds of getting a full screen win of a single icon.

The last bonus available to players is a free spins special feature which is played when three, four or five Scatters appear at the same time, which rewards five, ten or fifteen free spins, as well as a 1x, 2x and 3x cash prize, respectively.

Maximum Payouts

The largest jackpot you can win from Showdown Saloon is worth 750x the wager, which isn’t an amazing maximum win, considering the high volatility of this Microgaming release. The RTP for this title is 96.158%, which is above average for video slots.

Summary

While it can be fun to play from time to time, the somewhat disappointing jackpot and lack of visual polish really make it feel like a B-team effort, especially when you compare it to some bigger Microgaming releases. We have to admit, we were expecting a lot better.

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