Epic Monopoly II: Enjoy Colossal Fun With Colossal Reels

Few games have had the enduring appeal of Monopoly. It’s been licensed in over 103 countries and printed in more than 37 languages. Originally designed by Charles Darrow and Elizabeth Magie in 1903, the current version first saw the light of day in 1935. It has remained relatively unchanged—bar a few cosmetic changes and customized versions of the game—ever since.

So popular is Monopoly in modern culture that it has spawned not just one, but a number of different slot games. We’ve already reviewed Monopoly Big Event and Super Monopoly Money in the past, so let us now take a look at how the new Epic Monopoly II slot shapes up. Designed by Williams Entertainment it’s available to play now at Golden Nugget Casino.

Overview: Epic Monopoly II

Epic Monopoly II is one of the new breed of slot games that uses the Colossal Reels engine as its structure. It comes with 100 paylines in total. What you have here is the main reel set on the left of the screen—which is a 5×4 set of reels—and the Colossal Reel set to the right—which is a 5×12 reel set. When you click Spin, both reels take off and you can win on either reel set.

This is a slot which is not based on large single line wins, but on achieving bigger wins by landing multiple paylines across the reels. As such, individual payline wins (and the base game jackpot for such) are all small. You can vastly increase the size of your payout by landing stacked symbols across the reels, especially with the Wild symbols, which we’ll explain in a little more detail in the sections below.

Who will the Epic Monopoly II slot appeal to?

Certainly if you have enjoyed any of the previous Monopoly-themed slots then you are going to enjoy Epic Monopoly II, as it is in a similar vein. Although the reel setup is different than on the others, the actual look and style of the game will be instantly recognizable to any fan of the Monopoly slots or the game itself.

This is also a slot which has an unusual reel set up with Colossal Reels. So any player that enjoys games that are different to the usual 5×3 slot game will find plenty to enjoy. Despite this, and regardless of the Colossal Reels, Epic Monopoly II is actually a rather simple slot to play once you understand how the reels interact with each other and how the bonus features can be triggered. As such, it’s an ideal starting point for anyone wanting to try a slot offering these expanded reels.

Gameplay: Epic Monopoly II

To fully understand how Epic Monopoly works, you first need to understand how the reels are set up and how the symbols on one reel set can interact with the other reel set. Once you understand that, then playing Colossal Reels becomes much easier to understand and is hugely enjoyable.

The first thing to note is that the main reel set is on the left, this is the 5×4 reels. The other reel set is the Colossal Reels, and this is the 5×12 set of reels. On both reels, the symbols on them are stacked between one and six symbols high.

Speaking of symbols, the lower value symbols are based on the Monopoly game symbols. They are the battleship, boot, car, hat and similar. Higher value symbols include the wheelbarrow full of gold coins, a bag stuffed with cash, plus two characters. These are Miss Virginia and Marvin Gardens.

The two highest value symbols are stacked four or six symbols high, depending on the reel set. These include the dog and the famous Monopoly main character, Uncle Pennybags. (Although he has now become known as Mr. Monopoly in recent versions of the game.)

This is a slot where the relative wins for hitting three, four or five symbols on a payline are small. But you can trigger multiple payline wins, which can increase the value of the total win considerably. As such, the key to success on this slot is hitting multiple payline wins across the reels, rather than as single big payline payout.

Wild symbol

To help you achieve this there is a Wild symbol. This is stacked too and this symbol serves two functions. First, it replaces any high or low value symbol to create winning paylines. Second, if you land a full stack of Wilds anywhere on the 5×4 main reel set, that will turn the corresponding reel wild on the Colossal Reel set. So for example, land a stack of four Wilds on reel 1 on the Main Reels, and Reel 1 of the Colossal Reels will also turn completely Wild.

This is the best way of triggering multiple payline wins, especially if you can turn more than one reel completely Wild on any spin and get a favorable lineup of other symbols on the other reels.

Additional features

The main bonus feature of the slot is the Wheel Bonus. This is triggered when you land three or more of the Bonus Scatter symbols anywhere across both reel sets. Land between 4 and 6 scatters and you also receive a payout of between 10x your stake and 100x your stake on top of the bonus award.

For the bonus you spin the wheel and you can win a prize or a bonus feature. You can win 10x your stake, 2, 5 or 10 Dice Rolls in the Around the Board bonus, the Chance Bonus, 7, 10 or 20 Free Spins and a chance to Spin the Wheel again.

Land the Free Spins and you play through 7, 10 or 20 Free Spins. Land three or more bonuses during the bonus feature and you will trigger additional free spins as well as receiving a cash reward of up to 100x your stake.

In the Around the Board bonus, you get to roll the dice and move around the Monopoly board and wherever your character lands, you win a prize and you could win up to 1,500x your total bet in this bonus which does make it very worthwhile triggering.

Special features: Epic Monopoly II

Stacked symbols

In truth, the Epic Monopoly II slot would not work without stacked symbols as they are the only way to achieve decent sizes wins. Especially look out for the six-stacked symbols on the Colossal Reel set. These can be the best way to unlock some of the bigger base game wins.

Free Spins bonus

The Free Spins bonus game offers you a chance to spin a reel which will then trigger a number of different bonus features. These include free spins, a cash payout, a chance to play the Around the Board bonus game and more. Landing Free Spins gives you between 7 and 20 free spins. These can be added to by landing more Bonus Symbols during the bonus round.

Around the Board bonus

Trigger the Around the Board bonus and you get to roll the dice to move around the Monopoly Board. You’re able to collect prizes and bonuses as you go. Complete each of the rolls of the dice you’ve been awarded to keep collecting prizes and bonuses until you’ve finished the rolls and the bonus ends.

What works?

Wild transfer

One of the nicest features, and one of the most potentially lucrative in the base game and free spins, is that a full set of Wilds on any reel in the Main Reel set will transfer to the corresponding reel on the Colossal Reel set, turning that reel completely Wild. This offers you the best chance at big wins in the base game and free spins.

Regular wins

Epic Monopoly II is a slot which is definitely a lower variance games. Wins tend to be small but relatively regular and you hit the occasional bigger win. You do need patience however to trigger the bonus features where you can land a better chance at some of the higher pay outs on the slot.

Stacked symbols

Without doubt the fact that the symbols are stacked during free spins and in the base game makes this slot work. Without symbols being stacked, this would fall apart as the chances of winning a decent amount would be virtually zero.

What doesn’t?

Very small single line wins

One of the main issues I have with the slot is the relative values of the wins. Too often you’ll win but not win back more than you have staked. In essence, you’ve not won on this spin, merely lost a bit less than you would ordinarily have.

Bonus requires patience to trigger

It can take a good number of spins and a lot of patience to trigger the bonus features once, let alone more than once. As such, it is imperative you budget wisely for this slot to ensure you give yourself every available opportunity to trigger the bonuses which will likely result in bigger paying wins.

Small jackpot size

Given the small amounts to be won per payline, the size of the jackpot in the slot is only very smal. As such, this isn’t a game that players will play to win a massive amount of money. It’s certainly a game for people who enjoy Monopoly, or who enjoyed the Monopoly slots series.

The scores

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Graphics & soundtrack 5/5

In terms of how the Epic Monopoly II slot is presented, I cannot find fault with it. The reels are animated well and the bonus game features are also done very well indeed. This slot looks and sounds exactly like a modern, feature-packed slot should.

Originality & creativity 4/5

There’s lots of innovation in this slot from the Colossal Reel set through to the way the different bonus games are accessible from spinning the reel once you trigger the bonuses, to the Stacked Wilds transferring onto the corresponding Colossal Reels. This is a well thought out and enjoyable slot.

Play value 4/5

Epic Monopoly II is a rare thing in that it is a Colossal Reel slot that tends to play a little more lower variance than usual. This means in terms of play value, it’s not too bad for a player. Although I did award lower marks due to the fact that some wins are very small indeed and it can take a long time to trigger the bonus features.

Jackpot potential 1/5

Very small wins in the base game mean that the upper limit on wins is around 1,500 times your stake. This isn’t a massive jackpot size compared to some other games. Hence, it’s unlikely to attract the bigger jackpot slot hunter.

Repeat play 4/5

Epic Monopoly II has enough packed into it that you can’t appreciate it all in just one or two sessions. The enjoyable gameplay and number of bonus features means this is a slot you’ll come back to play relatively frequently.

Total score: 18/25

Epic Monopoly II is a hugely enjoyable slot. It has some outstanding and innovative features, as well as playing slightly less volatile than similar styled slots. A small jackpot does hinder it somewhat. But, if you like an innovative slot that offers good value, you won’t go far wrong here.