Sea of Riches

Sea of Riches Slot Review

Slot Provider: iSoftbet (owned by IGT)

RTP: 96% | Variance: Medium | Maximum Win: 2,416x

Our Score: 8.6

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QUICK LINKS: Game Information | Where To Play | Full Review | Testing Notes | Tips For Players | About The Developer

WHY YOU CAN TRUST THIS REVIEW: The information and opinions on this page are the result of an comprehensive process of information gathering and live game testing by the gambling experts who work at allslotsites.com. Find out more here.

About Sea of Riches

Reviewed by:

Published Date: 7th May 2021

How We Review Slot Games

We test and rate all slot games across 5 criteria, assigning a score out of 10 for each and an overall score that is an average of the 5. To build an accurate assessment of each game we gather information from the supplier and play in real play or demo mode. Find out more.

Sea of Riches is a pirate-themed Cluster Pays slot with 6 reels and 6 Rows from iSoftBet. It is a medium variance game with a 2,416x top win. It uses a Cascading Wins mechanic and two progressive features to trigger modifiers. During each game round, wining symbols load up the Captain’s Compass to remove and transform symbols and unlock further wins and Cascades. Fully filling the compass unlocks up to 12 free spins. Meanwhile, completing a map puzzle unlocks up to 4 new levels with extra wild modifiers.

Sea of Riches Game Information

  • Release Date: April 2021
  • RTP: 96%
  • Variance: Medium
  • Maximum Win: 2,416x
  • Progressive Jackpot: No
  • Reels: 6
  • Rows: 6
  • Paylines: Cluster Pays
  • Minimum Stake: £0.20
  • Theme: Pirates
  • Features: Cascading Wins, Symbol Collects, Level-Ups, Wilds, Wild Transformations, Wild Multipliers, Free Spins

Testing Notes: Here’s What Happened When We Played Sea of Riches

IMPORTANT: To give you an accurate assessment of the games we review our writers play 200 spins. Whilst this is a useful tool to help us review games and to give an example of what might happen when you play, keep in mind that 200 spins is only a very small sample and cannot be used to accurately predict what might happen over another 200 spins. The outcome of all slots play is always random.

Boom Or Bust? Our Session By The Numbers

I played 200 spins on Sea of Riches for real money at BacanaPlay to test the game and this is what happened.

  • Stake Size: £0.2
  • Start balance: £3.19
  • End balance: £7.50
  • Biggest Win: 88.7
  • Free Spins: 2
  • Session Time: 26 minutes 04 seconds

This was a fun 200 spins with plenty of action going on and great value for money at 26 minutes. The peak came early when the free spins round triggered after just 5 spins which is very unusual. That clocked in with an 88.7x win thanks to 10 spins and a 9x multiplier. After around 120 spins the first map was completed and I moved up to level 2. That means a new Wild Modifier came into play – the Wild Storm which triggered 4 times, landing extra wilds which produced some good wins. Then I unlocked the free spins round a second time right at the end – after around 190 spins. This time I only got 5 spins and a win or 38.5x. Not bad, but not as good as the first time round.

Sea of Riches 88.7x win
An 88.7x win from free spins in testing

Whilst there were no bigwins of greater than 100x or more, like all good Cluster Pays games, thanks to the Cascading Wins mechanic and the compass meter, there is never a dull moment. In particular, the Captain’s Compass modifiers triggered regularly to keep those Cascades ticking along nicely.

What We Liked

  • Superb Captain's Compass feature
  • Lots of modifiers regularly drop
  • 4 Treasure Map levels to complete
  • Big multipliers in free spins
  • Mid variance makes an accessible slot

What We Didn't like

  • Low-ish top payout

Sea of Riches Review Scores

  • Theme and Design 9
  • RTP and Variance 8
  • Maximum Win 8
  • Symbols and Paytable 8
  • Features and Gameplay 10

What Our Reviewer Says ...

"A super-fun Cluster Pays game with clever in-built progressive features to make every phase of play exciting to watch and with a mid-variance this slot will have broad appeal."

Overall Score: 8.6

Theme & Design

Our Score 9

Light-Hearted Pirate Fun From iSoftBet With Nice Animations And Soundtrack

If you like Pirate-themed games then chances are you will like Sea of Riches. There is a strong Treasure Island vibe going on here, with a classic Carribbean island backdrop, azure blue seas and waving palm trees next to rocky coastlines. To the left of the grid, your typical bearded-pirate with parrot on shoulder and pistol in hand. He is a friendly one, commentating on events on the grid and unleashing modifiers with plenty of fun animations like barrels of rum rolling over the reels or cannons firing across the rows.

Sea of Riches by iSoftBet
Sea of Riches – classic ‘Treasure Island’-style pirate slot

iSoftbet have done a great job of styling the features around the theme with progressive compass and map meters triggering modifiers. The animations when the storm whips up for free spins is excellent too. It’s an upbeat pirate production, not as dark as games like Dead Man’s Trail, but really good fun all the same.

RTP and Variance

Our Score 8

What is RTP?

RTP (Return to Player) refers to the amount a game will pay out in cash prizes expressed as a percentage of all the money wagered on that game. For example, a 96% RTP means a game will pay out £96 for every £100 wagered. This is an average number and will vary from one session to the next.  Read more here.

What is Variance?

Variance refers to how far a game will deviate from its RTP over time. High variance games deviate a lot and produce uneven win distributions and unexpected windfalls. Low variance games provide a more stable and even distribution of wins. Read more here.

Sea of Riches has one RTP setting – 96% – so you will play at this rate wherever you choose to spin. That is average for an online slot game. It is a medium variance game so you can expect a quite even distribution of wins.

Maximum Win

Our Score 8

What Is Maximum Win?

Maximum win refers to the maximum amount a player can win from one spin. It is expressed as a multiple of the stake. For example, where the maximum win is 100,000x, from a £1 stake, the maximum win would be £100,000.  

The flipside to playing low or mid-variance slots is that the maximum wins aren’t as impressive as those you find in high volatility games. Here, the top win is 2,416x. If you prefer something with bigger potential then check our guide to slots with the highest maximum wins.

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Symbols and Paytable

Our Score 8

Build Clusters Of 15 Or More Identical Symbols For 150x Payouts

Sea of Riches is a classic Cluster Pays grid slot, playing out on a 6×6 grid with wins triggered by landing 5 or more identical symbols connecting horizontally, vertically, or as a combination of the two.

The exciting part about Cluster Pays slots of course is that you can build huge clusters, in this case 15 or more symbols in size, to trigger bigger wins than you see with traditional paylines. The range of payouts in the paytable is therefore big, maxing out at 150x for 15 or more top premiums.

Sea of Riches Paytable
Sea of Riches paytable with 150x for 15 or more top premiums

Starting at the low end, there are five coins of different colors with various imprints on them – an Anchor, Bottle, Hook, Cannonball and Skull deliver from 0.1x for 3 Anchors up to 30x for 15 Skulls. The premiums are the precious stones – a Sapphire, Emerald, Pink Diamond and a Ruby awarding between 1x for 5 Sapphires up to 150x for 15 or more Rubys.

Look out as well for the Wild which is enveloped with a Kraken’s tentacles and can increase your gains by substituting all other symbols except the special Map symbol.

There are NO Scatters in Sea of Riches video slot.

Features and Gameplay

Our Score 10

When it comes to gameplay, this is a really interesting slot. iSoftBet have done a fantastic job of weaving the gameplay around the theme and there are several progressive elements to watch out for.

Classic Cascading Reels After Each Win

This is a feature that most slots players will be familiar with – you will find on pretty much all grid slots – whenever a winning cluster is formed, symbols that are part of that win will disappear and make room for new ones to land. If more wins are created, so the process repeats, until no more winning combinations are formed.

Treasure Map – Collect Pieces Of The Map To Unlock Features

When you play Sea of Riches you will note that Bottles holding pieces of a Treasure Map will drop in regularly. These are important because when you have collected all 25 then you move up to a new level in the game.

And as you would expect, with each new level, more features are added. There are 4 levels in total and when you complete the top level, then you return back to the start again.

Unlocking Level 2 In Sea of Riches
Completing the first map unlocks level 2 with Wild Storm modifiers

Now, every level has a ‘Wildseas’ modifier activated randomly on no-win spins. These modifiers have different affects on the gameplay. They are the Wild Kraken, which comes from the depths to transform from 1 to 10 icons into Wild in Level 1; the Wild Storm with which between 3 and 9 symbols become Wild in Level 2; Wild Whale where 5 Wilds are put on the grid at random in Level 3; and Ghostly Galleon, in which from 2 to 5 Wild Multipliers are added in Level 4.  

Captain’s Compass – Unleash Further Cascades On The Grid

My favourite part of this slot is the Captain’s Compass. Like other Cluster Pays slots, including Space Wars, you can blast symbols off the reels if you trigger these modifiers, causing further Cascades and more wins.

Captain's Compass Feature in Sea of Riches
Filling the Captain’s Compass in Sea of Riches to unlock free spins

It works using the classic ‘meter’ feature which charge up in games like Reactoonz. But this time, rather than a ‘meter’ we have a compass. Each win charges the compass to the right of the grid. And with new levels different Reel Modifiers are triggered.

Rolling Rum adds 1, 2 or 3 barrels that change from 3 to 6 vertical icons into the same symbol. The Musket Mayhem chooses from 5 to 12 random symbols to shoot them down from the reels. In the Cannon Blast feature Cannonballs destroy entire rows. And finally, Swarm O’ Parrots covers the reels, making from 10 to 15 symbols vanish instantly! 

Stormin’ Free Spins Feature When The Compass Is Full

Finally we get to the free spins round.

This Bonus begins when the Compass is filled with 48 or more symbols. Then you must spin the Ship’s Wheel to receive from 5 to 15 free plays. During your free play, Lightning may strike the grid at random. When it does it bring multipliers to the game which are applied to any wins at that time.

Sea of Riches Free Spins Round
The free spins round with multipliers

The Final Verdict

In my opinion, Cluster Pays games like this one are some of the most fun slots you can play, and Sea of Riches is one of the best. This slot is in the same group as games like the Toonz series from Play n Go and NetEnt’s Space Wars 2 Powerpoints. Those games also use a clever mix of progressive meters and Cascading Wins to unlock modifiers as you collect more wins. But they are high volatility games, which makes them hard to play at times. iSoftBet have taken the same format and given it a mid-variance game engine which makes it more playable with more frequent wins. The trade-off, of course, is that the max win is lower than those other Cluster Pays games. But if you can live with that, Sea of Riches is a better option. The range of modifier styles, from rolling rum barrels, pistol shots and Krakens all dropping wilds, to cannon fire destroying rows of symbols, mean there is never a dull moment. And the constant whir of the Captain’s Compass and the jeopardy of charging the meter as each Cascade lands, makes for a really compelling experience.

In short, Sea of Riches is the perfect slot for those who want to tackle a pirate game with a balanced pay model and lots of fun features.

Useful Tips When Playing Sea of Riches

Remember, online slots are games of chance, there is NO strategy that can improve your odds of winning. However, reading our review and following these tips will help you get the most out of your time playing this slot game.

1. Keep Your Eye On The Captain’s Compass

The fun part about Sea of Riches is watching the Captain’s Compass charging up. This happens with every consecutive win and its exciting seeing it reach the requried levels to unlock the different modifiers.

2. Be Patient Collecting Parts Of The Map

Finishing the Treasure Map is a long game. It took over 100 spins for me to complete and reach level 2. So be patient, it won’t happen quickly. And if you don’t get there, leave the game and come back another time.

 

3. Play With The Sound On

I recommend playing with the sound on for the full pirate experience! This is a fun production with a light-hearted feel and upbeat style so take it all in and enjoy it.

4. Play At Licensed Slot Sites

I recommend only playing at the licensed slot sites on this page. These sites operate under strict regulation to ensure they are safe and secure and all games are checked by 3rd party testing houses.

Who Made Sea of Riches?

  • Name: iSoftbet (owned by IGT)
  • Established: 2010
  • UK License: 054705-R-331137-005
  • Total Games: 500 +
  • Known For: Megaways Slots, Cluster Pays Slots, Hold and Win Slots
  • Popular Slots: Olympus Zeus Megaways, Masks of Fortune Megaways, Sea of Riches
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