Aztecs are always present in conversations about ancient civilizations that amaze people to date. What started as a nomadic tribe in Northern Mexico in the thirteenth century morphed into a magnificent city-state and dominant force with social, political, and commercial organization far ahead of its time. This great Mesoamerican civilization fell under the Spanish invasion of the 16th century, and it still inspires wonder to date. The vast wealth and rich flavored culture of the Mayans is documented in several pokie machines, and these are seven of the best:
Gonzo’s Quest Megaways
Punters first met Gonzo in the 2011 NetEnt set Gonzo’s Quest, and he has remained a beloved character ever since. In 2020, Red Tiger Gaming hopped on the Megaways sequels trend to deliver its sequel. The cult status title follows the explorer as he searches for the lost city of El Dorado. While the city’s actual location is unknown, reports from as early as the 16th century place it in the Paititi tropical jungle of South America, within the borders of the Mayan region.
The most eye-catching element of Gonzo’s Quest Megaways is the visual design. The icons and atmosphere are similar to the first set but with cleaner graphics and animations. Punters can join Gonzo on his adventure by placing stakes between 0.20 and 4.00 credits. While the bet limits are low, they can trigger wins up to 21,000x the wager through icon combinations and the following features:
- Avalanche feature – any paying icons (three to six similar ones on adjacent reels from the leftmost column) exit the playtable, and others from above take their place. The feature continues until no more payout icons appear.
- Progressive multiplier – the avalanche wins activate a progressive multiplier that starts at 1x and goes up to 5x in the base game. These values increase in the freebies, starting at 3x going up to 15x.
- Free spins – three scatters or two scatters and a wild trigger the feature.
- Unbreakable wilds – the wilds do not exit the grid when they are part of a combination.
Aztec Gold Megaways
This slot machine was iSoftBet’s first application of the famous Big Time Gaming engine and was released in 2019. Aztec Gold Megaways Slot has a familiar Aztec theme presented with solid graphics and jungle-style music in the background. The towering six reels on the playtable hold up to 117,649 ways to win.
The Aztec king appears with glowing eyes and pays the highest combination win of 50x the line stake. The animal icons pay between 3x and 12x while the royal cards award 0.9x to 2.1x. The Sun Disc appears as the scatter, and five or more activate the Aztec Gold Cash Respins. The icons award three re-spins, remove regular icons from the reels, and any new Sun Disc resets the spins to three. Each disc has a multiplier win attached, and they can also display the Mini and Major fixed jackpots. The Mega pot activates when the entire grid fills with Sun Discs.
John Hunter and the Aztec Treasure
John Hunter is Pragmatic Play’s brave adventurer that leads punters through ancient civilizations hunting for treasures. John stumbles upon Aztec treasures in this pokie and invites punters to share the spoils on five reels with 7,776 bet ways. Embarking on the adventure costs between 0.20 and 100 credits, and the 96.5% and medium-high variance suits the range. Hunter offers the maximum combination win of 400 credits. While it does not sound like much, this set has a payout potential of over 10,000x the total wager. The features that aid in achieving this win include;
- Wild – appears as a golden reptile on the second through fourth reels
- Scatter – denoted by a sun disc and awards the free spins bonus for falling on three or more spots
- Free spins – granted according to the number of disc scatters between 5 and 25
- Multiplier – every free spin gets a random multiplier between 2x and 10x
Aztec Bonanza
Aztec Bonanza is yet another hunt for the high-value treasures of the Mayan kingdom, and it is also from Pragmatic Play. The pokie kicks off gameplay with a unique 2-4-6-4-2 grid set on the banks of a river across an ancient temple. The main icons are gems carved into stone. The emerald circle is the most valuable, paying 375 credits for the highest wager of 150 credits. The Aztec Bonanza grid unlocks each of the tiles on its edges for two consecutive tumbles. The free spins play with the full 5×6 playtable featuring 7,776 ways to win. A golden statue appears as a Mystery symbol on the unlocked tiles in the freebies. The icons turn into the same paying character randomly.
Aztec Spins
Aztec Spins builds on the mysteries and legacy of this ancient civilization with beautiful visuals and cash-laden features. The 6×4 pokie machine is not the most unique, but the intriguing use of the Aztec wheel calendar sets it apart from most others. Icons pay for combinations of up to six, and the pyramid pays the highest one valued at 360x the line stake. The Aztec wheel awards all the game’s features, including free spins, stacking multipliers, and locked symbols.
El Dorado Infinity Reels
El Dorado Infinity Reels uses a somewhat new and innovative engine, Infinity Reels. At first glance, the pokie passes as a simple three-reeled game set in the middle of the Mesoamerican thicket. However, the innovative mechanic adds one reel to the grid with each new winning combination, and there can be up to twelve extra columns. A progressive multiplier also adds 1x to its value for every payout combo. The Golden Temple scatter triggers the four-leveled free spins with upgrading RTP rates.
Rise of Maya
Rise of Maya qualifies as an above-average title despite its relatively simple appearance for a NetEnt pokie. The pokie plays with four different wild icons, and winning combinations start from as little as two characters. When the scatter appears, it nudges other icons off of the reels, and three of them trigger free spins that play with hot reels. The title pays up to 6,000x the stake.
Summary
There is no shortage of Aztec-Mayan-themed sets, and these stand out for their striking visuals and payouts. Punters can explore all of them in free and real money versions.