Kensei Blades Slot Review: RTP Breakdown & Game Features
Betsoft is set to send you on a fantastical adventure with the release of its new online slot, Kensei Blades. Join forces with the heroic blademaster Kensei and his sidekick Sakura in an epic fantasy showdown that offers up to 96 free spins per spin and potential wins worth over 3,400x your stake, along with all sorts of magic and wonder.
The action unfolds across 5 reels in a 3-4-5-4-3 arrangement that provides up to 720 ways to win on any spin. Plus, as Kensei Blades awards payouts in both directions there are even more opportunities to land a win. The special features don’t end there though, there are also plenty of wilds, scatters and free spins on offer that can vastly improve the game’s payout potential.
So, if you’re looking for something new to play that’s packed full of excitement, be sure to continue reading our Kensei Blades slot review to find out more!
Kensei Blades Features
Modern slot players understand how important bonuses and special features are to a release, after all, they’re usually where the largest prizes are found. Thankfully, Betsoft clearly knows what players want, as the studio has incorporated several features into the gameplay to keep each spin fresh and exciting.
Kensei Scatter
Unlike most recent slot games, the Kensei Blades Scatter symbol isn’t used to trigger a bonus or free spins mode. Instead, it’s more of a traditional scatter pays symbol that awards a fixed payout whenever 3 or more land anywhere on the reels, as outlined below.
- 3 Scatters: 2x total bet
- 4 Scatters: 10x total bet
- 5 Scatters: 50x total bet
Sakura Wilds
Back in more familiar territory, the Wild symbol aids in the formation of winning combinations. It substitutes for all regular paytable symbols except the Kensei Scatter and the Bonus symbol any time it appears on-screen. It can only land on reels 2, 3 and 4 but it can also land in full stacks, thus potentially covering each position on the middle three reels and giving you a great chance to land a sizeable payout.
Kensei Blades Free Spins and Bonus
To trigger the free spins on Kensei Blades, you’re going to need to land at least one bonus symbol on each of the 5 reels. Every combination of 5 free spins symbols across the reels awards 8 free spins plus a prize of 1x your total bet, and it’s possible to earn up to 96 free spins on any given round.
As you enter the bonus the screen will transition and your free spins will begin. Unfortunately, though, no additional modifiers or multipliers come into play, it’s simply a case of your spins playing out at the triggering stake and the potential wins accumulating.
Nevertheless, you can retrigger the bonus and earn up to a total of 240 free spins by once again landing at least 1 free spins symbol on each of the 5 reels.
Kensei Blades Theme and Symbols
Fantasy-themed online slots are hardly uncommon but when you factor Kensei Blades’ anime style into the mix you get a game that offers something slightly different from the norm. As you’d expect, the artwork and graphic design are up to the highest standards and suitably reflect the slot’s inspiration, but it’s triggering the free spins bonus that truly showcases Betsoft’s aesthetic prowess via a range of flashy animations and engaging sound effects.
As for the paytable, each symbol echoes the fantastical theme. The lower end of the paytable is made up of hearts, stars, moons and suns, whilst more valuable wins are depicted by helms, shields, magic staffs and swords – the latter being the game’s premium symbol, paying 20x your stake for each 5-of-a-kind combination.
Kensei Blades RTP and Volatility
One aspect we believe could be better is the game’s RTP. The industry average for most modern slots sits at around 96%, so the fact that Kensei Blades comes in at 95.12% may put some players off.
Nevertheless, the medium variance nature of the release means that wins shouldn’t be too hard to come by. Huge payouts may not appear all that often but a steady stream of wins should be enough to keep your bankroll ticking over as you hunt for the free spins bonus.
How To Play Kensei Blades
Kensei Blades isn’t too dissimilar from the majority of standard video slots, so it shouldn’t take you too long to get to grips with the gameplay. The layout spans 5 reels with a varying number of symbols on each row in a 3-4-5-4-3 pattern, which results in a total of 720 ways to win.
Everything you need in terms of functionality is conveniently located beneath the reels. Rules and game information are available via a collapsible information panel in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, whilst the more pertinent functions such as the spin button and stake selection are clearly in view – stakes range from the €0.50 minimum bet to the €100 maximum bet, which will satisfy most players.
Slotsia’s Review
It’s pleasing how Betsoft has chosen to draw inspiration from a popular theme and then expand upon it to offer players something of a new experience, but the inescapable truth is that Kense Blades offers very little in the way of exciting and engaging features.
Yes, Wilds and Scatters can deliver extra payouts within the base game but where we believe this release falls short is within the free spins bonus as no additional modifiers or multipliers become active – that’s usually what these features are all about!
Still, if you’re looking for an uncomplicated slot game with reasonable potential, Kensei Blades could offer some entertainment for a period, and, ultimately, a 3,414.1x maximum payout is nothing to sniff at.
Solid maximum win – over 3,400x
Straightforward gameplay
Interesting theme
Low RTP at 95.12%
Lack of modifiers within free spins
