Family Fortunes Slots
There are very few gameshows better known around the world than Family Fortunes. The mix of a TV game with battling families was a hit in the UK, US and beyond. Fremantle Media have made a fast and entertaining slot based on this, which takes plenty of ideas from the original – and combines this with a modern 5-reel video slot game. There are two separate features, ‘Big Money’ and ‘Double Money’, and with wilds in play you can win multiple prizes during the regular spins too. I cannot say I was a big fan of the original show; however I found my interest levels shot up when there were real money prizes accumulating!
You’ll be met with an animated video introduction, and then taken to a bright purple screen which shows the reels under bright studio lights. Brass band sound effects are in play - these are very TV gameshow-like. The symbols are a mix of stars in different colours, and the playing card symbols which are silver. There are also wilds (just the word with some stars around) and a question mark. The bonus symbols (double money and big money) are like plaques with these words on them). There are some animations, and more noises, when you hit a winning combination. Think stars swirling and symbols flashing and you’ll be on the right track.
Both of the bonus games are excellent. These take you to different screens. One is a complex free spins game with the duelling families on screen. The other involves you picking answers to questions as happened in the original show.
Setup and Play for Family Fortunes
This is a 20 line video slot, with 5 reels and 3 rows of symbols. The spins are in British Pounds, with 1p per line being the minimum and £20 per line available for anyone with £400 a spin spare to play the full set of lines. Auto-spin is available, and lets you choose 5, 10 or 15 spins each time. Auto play is very fast.
Prizes from regular play are on the smaller side, with the bonus features making up the bigger wins in this game. The best prize comes from the oval Family Fortunes logo, 5 of these on a line wins you 500 coins; you’ll get 150 coins for 4 and 75 for 3. Next in the prize list comes the question mark (5 gets you 300 coins), with the gold and purple stars next (150 and 100 respectively). The blue and orange stars and the playing card symbols then make up the smaller wins.
There is a wild symbol in play; as usual this will substitute for the regular symbols – though it does not substitute for the bonus symbols.
Bonus symbols say either big money, or double money – you need 3 of either type to trigger the respective bonus.
Family Fortunes Slot – Bonus Features
Double money is a free spins round with a couple of major differences to those found on other slots. First of all, there is no assigned number of spins. Instead the game is continuous, with the silhouetted families at the bottom of the screen hitting a button in turn after each spin. The screen between them then either says ‘Good Answer’ or shows an orange and black cross. You keep spinning until you hit the 3rd cross.
Wins during this bonus are doubled and also work from both directions. Symbols lining up from right to left on the reels trigger wins in the same way as the left to right ones. This bonus was reasonably long both times I hit it, allowing some wins to accumulate. I like the way the family heads cheer and point when they hit a good answer too.
The other game is a break out which involves answering questions such as, ‘name a famous Paul?’ You get to choose from 6 possibilities each time, and will go through 5 questions that were asked of 100 people. Each answer gives you a cash prize, and then at the end you get additional money if you managed to guess any top answers. This is a pick-em game with some interesting game-play, so you do not need to worry about not knowing any of the subjects covered.
Can You Double Your Money?
I did not expect to enjoy this slot, though have ended up rating it quite highly. The game play is fast and smooth – particularly in auto-play. Both of the bonus games are excellent, and take you out of the main game often enough to stop you getting bored. Out of the two the ‘Big Money’ appeared to have the best prizes, though your mileage may vary. You do not need to be a fan of the show to enjoy this, though I’m sure that will add a little extra. Check out Family Fortunes from Fremantle for yourself soon.
