Whenever I hear the word ‘shinobi’, I can’t help but remember the fun I had playing both the original 1987 Sega arcade game and its later ports and sequels for the Sega home consoles. The word itself comes from a Japanese term meaning to conceal oneself, a feature which was frequently incorporated into video games as various forms of “ninja magic”. Whilst it’s possible that Realistic Games chose the title Shinobi Moon for this slot purely based on its dictionary definition of “a male ninja”, I’d like to believe that they are also big fans of Shinobi 3: Return of the Ninja Master! The 50-pay line machine offers an RTP of 96.09% alongside a maximum jackpot prize of 4,500x the total bet.
Whilst the regular prizes listed on the paytable of Shinobi Moon look extremely small at first glance, there’s a good reason for this once you dig deeper into the details. For a start, wild symbols are present on reels two through five and hitting one on all four of those reels simultaneously will trigger a New Moons Respins feature where wilds become both sticky and stacked on the reels. These so-called “Stick & Stack” wilds can also have multipliers of up to 3x applied to them. We also get a free spin-based bonus round where the Stick & Stack wilds are available on the reels during every spin – if you wish, you can purchase that feature for 50x the normal price per spin.
Were you a fan of the Shinobi video games? If so, don’t miss this opportunity for a pang of lovely nostalgic goodness courtesy of our Shinobi Moon demo – it’s available to play below!
| Provider | Realistic Games |
| Reels | 5 |
| Rows | 4 |
| Paylines | 50 |
| Bonus Rounds | 1 |
| Bet Range | 0.20 - 20 |
| Volatility | Medium |
| Max Win | 4,500x |
| Bonus Buy | Yes |
| RTP | 96.09% |
| Our Rating | 7.1 |
Shinobi Moon Casino Bonuses
Shinobi Moon Demo
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Shinobi Moon Theme, Stakes, Pays & Symbols
The word ‘shinobi’ seems obscure enough to me that it seems quite improbable that developers have used it in the title of their slots without prior knowledge of the Sega video games. I could be wrong, of course, but I truly do find it hard to believe that machines such as Print Studios ‘Shinobi Spirit’ would exist in their current state if it wasn’t for the existence of the Shinobi arcade game. On the other hand, I guess that the idea of a ninja with the ability to become invisible is a cool concept on its own, so anything is possible!
As mentioned in the opening paragraphs, the standard payouts listed on the paytable of Shinobi Moon are unimpressive at best… some might even say downright disappointing. The ninja, for example, only pays 2.5x the total bet for a full payline of five of a kind, whilst the shuriken offers just 1.5x for all five symbols. The Sai (props to the Ninja Turtles for informing me the name of that weapon, by the way!) is worth 1.25x for a complete payline, whilst the bomb and whip weapons will each fetch you a 1x return for a five of a kind combination. As for the low pays, five Aces or Kings will get you 0.5x your bet back as a win, whilst five Queens, Jacks, or Tens will fetch you 0.25x. That just leaves the bonus scatter symbols, offering 2x the total bet for all five.
The betting range in Shinobi Moon has minimum/maximum limits of €0.20 and €20.00 per spin, respectively. Whilst only a few intermediate stakes are available, the limited bet spread makes this less of a problem than it might otherwise be.
Base Game & Modifiers
The game rules page for Shinobi Moon states that this is a standard five-reel game, although, with four rows per reel, I would tend to call this more of an extended playfield machine rather than just “standard”. Wins are paid on 50 fixed paylines starting from the left-hand reel, with all but the most valuable symbol requiring at least three matches to award a prize.
Stick & Stack Wilds
If a wild symbol lands on reels two, three, four, and five simultaneously, all wilds will become “Stick & Stack” wilds, and three re-spins will be awarded. During this mode, reel one will spin continuously whilst the remaining reels will re-spin three times. If a wild lands anywhere on reels 2-5, it will become locked in place.
If a new wild lands on top of an existing sticky wild, that position will gain an increased multiplier which caps out at 3x. Once all three re-spins have been completed, reel one will stop spinning, and your final win will be evaluated.
Shinobi Moon Slot Bonus Features
Bonus scatter symbols are present on all five reels of Shinobi Moon, but you’ll only need three to trigger a bonus round. A three-scatter trigger will award 10 free spins, whilst four or five scatters increase this to 12 or 15 spins, respectively.
Free Spins Feature
In this mode, all wilds become “Stick & Stack Wilds”, just as in the feature that can be activated in the base game. Unlike that feature, winnings are paid out immediately after every free spin rather than only once at the end of the three re-spins. The free spins feature cannot be re-triggered.
Bonus Buy
The free spins can be accessed with the click of a button if the bonus buy facility is active in your jurisdiction. Activating this feature will cost you 50x the current bet.
Pros
- Visually, this is a marked improvement on previous Realistic slots.
- The Stick & Stack wilds make big wins possible, even during the base game.
Cons
- The 4,500x jackpot is only average by modern slot standards.
- The re-spin feature occurs so infrequently that it would feel much fairer if it was a full-on three-spin feature.
Final Thoughts
This isn’t my favourite of the Shinobi-themed online slots, but it’s still a decent machine that should keep players entertained for a good few sessions. It’s also a much better-presented game than previous slots that I have reviewed from Realistic, and it leaves me feeling excited to see what else they will come up with in the future.
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