Sword of Arthur: Slot Overview

Imagine a present-day take on the sword-in-the-stone moment: prizes showered on whoever can pull it free—maybe a heroic quest, maybe cash, maybe Amazon vouchers, whatever fits. Now picture queues of would-be champions, sword in one hand and a selfie stick in the other, more interested in filming their failed attempts for online attention than actually completing the deed. Times change, and one of the easiest ways to dip into the Arthurian Legends today is through online slots. Swedish developer Thunderkick adds its own entry with Sword of Arthur, a ‘book of’ style title.

Even when studios try to get inventive with mechanics, the theme can still box them in a bit when it comes to world-building. Arthurian rules aren’t exactly fixed—yes, pun intended—but they usually involve the familiar mix seen in Sword of Arthur: castle-adjacent objects, blades, and assorted medieval odds and ends. Thunderkick’s knack for attractive presentation remains intact here, with a layout reminiscent of Midas Golden Touch 2, though the colours feel a touch less punchy.

A legendary tale is presented on a familiar slot framework. The game uses 5 reels and 10 paylines to calculate wins, with standard payouts landing left to right starting from the first reel. The one caveat is expanding symbol wins, which operate under their own ruleset. With Thunderkick, a math model volatility rated very high can be an intimidating combination, and a default RTP topping out at 94.34% is a bit of a let-down.

The hit rate of 29.85% suggests wins show up with reasonable regularity, and the betting range runs from 10 c to $/€100. On top of that, players can switch on two Bet+ options. Bonus Boost makes each spin 2 times more likely to trigger the bonus game, while Bonus Boost Plus makes each spin 5 times more likely to do so. When enabled, RTP increases to 94.4% or 94.43%, respectively.

Sword of Arthur features 10 symbols in total. Card ranks 10 to A serve as the low pays, shields, armour, and a helmet sit in the mid tier, and the lone Arthur symbol is the top payer. That leaves the wild/scatter sword symbol, which is the key that unlocks Sword of Arthur’s bonus round.

Sword of Arthur: Slot Features

The main thing to note in Sword of Arthur is the sword symbol, which effectively replaces the classic book icon. This sword acts as both scatter and wild. In its wild role, it substitutes for all symbols in the base game. The sword symbol can also produce both payline wins and scatter pay wins.

Bonus Game

Landing 3 or more sword symbols activates the bonus game and awards 3, 4, or 5 free spins. During the feature, a random symbol (excluding the sword) is selected as the expanding symbol for the entire round. The expanding symbol starts with an x1 multiplier, and it’s shown in a panel next to the reels. Expanding symbols grow to cover the whole reel when doing so results in winning combinations. They don’t have to sit next to each other to pay, and only one symbol per reel can expand on any given spin.

Power Reset

Each time an expanding win lands, the multiplier increases one level, and the free spins count is reset to its initial value. The multiplier only affects expanding symbols when they pay as part of the expanded win feature.

Bonus Buy

Sword of Arthur’s bonus buy lets players purchase direct access to the free spins round, where three are choices. They are a regular bonus game trigger for 125x the bet (RTP 94.45%), the bonus game with 5 guaranteed free spins for 200x the bet (RTP 94.47%), or the bonus game with a guaranteed high pay Arthur symbol for 500x the bet (RTP 94.5%).

Sword of Arthur: Slot Verdict

Coming straight from reviewing Play’n GO’s ‘book of’ style slot Merlin Realm of Charm just days earlier, here’s another slot to judge that uses an inventive pay-any-position expanding symbol approach in free spins. It’s a solid enough entry in the Book of Dead crowd, although a couple of warning signs stand out. The most obvious is the RTP, and after looking at titles like King of the Party, Xterminate, and now Sword of Arthur, it feels like Thunderkick has firmly followed ELK Studios down the lower-return path. Maybe this is simply the new Thunderkick standard, and players will react however they choose—put up with it, or walk away.

So, is Sword of Arthur worth tolerating the rougher edges to enjoy what it does well? Possibly—especially if you’re after a very highly volatile ‘book’ slot with clever (and slightly brutal) rule tweaks. The bonus may begin with fewer free spins than usual, but not only do free spins reset after a win, the multiplier climbs too. It’s easy to see how that can create a seriously swingy experience. Adding extra appeal, Sword of Arthur offers double the typical ‘book of’ max win, reaching 10,000x the bet.

Sword of Arthur ultimately lands as a blend of strengths and drawbacks. Depending on a player’s tastes, preferences, and tolerance, it could feel like it’s constantly tipping between the best and worst ends of the scale. All told, Sword of Arthur introduces something fresh to the ever-expanding Book lineup, though its tougher elements may be a step too far for some gamblers.