Sword of Shoguns: Slot Overview

Swords have existed for millennia, stretching back to the Bronze Age, and their true origin is lost to time. What is clear is that they became widely used weapons of war, adopted by countless civilisations that wanted something sharp and deadly for the battlefield. The theme is also a favourite of software provider Thunderkick, which previously built a title around blades in its 2019 release Sword of Khans, and has now followed up with Sword of Shoguns. Here we explore whether swordplay is just as potent in the Land of the Rising Sun as it was in the Mongolian empire.

At a glance, it’s easy to mistake one game for the other. Both share a very similar presentation: a grid set inside a pagoda-style frame, perched in mountainous scenery, with a dramatic sunrise or sunset behind it. It’s a familiar Asian slot backdrop, given Thunderkick’s polish and delivered in an attractive way, even if it doesn’t feel especially fresh. A bolder visual shift might have helped distinguish the two titles more clearly, though the updated look does also connect Sword of Shoguns to Sword of Khans in a tidy, consistent way.

When it comes to wagering, players can set stakes from 10 p/c to $/€100, either spinning normally or jumping straight into the bonus via the feature buy priced at 120 times the stake. In standard play, Sword of Shoguns runs with a default RTP of 96.15%, which rises to 96.4% when purchasing the bonus round. Although it may resemble one, Sword of Shoguns is not a Megaways game. Still, pressing spin drops 2 to 7 symbols on each reel at random. The twist is that Thunderkick has designed the grid so results always form 5,040 ways to win. So it’s somewhat Megaways-like, but not quite the real thing.

Symbol-wise, the lower end is made up of 9 to A card ranks, while the higher-value set includes a weapon, fan, armour, helmet, and shogun. Wins must connect from the leftmost reel onward, paying 1 to 1.3 times the bet for 6 of the low pays or 2 to 5 times the bet for 6 premium symbols. All symbols pay from 3 OAK+ combinations, except the shogun, which pays from at least 2 OAK.

Sword of Shoguns: Slot Features

At heart, Sword of Khans was a reworked ‘Ra’ type slot with a handful of added touches. Much the same can be said for Sword of Shoguns, where the main additions to note are a combined wild/scatter symbol and a free spins round featuring expanding pay-anywhere symbols that can be retriggered.

Free Spins

The sword symbol in Sword of Shoguns acts as both the wild and the scatter. In practice, this means it substitutes for any standard paying symbol, and landing three or more swords triggers 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or 12 free spins – with the exact number being random. A pay symbol is then selected and revealed, becoming the special expanding symbol during the free spins.

If the chosen symbol appears on at least three reels (or two reels if it is the shogun), it expands to cover all positions on those reels, after which the win is calculated. On top of that, retriggering the feature awards either 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 extra free spins, and one additional pay symbol is added as another expanding symbol. A maximum of up to 4 symbols can be expanders.

Sword of Shoguns: Slot Verdict

As with most slots, Sword of Shoguns comes with both strengths and weaknesses. Let’s deal with the drawbacks first. From a more critical angle, Sword of Shoguns feels a bit unoriginal—maybe even very unoriginal. For one thing, it strongly resembles its predecessor despite shifting to a different culture. That said, it is a good-looking game, the graphics have been improved, and the calm, meditative mountain atmosphere works nicely. The feature set, if we’re being strict, also sits close to what’s been seen in titles such as Sword of Khans, Book of Ra Magic, Magic Mirror Deluxe, Legacy of Dead, or Rise of Merlin; take your pick. Put simply, there isn’t a huge amount here that feels genuinely new.

Still, viewed more positively, Sword of Shoguns delivers what fans of expanding pay-from-any-position symbol gameplay are looking for. Yes, the market is crowded with this style of slot, but Sword of Shoguns does have a couple of ideas that help it separate itself. One is the Megaways-ish structure, which generates far more ways to win than the 10 paylines commonly found in similar games. The changing reel heights can feel a touch gimmicky, yet they do add some variation to how spins play out. Hit the right moment and the expanding symbol lands on the fuller reels; hit the wrong one and it expands across the thinner reels. Hit the jackpot scenario and it expands across all 6 reels for the sought-after full-screen win—and if that expanded symbol is the shogun, the game’s top prize of 25,200x the bet is reached.

That above-average maximum win is another ace up Sword of Shoguns’ sleeve. It’s a strong number, helping to justify the much higher ways-to-win format, and it’s big enough to appeal to players who enjoy this type of mechanic but want a larger-than-usual upside.