The Sword and the Grail Excalibur: Slot Overview

Swedish studio Play’n GO continues its fascination with Arthurian myth in The Sword and the Grail Excalibur, a successor to titles such as The Sword and the Grail and Return of the Green Knight. Anyone who played the earlier games will recognise the headline attraction: wilds that can drop in carrying multipliers up to x100, made even more tempting by a level-up system that comes into play during the free spins feature. The Sword and the Grail Excalibur retains these highlights, while also introducing fresh additions like King’s Prizes, which can be boosted by the multiplier, plus a new sticky/roaming behaviour for wilds in the free spins round.

The Sword and the Grail already looked impressive when it launched around five years before this entry, yet Play’n GO has sharpened the visuals again, giving the whole presentation a cleaner, more defined finish. Here, both the base game and the bonus action unfold indoors in a castle-like setting that feels less ceremonial. The key difference between the two stages is the lighting—one plays out by day and the other by night. One important element remains visible throughout: the multipliers displayed at the top, capped at x100.

The core mechanics are unchanged, as The Sword and the Grail Excalibur runs on a 5-reel, 3-row layout with 20 paylines used to determine wins. The default RTP is set at 96.2%, and with a 10 out of 10 rating, volatility is high. Stakes range from 10 c to $/€100 per spin, and even after five years, Play’n GO still hasn’t fully embraced the feature buy trend.

Bright coins marked J-A serve as The Sword and the Grail Excalibur’s lower-paying symbols, while the premium icons are Lancelot, Merlin, Guinevere, and King Arthur. Hitting 5 matching low pays on a line returns 1-2x the bet, whereas 5 matching high pays deliver 5 to 15 times the bet. Grail Wilds appear on every reel and can replace any standard paying symbol. Their base payout matches the King Arthur symbol, but they can reach 1,500x for five wilds on a payline when the x100 multiplier is active.

The Sword and the Grail Excalibur: Slot Features

The Sword and the Grail Excalibur brings back familiar elements—Sword Meters, wild multipliers, free spins, and more—while layering in extras like King’s Prizes and giving wilds a roaming twist during the free spins feature.

Sword Meter

The Sword Meter above the reels can turn the Grail Wild into a Multiplier Wild. When the Grail Wild acts as a Multiplier Grail Wild while substituting another symbol, it boosts the win by the multiplier value shown on the Grail. Multiplier values are x2, x5, x10, and x100.

Instant Prize

Kings Prizes are instant prizes that show fixed values. If a King’s Prize lands while the Sword Meter is active, the King’s Prize will be multiplied by the Sword Meter value and paid out.

Free Spins

Hitting 3 or more Sword scatters activates free spins; any additional Sword scatters that appear are added to the Sword Meter once free spins begin. Before the feature starts, a Round Table Wheel decides the number of free spins and the Sword scatters awarded:

• 8 free spins with 3 or 4 sword scatters.
• 10 free spins with 2 or 3 sword scatters.
• 12 free spins with 0 or 1 sword scatter.

During free spins, the Sword Meter is filled with the starting number of scatters from the Round Table Wheel, plus any extras from the base game spin that triggered the bonus. Any Sword scatters collected throughout the free spins round are accumulated on the meter. For every 5 Sword scatters collected, the next multiplier stage will be unlocked on the Sword Meter and +3 free spins are granted. Any King’s Prize that lands in free spins is paid. Also in free spins, any Grail Wild that lands becomes semi-sticky and wanders around until it move off the reels. When multiple Grails land, they travel in the same direction, and Wandering Grail Wilds can have a multiplier attached from the Sword Meter.

The Sword and the Grail Excalibur: Slot Verdict

The Sword and the Grail may not feel quite as groundbreaking if it launched today, but at the time it stood out thanks to a seriously powerful mix of features. It was also a great-looking release and a notable entry in Play’n GO’s catalogue. The Sword and the Grail Excalibur takes the strongest parts of the original and adds more punch to help it move beyond the first game. With a clear sense of familiarity running through it, The Sword and the Grail Excalibur may not land with the same shock factor as its predecessor, but fans of the original are likely to enjoy this refreshed version as well—possibly even more.

King’s Prizes are a useful extra to have, but the real energy in The Sword and the Grail Excalibur comes from roaming multiplier wilds. The downside is that they aren’t fully sticky, so they can step off the reels partway through a free spins session. Wilds can return later and start roaming again, but having them disappear mid-feature can still feel a bit irritating. Interestingly, we reviewed Slotmill’s slot Tyrant’s Fall the day before The Sword and the Grail Excalibur, and it also uses a level-up multiplier system that appears on roaming wilds during free spins. In Tyrant’s Fall, those roaming symbols remain in place until the feature ends, which may appeal more to players. On the other hand, The Sword and the Grail Excalibur offers the higher maximum potential of 25,000x, which could swing the advantage back. Still, it’s worth remembering that Play’n GO slots often don’t reach their stated ceiling, something many players in the community have noted.

The Sword and the Grail Excalibur also comes with a sense of legacy and pedigree, like a ‘well-born’ nobleman. It should naturally draw in players who liked the original, yet it also holds up on its own as a polished slot combining proven mechanics with an exciting mix of returning and new features.