Barcrest

The developer swapped hands twice. They were first bought out by IGT in 1998, and were then purchased by Scientific Games in 2011. But in both cases, they were allowed to keep their name.

The company was continue developing slots under new managements. What kind of magic does Barcrest have that allows them to keep floating? Read on to find out!

About Barcrest

The company was founded in Manchester, England, all the way back in 1968! That makes this studio a lot older than its many competitors. Barcrest’s name became popular throughout Europe, thanks to the quality of their physical machines. Sadly, they handled the transition to online far less gracefully than other developers. The vast majority of their best releases wouldn’t see the light of phone screens for a long time.

Thankfully, SG’s purchase would quickly take care of that. These older slots remain Barcrest’s most popular games to this day. Tell us a player who hasn’t at least tried their luck at Rainbow Riches or one of their Monopoly releases. The British studio continues to launch new slots to this day! Sometimes they’re great, sometimes they flop. But the developer always bounces back, and delivers something amazing. Hopefully that doesn’t change in the future of online gambling.

Barcrest Slots

One thing we really like about their games is the awesome wins you can get. Of course, those prizes usually come with an obvious condition: high volatility! It’s frequent, but far from a rule. Take a look at Rainbow Riches for proof that not all fantastic wins require a high variance. They’re not afraid of trying out new mechanics either. Kind of.

One thing we’re not big fans of is what we’ve dubbed the Novomatic syndrome. Rainbow Riches is a fun slot, and there are areas in which it can improve. But we doubt Barcrest needs 11 versions of one game to fix everything. Adding new mechanics and piggybacking off of a popular name leaves a sour taste in our mouths. Thankfully, they’ve moved away from this practice in recent years.

So, what kind of slots can you expect from this developer? The answer is more mixed than we’d like. Fortunately for you, dear reader, we’re here to pick out the very best games for your enjoyment! If you want to play Barcrest, we recommend one of the following releases.

• Rainbow Riches

There’s no way we can talk about this Manchester-based developer without mentioning this slot. For many gamblers, this was the first Barcrest game they ever tried. It’s full of engaging, interesting special features, which offer small, but frequent wins. This was clearly a winning formula for the developer, as this game continues to be played to this day!

• 7’s to Burn

We’re so used to five reel releases, going back to three reels comes off as a slight shock to the system! This slot is incredibly fun, but it does have an obvious flaw. The Wild symbol is only Wild for one symbol. Unless, of course, you’re playing the Hi-Roller mode. It costs more, but you’re able to play the game how it was meant to be played. If you want something simple, but exciting? This is the Barcrest release for you.

• Cash Stax

Rudimentary graphics aren’t great if you want to attract players. But sometimes, gameplay demands that sacrifice! That’s certainly the case in Cash Stax, where Barcrest sacrificed visual fidelity for an easier understanding of the mechanics. Each O symbol has a chance to turn into a golden ring above the reels. And finding them in the right positions could earn you free spins and a 5x multiplier!

• Winfall

They say diamonds are a girl’s best friend. But we happen to think they like us gamblers more! At least, we certainly hope they do. If they don’t, landing decent prizes in Winfall might be troublesome. The slot makes use of cascading reels, and rewards you for chaining wins together using that system. Successfully triggering the special feature offers a pick-and-click with cash prizes and 2x multipliers.

• Lady of Avalon

It’s funny that we mentioned Novomatic earlier, since Barcrest decided to borrow their idea in this game. This release offers 10 free spins, with a randomly chosen expanding symbol that uses Scatter pays. If you’re sitting there and thinking: Wait, this is just Book of Ra! Well, you’d be absolutely right. It’s fun to play, but we wish the developers did something new with the idea. No such luck, we’re afraid.