Sanctuary

Big Time Gaming have become known for a number of things across their time in the gambling industry. First and foremost, as the team behind the Megaways mechanic they are often regarded as the ones that helped to reshape the world of online slots.

Aside from that, this team have become known for being a provider that offers fantastic music in their releases – by licensing some of the most popular hits from the 70s and 80s. From Gold by Spandau Ballet to Boney M’s Rasputin, players know they’re going to get a great soundtrack with Big Time Gaming.

Perhaps most pertinent is the team’s use of The Cult music in their Cult Trilogy – Lil’ Devil, Wild Flower and Outlaw. Now, we’re back to visit this band once more as we leave behind the classic nature of Bonanza Falls in Sanctuary.

With a fixed RTP of 96.38% (96.39% feature buy), this highly volatile release can produce wins up to 44,070x bet.

Sanctuary Base Game

We find ourselves in Egypt today, although it’s Egypt with a bit of a Big Time Gaming twist. It’s quite a different look than that of Book of Dead or other Egyptian releases and instead is a bit of an intense view of this popular location. Set in the middle of the Egyptian pyramids, everything seems to be filled with an orange glow – either coming from lava, fire or something else.

The symbols are the classic Big Time Gaming assortment, with the usual suspects making up non premiums and a variety of Egyptian motifs and characters coming in for premiums. It’s all held together by She Sells Sanctuary from The Cult, which doesn’t play consistently but does come through in the important moments. All in all, a fairly unique approach to a typical location.

Sanctuary Offers Players 4,096 Ways to Win

Sanctuary Base Features

Taking place across 6 reels, wins are formed on Sanctuary by matching at least 2 or 3 symbols on adjacent reels, beginning with the leftmost reel. Each reel holds 4 symbols, producing 4,096 ways to win. Symbols available begin with non premiums, with 9s, 10s, Js, Qs, Ks and As, awarding wins between 0.10 and 0.20x bet for 3 of a kind matches, increasing to values between 0.50 and 1.20x bet for 6 of a kind wins.

At the premium end we have a green Eye of Horus, a blue scarab and a red Anubis. Land 3 of a kind of any premium to see wins of 0.30x bet, increasing to values between 1.50 and 5x bet for 6 of a kind matches. A purple Pharaoh is the highest paying symbol, the only symbol to pay for 2 of a kind, and also has a skull face to bring a connection between this release and the likes of Danger! High Voltage. Land between 2 and 6 of a kind Pharaohs to see wins between 0.30 and 15x bet.

Full Reel Wilds Can Land on Reels 2-5

Full Reel Wilds

So there’s really only one main feature to cover in Sanctuary – Wild symbols.

When Wild symbols land in view they will always cover the full reel they have landed upon. They can land in one of two forms – gold Wilds or purple Wilds.

Gold Wilds are regular full reel Wilds whilst purple Wilds will always have a multiplier of x8 attached. In either case, Wilds substitute for all symbols except pyramid Scatters.

Purple Wilds Have Multipliers of x8 Attached

Win Exchange

Win Exchange is available in the base game of Sanctuary. With Win Exchange, whenever you win 80x bet or more, you have the option to exchange 80x bet for 7 Free Spins. If you have won more than 80x bet, only 80x bet will be exchanged, and the remainder will be added to your bonus win.

If you win between 25 and 79x bet, you have the option to exchange the entire win for a chance to be awarded 7 Free Spins by gambling. The chance of winning the gamble is represented by green on the wheel, and the chance of losing is represented by red.

The higher x bet the win, the more green will be present on the wheel.

Gamble Up to 4 Video Slots Before Free Spins Begin

Sanctuary Bonus

Land 3 or more Scatters in any position to trigger 7 Free Spins.

It is possible to play up to 4 video slots at once during Free Spins.

Free Spins Gamble Wheel

Players can use the Free Spins Gamble Wheel to gamble for additional video slots. It is possible to open up to 4 video slots, with the option to collect along the way.

• Gamble 1 – awards 2 video slots when won or feature end when lost.
• Gamble 2 – awards 3 video slots when won or feature end when lost.
• Gamble 3 – awards 4 video slots when won or 1 video slot when lost.

All gambles are 50/50 odds.

When Ankh Symbols Land on Reels 2-5 During Free Spins the Symbol Will Be Duplicated to all Video Slots

Sticky Wilds

During Free Spins an Ankh symbol can land on reels 2-5.

Each time an Ankh lands in view, a Wild symbol will be added to the position. This Wild symbol will stick for the duration of Free Spins.

Additionally, any Sticky Wilds added through Ankhs will be added to the same position on all active video slots.

Filling an entire reel with Sticky Wilds will change the symbols to a full reel x4 Wild and award an additional +3 spins.

Bonus Buy

Players in appropriate regions can skip straight to the action with the Bonus Buy, whereby paying a cost of 80x bet will award 7 Free Spins and take players to the Gamble Wheel.

RTP increases from 96.38% to 96.39% when using Bonus Buy.

Whilst Big Time Gaming usually opt not to place a win cap on their games, the maximum win observed so far in Sanctuary has been 44,070x bet.

Sanctuary Free Spins

First Impression

Things are kept quite simple in Sanctuary, which seems to be a fairly standard Big Time Gaming approach. On this occasion, things might be a little bit too simple though. In the base game full reel Wilds and full reel Wilds with multipliers make up the bulk of the action, much like Wild Flower, although this time around Win Exchange does carry some of the weight.

It’s the bonus where things get exciting, especially if you gamble your way to 4 video slots being active. Without the gamble, things are fairly exciting, although considerably less so the fewer the slots open. With Sticky Wilds coming in and duplicating across all open video slots players can see some impressive wins, although there are pitfalls.

Firstly, by filling a reel you get a full reel x4 Wild, but this counts for the same as a full reel of regular Wilds despite looking like an improvement. Additionally, there are no opportunities to retrigger or upgrade the number of video slots active, which does feel like a missed opportunity. When the right combinations occur though, wins are possible up to 44,070x bet.

Finally, maths is highly volatile and RTP is fixed at 96.38% (96.39% feature buy), so no complaints there. If you’re a fan of sticky Wilds or multiple active windows, Sanctuary could suit you, although it’s not the most exciting addition to this catalogue.

*The screenshots taken of games reviewed on this site are taken from Demo Play, as reviews are often written before games are released for real play.