Spin for Treasure with Lara Croft Tomb Raider Pokies

When we think of antique poker machines, we imagine those old, clunky metal boxes with spinning drums and a pull lever. As for online pokies, there aren’t really an antiques – the industry only dates back two decades – but there are some oldies out there. Very few of them are worth mentioning, but Microgaming‘s 2004 release of Lara Croft Tomb Raider Pokies definitely qualifies.

In this Tomb Raider pokies review, we’ll talk about what made this game so overwhelmingly popular, and why it continues to hold that status today. It was so popular, in fact, that Microgaming released a sequel, Tomb Raider II: Secret of the Sword, in 2007.

While the second edition did present better graphics, cinematics and a deeper story line, it could never match the simplicity and lucrative nature of the original.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider Pokies Review

The theme for this game dates back to 1996, when the first Tomb Raider video game was released. Tomb Raider II hit the shelves in 1997, with another edition coming to market every year after that up until 2003 (plus a few more later on). In 2001, it was re-branded Lara Croft Tomb Raider with the release of the blockbuster movie, starring Angelina Jolie.

Microgaming took the original video game theme (and original character – not Angelina Jolie) and ran with it, delivering a fantastic online pokies game that incorporates the lovely Lara Croft, ancient relics, jungle beasts and more. The 5 reel, 15 line game accepts bets of $0.05 to $0.50 per line, and up to 5 coins per line, for min/max bet of $0.75 to $37.50.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider Pokies has a Wild, Scatter and Bonus symbol – all of which you’ll want to see often.

The Tomb Raider Logo is the Wild, substituting for all others (except Scatter/Bonus) to line up winning combos. The logo also pays the highest amount of coins when lined up on a payline; 200 for 3, 2,000 for 4, and 7,500 for 5.

The circular Lara Croft symbol is the Scatter, and triggers 10 free spins with a 3x multiplier anytime 3 or more land in any position on the reels. If another trio of Lara’s appear during the free spins bonus, another 10 free games are awarded.

The Idol Statue is the Bonus symbol and also works like a Scatter. When 3 or more appear on the reels in a single spin, it triggers a second-screen Pick Me Bonus. The game reverts to a new screen with 12 Idols to pick from. The number of Idols the player can chose depends on how many Bonus symbols triggered the feature, 3, 4 or 5. Beneath each Idol is a number of credits to be awarded, up to 2,500.

Overall Opinion

In my experience – and I’ve played this game for years – Lara Croft Tomb Raider Pokies sits right in between low and medium variance. Wins do come fairly often, and can include some rather sizable payouts.

I’ve had much better luck playing this game than it’s ‘Secret of the Sword‘ sequel. However, that version does have much great graphic animations and more features built in. If you’re in it for the cash, play this one. If you want more entertainment, try the sequel. You’ll find both online pokies games at Microgaming casinos like Royal Vegas.