Universal Monsters The Phantoms Curse

In yet another example of NetEnt's penchant for picking great pop culture icons to draw inspiration from, the Swedish game maker is reviving Universal Studios' 1943 classic musical horror film "Phantom of the Opera" due for release this January 2018. Universal's hit horror musical is one of the most iconic films from the renowned studio whose legacy is very well alive to this day in anything from movie productions to music and costume design. And now, it is forever enshrined in an eye-catching slot game as well.

The Phantom’s Curse slot comes at a time when Universal Studios is bringing back several classic monster flicks from their roster to be part of what they are now calling the "Dark Universe". The list begins with the recently launched Mummy film and will also include the Phantom of the Opera, Dracula, Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Invisible Man, which NetEnt have already turned into licensed slot games based on the classic films. So, if you want to take another step back in time in a type of slot that only NetEnt can produce, check out this exciting new game.  

NetEnt Phantom’s Curse Slot Outline and Paylines  

The Phantom's Curse is a 5-reel game with 4 rows of symbols and 40 fixed paylines that pays both ways. Like many of NetEnt's horror mystery slots, it features a thematic bonus round and other exciting features like free spins and re-spins. Being a modern game, it's needless to say that it comes with great graphics, accompanying cut scenes inspired by the source material as well as an immersive soundtrack that will hype you up as you keep triggering wins and extras.

The highest paying symbols in the game are ones drawn directly from the cult film, so expect to win the most money by landing the Phantom, Christine, the Golden Rose, Mirror, etc. The lowest paying symbols are all card suits symbols made from shattered glass. But what you really should keep an eye out for is the Chandeliers, which are your Scatter symbols, and the Masked/Unmasked Phantom bonus symbols, which also act as Wilds in the game.

NetEnt Phantom’s Curse RTP

NetEnt's Phantom’s Curse has an estimated RTP of 96.57%. It's a low-mid variance game with a maximum single line win of 4,000x coins and plenty of bonus features that can amount to some interesting wins if you're lucky enough to trigger multiple features at the reels.

Phantom's Curse Free Spins

There are plenty of ways you can make money with Phantom's Curse, starting with the spins and sticky-re-spins and going up to the bonus game which offers two stages of payouts. The free spins can be triggered by collecting 3 of the golden Chandelier Scatters, after which a cut-scene will take you to your bonus spins.

During the free spins round, any masked Phantom Wild that lands on the reels will pull a knife out and cut one of the five ropes holding the Chandelier. Once the rope is cut, the Masked Phantom will become fully stacked and stay during your next spins. When the final rope is cut, the Chandelier will fall and your free spins round will come to an end.

Masked Phantom Re-Spins

The Phantom's Curse also features the Phantom Unmasked as a symbol along with his Mask alone. Matching the two symbols stacked on reel 1 and 5 will trigger the Masked Phantom re-spin round where these symbols will turn into a Masked Phantom Wild that sticks on the reels during your free re-spin.

Phantom’s Bonus Game

Finally, the game also comes with a bonus round, which is a Pick and Click feature with a multiplier that is triggered by landing a stacked Phantom symbol on reel 1 and a stacked Christine symbol on reel 5. When you land this combination, Christine and the Phantom will join forces and turn their symbols into Wilds, launching a cut-scene that will take you to the bonus round.

During stage 1 of the bonus round, you will have to choose between 8 red roses to uncover different prizes at the game. Picking any losing rose will end stage 1 and get you to stage 2 of the bonus round. Here, you'll see Christine sitting in front of three mirrors, each hiding a 1x, 2x, or 3x multiplier. Choose one of the mirrors to reveal your multiplier and it will be applied to your bonus winnings from stage 1. 

The Bottom Line

No matter whether you’re a fan of the original film or not, the Phantom’s Curse has plenty to get you interested in trying it. First of all, it’s a game that really lives up to NetEnt’s reputation of building slots with quality graphic design, pumped up soundtracks, and an overall presentation that just draws you in from your first pin. And secondly, it’s stacked with plenty of interesting extras, especially the multiple Wilds and the free spins feature where you can trigger solid payouts with your stacked Wilds. In a way, it’s a continuation of the classic horror/mystery slots NetEnt have built like Dracula, the Invisible Man, and Frankenstein, so if you liked these games Phantom’s Curse will definitely be worth a try.