Jesters At Tombola Arcade Review
Whilst video poker might not feature highly on many slots and bingo brands these days, Tombola Arcade haven't shied away from the instant win playing card genre. In fact on Tombola Arcade they have a whole section dedicated to playing cards. Within this section you can find four different options including Cinco Arcade, Devils, Suits and Jesters. Of these options Suits and Jesters are based on the poker game and it's the latter that we're focusing on here. Don't expect to find any Jacks or Better wins here but there is a bonus round for a flush!
What Is Jesters?
Jesters launched in 2022 and is a poker inspired instant win game that can be played at Tombola Arcade. The game board comprises of a 5x4 grid showing the A, K, Q, J and 10 of each of the four playing card suits - spades, hearts, clubs and diamonds. This grid dominates the gaming area which is beautifully designed with shades of dark blue and gold. To the left of the screen is a larger card area - which during the game will show a dealt card - whilst to the right a simple message indicates that there's a bonus round should you get a flush of any suit. To play Jesters you first need to select a wager. At Tombola Arcade this can be set from between 5p and £2. The maximum you can win is naturally determined by your wager although it's always x500, so for a £2 wager you could win up to £1000. All game play is accompanied with an enthusiastic jazz piano soundtrack.
How To Play Jesters
Once you've bought in then it's time to play. During the game 12 playing cards are dealt on the left side of the screen. You can choose to reveal the cards yourself or automate things by selecting 'flip all'. Any cards that match those on the grid are then marked off with the aim of the game to create complete columns of four of the same card (e.g. 4 aces) or a line comprising a flush. Should you reveal a Jester card then this splits into two cards to improve your chances of winning. Each column has a prize value so getting all the aces results in a x500 win whilst revealing 4 x 10s will return your stake at x1. The rest of the paytable is x5 for Jacks, x10 for Queens and x50 for Kings. A flush activates the bonus round and this is where Jesters comes to life. You're award five free spins on a 3x3 slot and awarded wins for matching three of a kind on a win line. Win lines run horizontally and diagonally which can be good for accumulating a decent sized win.
Our Verdict
Whilst Jesters isn't quite a reveal five cards, discard and deal, version of video poker, it's innovative and very entertaining to play. The big question is can you win playing Jesters? Like any instant win game it's designed to get your hopes up. The number of times you miss the big wins or the bonus round by one card is quite impressive. We did manage to accumulate a few x1 and x5 returns plus the bonus round popped up once. The five spins resulted in a x20 win which was quite nice. Jester cards did appear a few times but more often than not didn't help the cause. On one game though we did manage a x10 and x5 win which was a surprise. If you enjoy card games or just fancy an alternative to slots and bingo then Jesters is well worth a look.
