The Archer slot is one of the most popular titles from veteran casino game developers Playtech. It is still widely played, despite being over a decade old, and has plenty to offer new players even now.
Read on to discover everything you need to know about this famous slot, including its volatility, RTP, bonuses, and winning combinations.
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Playtech is one of the biggest and best casino game developers around, and the Archer slot is one of its most enduring titles.
Released in 2010, the slot machine game is still widely-available on top Malaysian online casinos today, such as BK8.
The medieval theme is built around the story of Robin Hood, complete with famous characters such as Maid Marian and Friar Tuck. This is established across a classic 3×5 grid, which has 243 paylines with which you can win.
The RTP here is 94.99%, and you can bet anywhere from 0.01 to 5 coins each time. You can also add a standard multiplier to your stake of up to 10x for a maximum bet of 1,250 whenever you spin the reels.
Both wild and scatter symbols are in place here. The former can appear on the middle three reels, and 3+ scatters give you seven bonus rounds. You’ll even find expanding and splitting symbols to help you land more lucrative combinations.
The maximum win on the slot game Archer is 1,500x your stake, which you hit by landing five Robin Hood symbols. Landing five of Maid Marian, Friar Tuck, or the Sheriff will get you 1,000x, 750x, and 500x maximum winnings, respectively.
Overall, we found few downsides to the game. The graphics look slightly outdated and could certainly be spruced up. Aside from that, this remains just as playable and enjoyable now as it was in 2010.
Features | Our Rating |
RTP | 5/5 |
Software Developer | 5/5 |
Paylines | 4/5 |
Reels | 5/5 |
Progressive Jackpot | N/A |
No slot is perfect, and – like all games – Archer has both its stronger and weaker points. Here are the main examples in each case.
Pros
Cons
Both medieval and mythological themes are quite common in online slots, but Archer is a rare combination of the two. While the Robin Hood story is technically the focus, however, we wouldn’t say this is the most amazing evocation of a theme. The symbols are fairly rudimentary, and there aren’t any exciting animations to spruce things up.
The actual gameplay, however, is solid. Although it plays out on a standard 5-reel, 3-row grid, the 243 paylines here are far above the traditional 25 for such a layout. The inclusion of the split and expand features – which we’ll explore further later – also help you to win more regularly.
The slot’s middling volatility should ensure that wins come fairly regularly. The 94.99% RTP also suggests this, though it could certainly be higher, with 96% generally being the industry standard at online casinos in Malaysia.
Type of Slot | Standard |
Theme | Medieval (Robin Hood) |
Volatility | Medium |
Reels | 5 |
Rows | 3 |
Minimum Bet | 0.01 |
Maximum Bet | 5 |
Paylines | 243 |
Jackpot | 7,500 |
Maximum Win | 1,500x |
Bonus Rounds | ✅ |
Free Spins | ✅ |
Even if you’ve never played a slot game in your life, you’ll find Archer extremely easy to get started with. Everything is very clearly laid out, and – though there are a couple of unusual features – the actual gameplay is all very straightforward.
That being said, we’ve run through the absolute fundamentals of how to play for you below.
Betting on the Archer slot is extremely easy. You simply set your stake using the tools at the bottom of your screen before each spin and can make a few adjustments every time, as we’ve explained below.
Technically, you bet one ‘coin’ per spin here. That can be worth anything from 0.01 to 5 currency units. To adjust that value, simply click the – and + symbols beneath the Coin Value box in the bottom-right.
Right next to Coin Value, you’ll see a Multiplier box. This starts at 1x but can be adjusted up to 10x, altering the actual value of your coins accordingly.
Once you’ve got your stake set, it’s time to spin those reels. Doing so is as easy as clicking the big Spin button in the bottom right. Alternatively, you can use the Auto Play feature to spin the reels for you, with five different stop conditions to choose between. You can even activate Turbo Mode, which makes the reels spin faster if you’re pushed for time.
Triggering the bonus round in Archer isn’t easy, but the rules are straightforward. To do so, you must land three or more scatter symbols, which look like a crossed pair of fiery arrows. These symbols with an arrow will unlock seven free spins, where you can still make real money profits without risking any of your actual cash balance.
Special features are obviously nice added extras on a video slot, but the fundamentals remain vital. Let’s investigate how Archer performs in some of the most basic – yet most important – areas of all.
Software developer Playtech provides the software for Archer. Playtech is one of the biggest names in the online casino industry and has been in business since 1999. It makes various casino games, including poker, live dealer titles, and bingo. Slots have long been a focus of the company, however, so – overall – you’re definitely in safe hands here.
The Playtech slot is based on the old British myth of Robin Hood, who famously ‘stole from the rich and gave to the poor.’ In all honesty, the evocation of that story here is pretty basic. The symbols are technically based on characters in the story, but it doesn’t feel like much thought has gone into them, and the background is generic. Compared to many other modern-day slots, it feels like comparatively little thought has been put in here.
Again, we wouldn’t say this is the strongest part of the game, with the evocation of the theme not getting any better regarding the sound and graphics. Both are pretty basic. The only sounds are a brief burst of exciting music as you spin the reels. There are no real animations to speak of, and both the symbols and background are perfunctory at best.
The RTP (Return to Player) on Archer is 94.99%. This theoretically implies that if you play the game enough times, you’ll get back 94.99% of your stakes. This isn’t bad, by any means, with anything in the mid-90s being respectable. It’s still slightly below average, though, with 96% being more of the industry standard at online slots casinos.
The volatility on Archer is medium level (though it’s still slightly higher than most medium volatility slots). This means that payouts should be fairly regular, with a nice balance of risk and reward.
There are 10 different symbols in the Archer slot. Four of these are famous characters from the story, with Robin Hood himself being the most lucrative. The others are simply standard playing cards. Your payouts in the game will depend on both how many of each symbol you hit, and which symbols they are.
Below, you can see your payouts for wins in each case, which trigger when you land at least three instances of a certain symbol.
Symbol | 3 Symbols | 4 Symbols | 5 Symbols |
Robin Hood | 50 | 750 | 1500 |
Maid Marian | 50 | 500 | 1,000 |
Friar Tuck | 20 | 250 | 750 |
The Sheriff | 15 | 100 | 500 |
Ace | 15 | 75 | 250 |
King | 15 | 75 | 150 |
Queen/Jack | 10 | 50 | 100 |
10 | 10 | 25 | 100 |
9 | 5 | 25 | 100 |
Archer represents a nice mixture of the usual features you’d expect to see in most modern slots and more innovative twists on that familiar formula. Below, we’ve brought you examples in each case.
Like most slots, Archer features a wild symbol. It can appear on the second, third, or fourth reels. As usual, this can count as any symbol except for the scatter, thus helping you win more regularly.
After you win a round, you’ll be offered an intriguing opportunity via the ‘gamble’ feature. This involves correctly picking the colour of a card that’s drawn. Do so, and you’ll double your winnings. Guess incorrectly, however, and you’ll lose your original prize.
This is arguably the most innovative feature of the Archer slot. Spin the reels here, and you’ll see certain symbols have an arrow border. If a scatter symbol also lands, those ‘arrowed’ symbols will expand to join all the other symbols on that reel. Since it only joins, rather than replacing the original symbol, and all those symbols are paid out individually, this significantly increases your chances of winning.
The online slot game features 243 paylines, meaning there are 243 different combinations you can hit to win here. Compared to many titles, which might only feature 10-25 paylines, this gives you plenty more opportunities to turn a profit. Also, unlike in some other slots, all these paylines are active on each spin, rather than requiring you to choose how many you wish to activate.
Playing the Archer slot demo couldn’t be easier. You can simply create an account at a top Malaysian casino like BK8 and click the ‘Demo’ option rather than playing the real-money version. This will still let you spin the reels and experience all the slot’s features – you’ll simply use fake money rather than your cash balance to enjoy free games.
There are two good reasons why you should do this. Firstly, you can try Archer out and see if you enjoy it without any risk attached. Secondly, even if you’re sure you want to play Archer for real money, you can get completely comfortable with the game first – via demo mode – before doing so.
Like all video slots, Archer is completely random. The best clues you can get as to how successful you’ll be are the RTP and the volatility. No amount of ‘skill’ on your part will affect the outcomes.
That being said, we do still have a few tips to maximize your Archer experience:
Playing this game on your phone or tablet couldn’t be easier. You can do so regardless of whether you’re using iOS or Android via an online casino app or simply through your mobile browser.
In all cases, the desktop experience translates brilliantly here. The symbols and useful information remain easy to read. You can still adjust your stake simply with a few screen taps, and you can even swipe up on your screen to spin the reels. The performance levels – during our testing, at least – remained flawless.
As with all casino games, this title isn’t perfect. The Robin Hood theme is a nice idea, but it isn’t particularly well-evoked here. That aside, the quality of the actual gameplay on Playtech’s slot is sky-high.
A solid RTP, combined with 243 paylines, gives you a good chance to win. The inclusion of ‘expand and split’ and gamble features, alongside scatters and wilds, also helps keep things fresh.
Overall, if you care more about substance than style in your video slots, Archer is an excellent option. It’s also available at plenty of fantastic Malaysian casinos, with BK8 being our pick of the bunch.