Book of Ra is by far the most popular Novomatic slot machine, which has received thousands of positive player reviews and critical acclaim. It is based on the ubiquitous Ancient Egypt theme, but while the premise is not original, the game itself surely is. The well-thought-out adventurous storyline makes this title truly stand out among the legions of similar free slot games on the market.
Theme and Storyline
The moment the game is opened, you are transported to a mysterious ancient land and meet Ra, the God of Sun. He is persecuted by his enemies and hides his valuable treasures, leaving the only available hints in a cryptic book. Your job is to decipher the message, find the treasure and defeat the villains. In this way, the Book of Ra is similar to the Aztec Treasure.
Boasting Novomatic’s typically stylish clear-cut graphics, smooth gameplay, and impressively modern animations, Book of Ra represents the best-in-class for its era. The sound effects add to the atmosphere with their mysterious rhythms, while regularly refreshed statistics tell you everything you need to know about just how rewarding this video slot is – the payouts are stunning!
You can play Novomatic’s Book of Ra free of charge at the world’s best casinos, with key special features available for all users. Keep in mind there is a sequel named Book of Ra Deluxe, and fans of this debut title in the hit series should consider checking out the follow-up release.
In this article, we examine the Book of Ra slot machine and teach you to play like a pro. Let’s start: Ancient reels and long-lost treasures await!
Main Features of Book of Ra Slot
The basic features of this classic game can be seen in the table below:
Developer | Novomatic |
Theme | Ancient Egypt |
Category | Video Slot |
Number Of Reels | 5 |
Number Of Lines | 10 |
Grid Type | 5 x 3 |
Is Book of Ra a Classic Game?
Book of Ra is a classic video slot with 5 reels and 10 adjustable paylines. Available at most top real money casinos today, it stands as one of the first slot machines to use the ancient Egypt theme. The Book of Ra slot machine was so popular that Novomatic developed several games under the same title – leading to the popular “Book of Ra” slot series. You can find the following games in this run of elite slots:
- Book of Ra Deluxe
- Book of Ra Deluxe 6
- Jackpot Edition of Book of Ra
- Book of Ra Magic
- Book of Ra Mystic Fortunes
This article covers the original game, simply known as ‘Book of Ra’. Novomatic has modernized the game quite a bit to ensure that it now works on modern operating systems. Here, we evaluate all features attached to this famous slot – beginning with a starter pack on how to play.
How to Play Book of Ra Online?
The rules of the game are very straightforward. Your goal is to land the same symbols next to each other on a pay line by spinning the reels. In order to qualify for a payout, you must land at least 2 of the same symbols. The more matching symbols you land, the bigger the prize will be. Each symbol set pays a different amount, as outlined in the table below.
Now, let’s talk about paylines. These are real lines shaped in complex zig-zags connecting both sides of the reels. There are 10 paylines to play with, but this number is not fixed. You can decrease the number of paylines to make bets more budget-friendly – but we recommend utilising all available paylines to maximise your potential returns.
Tips on Playing Book of Ra
Here is a breakdown of all icons and buttons presented on Book of Ra’s interface:
- Autoplay: This button spins the reels infinitely.
- Paytable: This one opens the paytable of the game, which includes symbol payouts and rules. Take a look at it before playing. Note that the paytable is dynamic, which means that it changes according to your bet.
- Lines: You will notice “-” and “+” signs next to this section. Feel free to add or remove paylines at your leisure – with more paylines resulting in improved opportunities to win.
- Bet/Line: This is where you change the bet amount per line. You can place a bet of 1 credit (minimum) per line and 200 credits (maximum) per line.
- Bet: This box shows your total bet amount for that spin. For example, if you choose to bet 100 coins per line, your total bet per spin will be 1.000 credits. This section is important because it shows how much it really costs to play Book of Ra – with both paid and free spins.
- Gamble: This is the bonus feature button; we will explain it below.
- Start: Click on this button to start the game and spin the reels once.
- Credit: Shows your balance. In demo mode, you will get virtual credits. In the real money version, you will see your actual balance in your currency here.
- Last Win: Shows your last win amount.
Just press the “start” button or use the autoplay feature to spin the reels. If you land a winning combination, you will get paid according to how many symbols you landed and which symbols they are.
Book of Ra Symbols and Payouts
The Slot Book of Ra contains 8 symbols in total. Four of these symbols are shown with play card signs (Q, K, J, etc.), and they serve as the game’s least valuable symbols. The rest are shown with theme-related pictures and pay more generously. A special symbol called “scatter” is used to activate the bonus round, which we will explain below.
Check out the full payout values of Book of Ra slot symbols in the table below.
SYMBOL | Bonus Logo | 2x PAYS | 3x PAYS | 4x PAYS | 5x PAYS |
Adventurer | ![]() |
10 | 100 | 1.000 | 5.000 |
Sphinx | ![]() |
5 | 40 | 400 | 2.000 |
Golden Sculpture | ![]() |
5 | 30 | 100 | 750 |
Scarab | ![]() |
5 | 30 | 100 | 750 |
A | ![]() |
– | 5 | 40 | 150 |
K | ![]() |
– | 5 | 40 | 150 |
Q | ![]() |
– | 5 | 25 | 100 |
J | ![]() |
– | 5 | 25 | 100 |
10 | ![]() |
– | 5 | 25 | 100 |
Scatter | ![]() |
– | 2 | 20 | 200 |
How to Get the Best Payouts?
A crucial element to understand about this paytable is that these values are dynamic. In other words, the payout values of these symbols are tied to your wager amount: The more you wager, the greater your potential earnings. The table above shows the maximum payout values.
The scatter carries a particularly unique feature: while all other symbols must land on a payline, the scatter pays no matter where it lands on the reels. Even if it lands in random locations, you will still win a prize according to how many scatters you get. More importantly, the scatter also acts as a wild. This means it can be used to complete any winning combination. For example, even if you land only one “adventurer” symbol on a pay line, the scatter will complete this combination and count as the second “adventurer” symbol if it lands on the same line.
Lastly, the scatter symbol is used to activate an in-game bonus for the Book of Ra online slot. See how the game’s bonuses work in the next section.
Book of Ra Bonus Rounds
There are two bonus rounds in the Book of Ra slot. The Gamble and Free Spins features form Book of Ra’s in-game bonuses. One of them can be activated manually and works a little differently. Note that The demo slot Book of Ra has the same bonus features as the real money version, so you can play the game for free to understand how bonus rounds work.
Free Spins
Landing three or more scatters anywhere on the reels will trigger this round and award 10 Book of Ra free spins. They are used instantly and automatically, so there’s no need to confirm additional wagers or edit bet sizes. At the end of the round, you can collect all payouts earned from free spins.
Before free spins begin, a random symbol is selected from the table provided earlier in this guide. This symbol becomes an “expanding” symbol for the duration of the round. This means it can expand to cover the entire reel it appeared on and seeks to increase your chance of winning. Furthermore, it is possible to re-trigger this bonus multiple times by landing three more scatters.
Gamble Round
The other bonus feature is called ‘Gamble’ – though you don’t need to land any symbols to activate this unique boost. After any winning spin, you will see that the ‘Gamble’ button on the interface becomes active. Feel free to click on this button or ignore it entirely – it all depends on your betting preferences.
So, what does the ‘Gamble’ function actually do? Well, it is a bit of a guessing game, as every outcome is different. You are shown a closed play card and asked to guess its colour. You have two options, red or black. This means you have a 50% winning chance. If you guess correctly, you can double your win amount. But if you pick the incorrect colour, you will lose any funds earned from the most recent spin. It is possible to play this game up to 5 times in a single spin, each time increasing the potential payout.
Tips on How to Win the Book of Ra Game
The right approach and understanding of the game’s mechanics can improve your chances of winning. Here are some key tips for successful gameplay.
- Do not use ‘Gamble’. A 50% opportunity to boost your winnings may appear tantalising, but the chance of losing also sits at 50%.
- Lowering the number of paylines will decrease the overall cost of spins. However, doing so will affect your winning chances too. There will be potential winning combinations missed by players who bring down the number of paylines – so we recommend sticking with 10.
- Play free casino slot games with the Book of Ra demo version to practise and learn the rules.
Book of Ra Series Comparison
Since its inception in 2005, Book of Ra has grown in quality and stature. A whole host of games have been released in the following years – and you can catch a glimpse of how each title compares in the table below.
Game Title | Reels | Paylines | RTP | Best Feature | Release |
Book of Ra | 5 | 9 | 97% | Free Spins | March 2005 |
Book of Ra Deluxe | 5 | 10 | 95.5% | Bonus Game | April 2008 |
Book of Ra Deluxe 6 | 5/6 | 10 | 93.95% | Additional Reels | August 2015 |
Book of Ra Deluxe Jackpot Edition | 5 | 10 | 95% | Jackpot Rounds | March 2017 |
Book of Ra Deluxe Bingo | N/A | N/A | 96% | Bonus Game | February 2017 |
Book of Ra Roulette | 5 | 10 | 97.30% | Special Bonus | May 2017 |
Book of Ra Dice | 5 | 9 | 95.6% | Expanding Symbols | June 2018 |
Book of Ra Magic | 5 | 10 | 95.03% | Expanding Symbols | May 2018 |
Book of Ra Temple of Gold | 5 | 10 | 94.3% | Free Spins | October 2017 |
Book of Ra Mystic Fortunes | 5 | 10 | 94.3% | Progressive Jackpot | October 2017 |
Ancient Riches of Egypt Are Waiting for You!
If you like Egypt-themed video slot machines, Book of Ra embodies one of the best options in today’s gaming scene. Although older than most competitors — having been developed in 2005 — Book of Ra continues to fend off more modern titles in the same genre and style by doing the basics well across all departments. The graphics are a little below par compared to games released nowadays, but the calibre of gameplay is virtually unmatched.
Satisfying payouts and fast gameplay are central to Book of Ra’s success. Beginners and veterans will find something of worth in Novomatic’s decades-old release with some of the industry’s best mobile slots to enjoy within the rest of the top-rated series.