Hello there! My name is Steven Walters, and just like you I’m crazy about everything Mayan-related! I own reproduction sculptures (I’m sadly far too poor to even begin affording the real thing), paintings, and let’s not even get started on all the books, which my wife has threatened to throw away on numerous occasions, since I “don’t read them”. I do read them sometimes, Jane, get off my back! Look, my point is, I may be obsessed with Mayan culture a bit more than is healthy. But that’s okay, because I’m also obsessed with a million other things – videogames, comic books, 80s synth rock, and one of my favorites, online gambling. There’s no denying it – being able to bet on slots, blackjack, roulette and other casino games literally whenever you want is pretty cool. So, what does online gambling have to do with Mayan culture? Well, not much… Except for the billion online slots based on it! It’s like there’s some sort of secret pact between everyone who makes slots that contractually obligates them to use the Mayan theme at least once, maybe twice for good measure! It’s insane! With that said, how about we take a brief look at some of the more prominent examples? Keep in mind that, since I’m pretty sure most of you reading this aren’t all that familiar with slot terms such as “paylines” or “scatter symbols”, I’m going to try and keep my comments on each game as brief and simple as possible. Sound good? Alright, let’s get started!
AMAZON WILD
By: PlayTech
Ah, that sure is a pretty one! This slot isn’t entirely based on Mayan culture, it mostly focuses on the wildlife surrounding the present day Mayan ruins. Still, you can’t deny that it looks really, really good. Keep in mind that most online slots don’t actually look at all impressive – they’re made on the cheap, often directly copy/pasted from each other with slightly different assets. So it’s really good to see that someone at Playtech has made sure that their slot looks as pretty as possible, with bright colors and detailed pictures. “Amazon Wild” is also notable for being the only slot on this list with an additional row, which provides you with a lot more opportunities to win, but at a higher risk. With that said, the slot is also one of only two on this list that doesn’t have a jackpot, which leaves a pretty bad impression.
GOLDEN PRINCESS & MAYAN PRINCESS
By: Microgaming
These slots are more or less identical, and they’re both equally bland. The giant, golden frame surrounding “Golden Princess” feels tacked on, probably because the graphic designer couldn’t come up with anything better to fill in the empty space with. The pictures of “Mayan Princess” are just generic images that were created for the cheapest possible price, if they weren’t just found from the public domain. There are no bonus games or anything interesting about these slots at all… Except for the jackpots, which were pretty high on the places where I saw them. In other words, “Golden Princess” lives up to its name – it’s a moneygrab, fully aware that it’s going to tempt you with its gold without really having to do anything else. I personally would stay away, but to each their own.
MAYAN CHIEF
By: Konami
Oh, look, Konami – a company most known for owning three of the most successful gaming franchises of all time and running all three of them into the ground – has made a Mayan slot! Woo. Anyway, it’s worth noting that this is the only slot on this list that’s physical and not online. While I saw several references to an online version of “Mayan Chief”, I never could find one that was playable, so chances are that some people on the Internet are liars (gasp!). It’s a shame that I couldn’t get to play this one, because from the videos I saw of it it actually looks really, really fun to play. It’s pretty colorful, has some nice animations and effects, and overall looked quite nice. Sadly, without having experienced it for myself, that’s all I can say on the matter.
MAYAN GOLD & MAYAN RICHES
By: igt
Another pair of horrible, shameless, ugly, uninspired cash-grabs with nothing to attract you to them other than their jackpot… And one of them doesn’t even have a jackpot! They somehow look even worse than “Golden Princess” and “Mayan Princess” (didn’t even think that was possible) and gameplay-wise offer absolutely nothing to shake up the formula. Just… Just do yourself a favor and stay away from them, alright? I have a really hard time doing any effort even talking about them when I know that their creators did even less.
So, what did we learn from this little exercise? Just like anything else in life, some Mayan slots are pretty good, others are pretty bad, and some are just kind of in the middle. Either way, what you read above was just my opinion, so if I caught your interest in any way, go out there and see for yourself!