Four Guardians (Gameplay Interactive) - Review, Demo Play, Payout, Free Spins & Bonuses

Introduction

If you’re scrolling through the <a href="https://www.slotstemple.com/free-slots/gameplay-interactive/">Gameplay Interactive demo slots</a> available for free here on Slots Temple, Four Guardians might just catch your eye. It starts with the dramatic imagery of the four legendary Chinese guardian animals on the loading screen, but once the <b>three rows of five reels</b> have loaded, it continues into a thrilling game with <b>20 paylines</b>and an unusual take on an <b>Expanding Wilds</b> feature. Specifically, the Wild symbol changes its pattern depending on which of the four Guardians it currently represents.

If the slot is lacking, it’s in the absence of bonus features other than the Expanding Wild. There are no Scatter or bonus free spins - just the four Guardians themselves and six (yes, six, they start at 9 and work all the way to the Ace) card symbols. With that said, the Expanding Wilds are very interesting in their format, and the slot is just a pleasure to look at and play.

Theme, Graphics & Soundtrack

There’s a clean elegance to the graphics on this slot. There are only four themed symbols - the titular guardians - but even the card symbols are well drawn with an engaging calligraphy and little clouds to add extra details. The guardians in question are figures from Chinese mythology (there’s also a Chinese soundtrack) that are also known as the Four Gods or the Four Auspicious Beasts. Each is associated with a cardinal point of the compass, a season, a colour and an element:

Azure Dragon - East, Spring, Green, Wood

Vermillion Bird - South, Summer, Red, Fire

White Tiger - West, Autumn, White, Metal

Black Tortoise - North, Winter, Black, Water

Each of these animals has its own thrilling animation when it expands as part of a winning spin. Unfortunately, as there are only four guardians, this does mean the symbols are dominated by more generic card emblems.

Four Guardians RTP & Volatility

Unusually, there is no official figure given for the RTP of Four Guardians, so it’s difficult to calculate your likely average return. It does have a <b>medium volatility</b>, which means wins should be fairly evenly split between size and frequency.

How to Play Four Guardians

In order to keep its elegant appearance, controls for Four Guardians are kept as simple as possible.

1. Under the reels you can see displays for your current bet, most recent win and total balance - all figures you’ll want to keep an eye on once you start playing.

2. There are two main buttons that may catch your attention at this point - the menu button to the left of the reels or the Spin button to the right. If you want to know exactly what you’re doing, you’ll go to menu first.

3. Once opened, it’ll give you the option of going to settings or adjusting the sound. Settings will open you to a page with paylines, line bet and volume displayed. The second two can be adjusted.

4. Whilst the settings page is open, clicking the little “i” will take you to the paytable, from which you can navigate to descriptions of the different Expanding Wilds features.

5. Once you’ve read all that, close the window and go to the large spin button at the right of the reels. Click it once to spin once, or hold it down to trigger autoplay. Autoplay will continue until you hit stop or have a winning spin.

Bet & Win Sizes

The line bet can be set to a good range of between <b>0.20 and 50.00</b>.

Maximum payments for matching five of each symbol are as follows:

9 - 10

10 - 30

J - 35

Q - 40

K - 50

A - 75

Bird (Phoenix) - 100

Tiger - 150

Tortoise (Turtle) - 200

Dragon - 250

Four Guardians Expanding Wilds

The Wild doesn’t just substitute for other symbols. Depending on which of the Guardians it is representing, it can expand in a different way:

<b>Wild X</b>

The Dragon Wild will expand to the four diagonally adjacent positions, but only when it lands on the centre row.

<b>Wild Square</b>

The Turtle Wild will expand to all the positions around it, but only appears on the third reel.

<b>Wild Horizontal</b>

The Tiger Wild will expand to the two positions on either side of it, regardless of reel or row.

<b>Wild Vertical</b>

The Phoenix Wild will expand to the two positions above and below it, regardless of reel or row.

Another game in which different thematically appropriate Wilds feature prominently is the <a href="https://www.slotstemple.com/free-slots/guardians-of-fire-and-ice/">Guarians of Fire and Ice slot</a>, which also has the advantage of a free spins feature if that’s the kind of bonus you prefer.

Our Verdict

Good looks and smooth gameplay ensure Four Guardians is a fun slot to play. The incorporation of the different Expanding Wilds with the theme is an interesting way to add depth and winning potential. The non-Guardian symbols are a bit lacking thematically, and some people might miss the chance of free spins, but overall it is a satisfying offering that invites your attention.

Disclaimer: Four Guardians (Gameplay Interactive) trademark / license is owned by Gameplay Interactive. This site is not endorsed by Gameplay Interactive.