My entire understanding of Ancient Egypt was shaped by Stargate, which means I grew up fully convinced that pyramids were basically alien car parks and every pharaoh was one glowing eye away from world domination. History class talked about gods, hieroglyphs, and the afterlife, while Stargate taught me the important stuff, like never trust a bloke with a gold helmet and a god complex. 

In adulthood, my love for Ancient Egypt has led me to chase slots themed around its mythology. The newest of these is the Secrets of Papyrus slot from Mascot.

Time for a treasure hunt

Secrets of Papyrus features 20 paylines across five reels, set in a quiet library filled with treasures from Ancient Egypt. If you’re betting at the $40-a-spin maximum, you’ll have a shot at a fairly modest $80,000. The slot does, however, offer betting from just $0.20 per spin.

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With high volatility, the gameplay will feature periods of little in the way of small, consistent wins as you chase larger wins. The slot’s expected RTP is 95.51%.

Unlike most slots that feature two distinct symbols, the Secrets of Papyrus slot’s Mystery symbol acts as both a wild symbol and a scatter symbol. The symbol will trigger a round of ten free spins when it lands on reels two, three, and four.

During a round of free spins, any Mystery symbol that lands will remain in place for the remainder of your round, serving as wild symbols. You cannot, however, use the sticky Mystery symbols to retrigger a round of free spins. Filling reels two, three, and four with sticky Mystery symbols will, however, add three additional free spins to your round.

Once you’ve scored a win, you can choose to potentially boost your winnings with the Risk feature. You’ll spin the bonus reels for a chance to increase your winnings by up to 1,000x.

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If you’d like a more direct route to a round of free spins, you can choose to use the slot’s Buy feature. You have the option to boost your chances of triggering free spins, purchase 25 free base game spins with higher volatility, or purchase a round of the slot’s free spins feature.

Is the Secrets of Papyrus slot an ancient treasure?

If you’re looking for a cosy slot to play an inexpensive session on, the Secrets of Papyrus slot is a good option. That said, if you’re looking for huge wins, the $80,000 maximum win will likely put you off. It’s also not a slot that’s bursting with bonus features, especially if you’re not going to use the Risk feature.

Despite its shortcomings, the Secrets of Papyrus slot has a definite charm that’s hard to quantify. It’s definitely a game I would come back to. I give it a nine out of ten.

If you’re looking for a few other Mascot slots that I would recommend, try out Re-Kill Ultimate and Wasteland Riches.