Slots Like Reel King: Novomatic Fruit Classics, RTP and Our Verdict

Reel King is the fruit machine that refuses to retire. Novomatic built it on a plain 5×3 grid with 20 paylines and a 94.00% RTP, then hid all the excitement in one random bonus where a crowned King drops mini reels of lucky sevens onto the screen. It is low to medium in volatility, wins pay left to right, and stakes run from 20p up to 40 a spin for a top prize of 500 times your bet. If you want more slots like Reel King, the closest company is the rest of the Novomatic back catalogue, and we line up the best of it below.

Where to Play

18+ only. T&Cs apply. Please gamble responsibly.

How the Game Works

Reviewed by Brian Taylor
Published: July 2026

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Strip Reel King back and it is a five reel, twenty line fruit machine with none of the modern trimmings. There are no scatters, no free spins and no cascading reels. You set your lines and your stake, spin, and wins land left to right from the leftmost reel. The paytable is built from cherries, plums, grapes and the playing card letters, topped by bars and the lucky seven. What keeps people coming back is not the base game at all. It is the King, and he turns up when he feels like it.

That randomness is the whole personality of the slot. A spin can pay nothing on the reels, then the King strolls in and hands you more than the last twenty spins combined. It is old fashioned in the best sense, a game that trusts one strong idea rather than burying you in mechanics.

Symbols and Paytable

The lucky seven sits at the very top of the paytable, worth the biggest line prize for five in a row, with the golden bar close behind. Below those sit the fruit, cherries, plums and grapes, then the J, Q, K and A card letters that fill out the low end. A wild also appears on the reels and stands in for the paying symbols to help complete a line. None of the base pays are large on their own, which is by design, because Reel King saves its real money for the bonus.

The Reel King Feature

This is the reason the game exists. At the end of any spin, win or lose, one or more crowned Kings can appear on the reels, up to five of them at once. Each King brings his own small three reel slot that sits on top of the main grid and starts spinning on its own. Those mini reels are filled with lucky sevens in blue, yellow and red, and every time three of a colour line up you are paid a prize. The King keeps spinning his mini reel until it stops on a losing combination, so a single generous King can rattle off several wins in a row before he leaves.

With up to five Kings able to show at once, a good trigger can stack prize after prize while you just watch. It is entirely out of your hands, which is either the charm or the frustration depending on your mood, and it is where the 500 times top win comes from.

The Gamble Feature

After any winning spin you can take the Novomatic gamble. Call the colour of a face down card, and a correct red or black guess doubles the win, with the option to keep pushing while your nerve holds. Call it wrong once and the win is gone. It is a fast way to turn a small hit into a real one, and an equally fast way to hand it all back, so treat it as a coin flip rather than a plan.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• The Reel King bonus is genuinely exciting, and five Kings arriving together is one of the most satisfying moments in any classic slot
• Simple enough to pick up in a single spin, which is exactly why it still pulls in players who find modern slots overloaded
• Low minimum stakes mean you can nurse a small bankroll for a long time while you wait for the King to visit
• The gamble ladder gives you a quick way to chase a bigger number when a win does land
• It carries the authentic feel of a pub and arcade cabinet, which no amount of polish on newer games quite replicates

Cons

• A 94.00% RTP is well below the modern average, so over time it gives back less than most slots you could pick instead
• The base game is bare. With no free spins or scatters, dry spells rely entirely on a bonus that may not come
• The 500 times ceiling is tiny next to newer slots, so there is no life changing top end to chase
• Everything hinges on a random trigger you cannot influence, which will not suit players who like a feature they can build towards

Game Screenshot

Reel King Feature in Action

You can spin Reel King in free demo mode before staking real money, which is the honest way to see how long the King can keep you waiting. The demo runs the same 94.00% build, so use it to enjoy the bonus rather than to judge how often it lands.

Expert Take

Reel King is a nostalgia machine, and it is honest about it. Reviewers tend to forgive the low RTP because the game never pretends to be anything other than a straight up fruit slot with one great gimmick. It has aged better than most of its era because the King feature still delivers a proper jolt, but nobody should mistake it for a value play. It is comfort food, not a headline slot.

Similar Slots to Try

If it is the stripped back, fruit and sevens feel you are after, these four scratch the same itch. Each is reviewed in full on SlotsLike.

• Sizzling Hot Deluxe
  
  Novomatic’s in-house fruit machine sticks to cherries, sevens and a scatter symbol, backed by the same red-or-black gamble feature. No royal theme here, just the closest sibling for straightforward, old-school simplicity.
• Mega Joker
  
  NetEnt classic with a super meter that pushes the RTP sky high when you play it right. A cleverer take on the retro fruit slot for players who want an edge.
• Fruit Shop
  
  A brighter, friendlier fruit slot from NetEnt with free spins and multipliers. It keeps the fruit theme but adds the features Reel King leaves out.
• Xtra Hot
  
  Another Novomatic hot fruit title with wild multipliers on the middle reel. Short, sharp and made for the same quick, no fuss sessions.

About the Developer

Reel King comes from Novomatic, the Austrian gaming giant founded in 1980 and one of the largest operators of land based machines in Europe. Its online games reach UK casinos through the Greentube studio, and its style is unmistakable: clean fruit and mythology themes, a signature red or black gamble, and slots that feel like the cabinets you would find in a real arcade. Book of Ra made the company a household name online, but the fruit range where Reel King lives is just as much a part of its DNA.

Other Novomatic slots worth a spin after Reel King, all from the same stable, are below.

• Book of Ra Deluxe
  
  The Egyptian adventure that defined Novomatic online, built on an expanding symbol in free spins. A world away from Reel King in theme but the same studio fingerprints.
• Lord of the Ocean
  
  A Poseidon themed cousin of Book of Ra with the same expanding symbol free spins. One for players who like the Novomatic bonus rhythm with a mythical skin.
• Dolphins Pearl Deluxe
  
  An undersea classic with a wild dolphin that doubles wins and triggers free spins. Gentle, familiar and pure Novomatic comfort.
• Lucky Ladys Charm Deluxe
  
  Charms, horseshoes and a wild lady, with free spins that pay triple. Alongside Reel King it is one of the studio most played old timers.

Reel King Key Stats

Reel King slot information last reviewed: July 2026

Slots with the Same Features

Reel King sits in the Gamble Feature category. Here are strong examples of the red or black gamble in action, plus its own direct sequels.

Slots with a Gamble Feature

Games that let you double a win on the turn of a card, just like Reel King.

Reel King Sequels

The King came back with bigger budgets and modern engines. Both are reviewed on SlotsLike.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the Reel King feature work?

At the end of any spin, win or lose, up to five crowned Kings can land on the reels. Each King brings a small three reel slot of blue, yellow and red lucky sevens that spins on its own and pays for every three of a colour, continuing until it stops on a loss. It is triggered at random and cannot be influenced.

What is the RTP of Reel King?

Reel King has an RTP of 94.00%, which is below the modern UK online average of around 96 percent. Some casinos run their own reduced build, so it pays to glance at the game rules screen before you spin.

What is the maximum win on Reel King?

The top win is 500 times your stake, and it comes almost entirely from a strong Reel King feature where several Kings pay in a row.

Is Reel King high volatility?

No. Reel King is a low to medium volatility slot. Wins are frequent but small in the base game, and the swings come from how often the random King feature triggers rather than from brutal variance.

What are the best slots like Reel King?

The closest are other Novomatic fruit classics such as Sizzling Hot Deluxe and Lucky Ladys Charm Deluxe, along with the modern sequels Reel King Mega and Reel King Megaways.

Can I play Reel King for free?

Yes. Reel King is widely available as a free demo running the standard 94.00% build, which is a good way to enjoy the King feature before staking real money.

Who makes Reel King?

Novomatic, the Austrian developer founded in 1980, with its online games delivered through the Greentube studio to UK licensed casinos.

Our Verdict on Reel King

Reel King earns its place through personality rather than numbers. The 94.00% RTP and the bare base game are real drawbacks, and there is no big top win to dream about. Yet the King feature still lands with a thrill that plenty of flashier slots miss, and for a quick nostalgic session it does exactly what it sets out to do. Play it for the feeling, not the value, and keep the sequels in mind if you want the same idea with a modern engine behind it.

SlotsLike rating: 7/10