Merlin: Journey of Flame: rules, features and verified RTP

Short answer

Evidence-led verdict

Merlin: Journey of Flame is Play’n GO Game ID 696, version 1.0, released on 13 July 2023. Its mathematical record describes six reels and three rows, but the sixth reel is locked in the base game. Ordinary paid spins therefore use five active reels and ten fixed paylines.

Three or more Scatters award eight Free Spins and unlock the sixth reel. At feature entry, one regular pay symbol becomes the special expanding symbol. It can form wins across non-adjacent reels, after which every winning instance expands to fill its reel.

Scatter doubles as Wild and substitutes for ordinary symbols. It does not join the special-symbol combination, so conventional payline wins and special non-adjacent wins are calculated through different conditions. The checked rules do not state that Free Spins retrigger.

The official sheet lists five RTP configurations from 96.28% to 84.25%, volatility level 7 and maximum-event probability below one in one hundred million. The public product record lists a 7,500x total-bet cap. Those values support a high-volatility assessment but do not establish local availability.

Exact product

Release, version and title identity

The official title includes a colon: Merlin: Journey of Flame. Its product URL encodes that punctuation, while search engines and operator libraries may omit it. Match Play’n GO, Game ID 696 and internal identifier “journeyofflame” rather than relying on punctuation alone.

The public product page gives 13 July 2023 as the release date. The official Game Rules and Settings sheet is version 1.0 and lists both mobile and desktop. A review update date or operator upload date is not the game’s original release.

The source descriptions can look inconsistent about reels: the record says six, while base screenshots show five. Both can be true because reel six is locked in the base game and opened only in Free Spins. This page states the operating context instead of flattening it into an inaccurate one-number claim.

We checked the sources on 6 October 2026. The official product identity does not prove that a New Zealand-facing operator currently offers this exact build or uses its top RTP.

Base engine

Ten paylines on five active base reels

The game frame contains six reel positions, each three symbols high. In ordinary base play the sixth position is locked, leaving five active reels. Ten fixed paylines are evaluated from left to right across adjacent active reels.

Regular line wins begin on the leftmost active reel. The highest regular symbol pays up to 7.5x total bet for five in the base paytable, while Wild and Scatter have their own values. The 7,500x maximum arises from the whole game’s feature potential, not a single ordinary symbol table entry.

The rules record five coins and a reference stake range from 0.01 to 100. An operator interface may show only total bet. Because the lines are fixed, there is no need to assume players can select fewer than ten.

Scatter acts as Wild for ordinary payline wins and substitutes for regular symbols. It also triggers the feature when three or more appear. Its dual role should not be confused with the random special symbol chosen inside Free Spins.

Base spins do not use the non-adjacent special-symbol rule unless the current help explicitly says otherwise. That exception belongs to the feature. Importing it into the base game would overstate the frequency of winning combinations.

Dual-purpose symbol

Scatter payouts and Wild substitution

The Scatter can substitute for every ordinary pay symbol and form payline wins. The official table lists Scatter values across up to six symbols because the full feature grid contains six active reels.

Three or more Scatters also trigger eight Free Spins. Feature entry is based on Scatter count, while ordinary substitution still follows paylines. A Scatter contributing to a line does not cease to count for the trigger if the final grid meets both conditions.

The Scatter is not part of a special-symbol win. During Free Spins, winning occurrences of the selected special regular symbol can span non-adjacent reels; Wild or Scatter symbols do not fill gaps in that calculation.

The paytable’s top six-symbol Wild or highest-symbol award reaches 7,500x total bet, equal to the product cap. That possibility requires the active sixth reel and exact feature conditions. It is not a base-game five-reel line.

Scatter being Wild does not imply it is sticky, expanding or multiplied. Those behaviours are not stated for this symbol. The expansion applies to the selected special regular symbol after its special win.

Feature entry

Eight Free Spins and an unlocked sixth reel

Landing three or more Scatters awards eight Free Spins. When the feature starts, the sixth reel unlocks, creating a six-by-three active area and allowing six-symbol paytable awards.

The official product page also describes up to eight Free Spins. The checked rules sheet does not state a retrigger condition or a higher feature-spin ceiling. One competitor review claims retriggers, but without first-party support we do not repeat that claim.

One regular symbol is chosen randomly at entry to become special for the feature. The choice affects which positions can form non-adjacent combinations. It does not alter the configured RTP or guarantee that enough copies will land.

Ordinary paylines remain available across adjacent reels on the expanded grid. Special-symbol wins are an additional evaluation method, not a replacement for all line wins. Scatter continues to act as Wild for conventional lines.

Eight spins describe the supplied quantity, not a minimum return. A sixth reel increases possible positions and enables top paytable lengths, but random outcomes can still produce little or no award.

Non-adjacent rule

How the special symbol wins and expands

The randomly selected special symbol can create an award across non-adjacent reels. Unlike a conventional payline, matching instances do not need to form an unbroken chain from the left. The help determines the required count and paytable value.

When a special-symbol win occurs, every winning instance expands vertically to cover its entire reel. The expanded symbols can create or improve ordinary payline awards across the six-reel feature grid.

Wilds do not participate in the initial special-symbol combination. A gap containing Scatter/Wild cannot be used as a substitute to reach the special count. After expansion, ordinary lines can still use Scatter’s normal substitution rule.

Expansion occurs only for winning special symbols, not every occurrence automatically. A few scattered copies below the required condition remain ordinary positions. This difference prevents “selected means always expanding” from becoming a false guarantee.

The selected symbol remains the same for the feature under the checked rules. It is not a player pick and cannot be changed by stake or spin timing. Its random identity affects potential because higher-paying regular symbols have different paytable values.

Optional interface

What the official record says about Gamble

The product record marks Gamble as available, while the mathematical feature sheet focuses on reels, Free Spins and special-symbol evaluation. This guide therefore confirms an optional gamble mode exists but does not invent its eligibility thresholds or exact user flow.

The public marketing page mentions numeric conditions, yet the brief requires gameplay numbers to come from current help. Before using Gamble, read the deployed client for eligible win size, maximum attempt, possible outcomes and how declining or losing affects the balance.

Gamble does not change the base RTP table unless the live help explicitly includes and explains it. It adds a voluntary risk decision after an eligible award. Skipping it preserves the stated win; taking it can lose that amount.

An operator can disable optional functions. Absence of a Gamble button does not necessarily mean the core reels are a different Game ID, but the exact deployed help still governs that integration.

For budgeting, treat a gambled award as money put back at risk. A previous win does not make that amount costless, and the 7,500x overall cap still applies.

Configuration menu

Five verified RTP settings

The official Game ID 696 sheet lists five alternative configurations. The top 96.28% value is not proof that a particular operator has selected it.

RTP incorporates base paylines, Scatter substitution, six-reel Free Spins and special expansions across the long run. It does not guarantee that one session returns the listed percentage or that every feature contains a special-symbol win.

The house edge is 100 minus RTP. Either configuration can produce short-term gains or losses. A demo sample cannot reliably reveal which build is running.

Several reviews show only 96.28%. That is accurate for the highest certified option but incomplete for a deployable game. Locate the exact figure in the current information screen and note the date.

Different units

Volatility 7, 7,500x cap and exposure

The official math sheet assigns volatility level 7, and the product record calls it high. Because provider scales differ, the numeric value is more useful than a third-party “medium-high” label.

The official maximum win is 7,500x total bet. At a hypothetical $1 stake, the boundary is $7,500 before operator rules. This example explains the multiplier and does not claim NZD support.

The rules sheet lists maximum exposure of 750,000 at the reference maximum bet of 100 and a maximum-event probability below one in one hundred million. Exposure is a currency-model field; it is not a 750,000x cap.

A six-symbol top combination can reach the cap, but the rare-event field and high volatility provide necessary context. Neither special-symbol selection nor a sixth reel makes such an outcome likely in a session.

Reference limits

Bet range and practical exposure

The GRS records a reference minimum bet of 0.01 and maximum of 100 with five coins. An operator can use different denominations and currencies, so these are not guaranteed NZD limits.

Ten paylines are fixed. Read the displayed total bet rather than assuming the selected number is per line. The 7,500x cap applies to total bet under the product record.

Free Spins do not require a new stake after triggering, but every new base spin does. Rapid or automatic play can make the 0.01 minimum look harmless while accumulating many paid rounds.

Set time and loss limits before feature anticipation builds. A locked sixth reel and two visible Scatters are presentation states, not money owned or evidence that the next spin is more favourable.

Interface literacy

Mobile, help and demo boundaries

The official record lists mobile and desktop. On mobile, locate total bet, current RTP, ten lines, the locked sixth reel, Free Spins count and the rule excluding Wilds from special-symbol combinations.

Play’n GO’s public experience is entertainment-only and pays no real money. It can illustrate the sixth-reel transition and expansion order, but a short sample cannot measure feature frequency or RTP.

A provider demo does not establish availability through a New Zealand-facing operator or show its deployed configuration. Operator identity, territory and terms need a separate check.

If live help claims a retrigger or different feature ceiling, record the Game ID and version. Use that deployed documentation for its exact build and submit dated evidence through our corrections process.

Operator-level proof

New Zealand availability is not assumed

This review proves that Play’n GO documents the game, not that a current operator offers it to New Zealand players. A global catalogue cannot establish territorial rights, operator status, currency support or active RTP.

The Department of Internal Affairs player guidance was checked on 6 October 2026. The context is date-sensitive, including transition around 1 December 2026 and a later licensing process. Read the primary source and our dated legal-status guide; this page is not legal advice.

Verify operator identity, age and location restrictions, payments, withdrawals, complaints, limits and self-exclusion. NZD, a local flag or demo access does not prove authorisation.

Then verify Game ID, RTP and optional Gamble separately. Accurate product data cannot validate an operator, and operator status does not guarantee the top configuration.

Two-minute audit

What to verify in the live help

1. Match Merlin: Journey of Flame, Play’n GO and Game ID 696.
2. Confirm six reel positions with the sixth locked in the base game.
3. Check ten fixed paylines and three rows.
4. Verify Scatter substitutes for regular symbols.
5. Confirm three or more Scatters award eight Free Spins.
6. Check that the sixth reel unlocks during the feature.
7. Verify one random special symbol can win across non-adjacent reels.
8. Confirm Wilds do not join special-symbol combinations.
9. Read live help rather than assuming a retrigger.
10. Record one of the five official RTP settings.
11. Keep 7,500x separate from 750,000 exposure.
12. Verify operator and New Zealand status independently.

If the build differs, save its identifier, source and date and use our corrections process. Never include account credentials or identity documents.

Exact-title navigation

How Merlin differs from related games

Legacy of Dead also chooses an expanding symbol for Free Spins, but it uses five reels, ten selectable lines and eight spins without Merlin’s locked sixth reel or non-adjacent special evaluation.

Rich Wilde and the Book of Dead awards ten Free Spins and can expand its selected symbol across reels. Similar expansion language is not proof of identical triggers, reels, RTP or cap.

The Play’n GO catalogue guide keeps every product under its exact identity. Compare active RTP, reel state, line rule, selected-symbol behaviour, feature limit and cap.

Merlin’s 7,500x headline should be read alongside volatility 7 and the sub-one-in-100-million maximum-event field. Cap size does not predict typical returns or justify a larger stake.

Use the six-reel feature layout—not the shared fantasy theme—as the decisive comparison.