The first thing to note is that Ghost Pirates does not come with traditional paylines. Instead, you can choose to play 3, 9, 27, 81 or 243 ways to win at any one of five stake levels. Check out all 243 potential winning combos by consulting the paytable.
The 243 ways to win feature certainly boosts the chances of bagging a small prize. The potential to walk away with a barrow load of booty comes in the Free Spins feature which is triggered when three or more Treasure Chest scatter symbols appear, starting in the reel furthest to the left (reel 1).
If you're playing 3, 9, 27 or 81 ways to win, a trio of Treasure Chests will award 10 free spins. Four Chests offers 15 with 20 available if you find five. All wins in the feature are trebled. The rewards are even bigger if you're playing all 243 ways to win. 3 Treasure Chests offers 15 free spins, 4 provides 20 spins while 5 offer 25 free spins. Similarly, all wins subject to a 3x multiplier.
It's not just Free Spins feature where the Treasure Chest can help. Find a combo of 5 symbols with the scatter symbols and your win will benefit from a 50x multiplier while activating the Free Spin feature. There's also a 2 or 5 times stake prize for 3 scatters (depending on how many ways to win you're playing) and a 20 times stake prize boost if you hit 4.
The Ghost Pirate acts as the wild and substitutes for any symbol. That even includes the Treasure Chest which can be used to activate the Free Spin Bonus feature. Featuring a motley assortment of shipmates including Polly the Parrot, pirate Peggy Rotten and the Mad Monkey and pirate paraphernalia such as treasure maps, bottles of grog, skulls and crossbones, Ghost Pirates looks a treat.
The 243 ways to win provides plenty to keep your interest levels high and with a maximum payout of 764 times your stake, Ghost Pirates will shiver even the most ardent landlubber's timbers! For this reason, it’s a medium to high variance slot which I like and I rank it alongside NetEnt favourites Piggy Riches and Blood Suckers.