Carnival Cove

Review setup

Carnival Cove is a 5-reel video slot from Habanero. This Malta-based studio supplies some of the country’s leading sweepstakes casinos. Habanero has released more than 150 slots, plus table games and video poker titles, and the quality tends to improve each year.

I was excited to try out Carnival Cove, as the specifications are promising. This is a pays all ways slot, with 243 different ways to win. Carnival Cove also has a 96.86% return to player (RTP) rate, which is well above average, plus a maximum win of 5,000x your bet and a bonus buy option.

I played Carnival Cove for around an hour on my iMac, followed by a second session of approximately 50 minutes on my iPhone. Throughout this process, I evaluated the graphics, the role of sound, the features, and the gameplay. I’ll now discuss my thoughts on this online slot.

First impressions with Carnival Cove

I must it that I wasn’t exactly blown away by the graphics on this slot. The soft pastel hues are easy on the eye, and I liked the carnival rides in the background. However, I felt that the faded graphics and simple animations could have been sharper and more polished.

The process of setting your bet size also seemed unnecessarily complicated. You need to adjust your “Bet Level” and your “Coin” value, and your stake will then be displayed at the bottom of the screen. I prefer online slots that simply allow you to choose a monetary value and then hit the “Play” button, as that makes things quicker and simpler.

I also began my session with a lengthy losing streak, so my initial impressions of Carnival Cove were far from positive. However, the game grew on me over the course of the subsequent hours, particularly after I activated the bonus buy feature for the first time.

Visuals and presentation: 3.5/5

This game is designed to tap into players’ nostalgic feelings about trips to the carnival. The 5-reel, 3-row grid is designed in the shape of a carousel. The symbols are attached to the carousel’s golden posts, which is a nice touch. In the background, waves lap at the shore, and a long pier stretches into the distance, featuring a rollercoaster and a Ferris wheel.

The scenery reminded me of Steel Pier in Atlantic City or perhaps Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. The symbols include dolphins, seals, and seahorses (as it’s an aquatic-themed carousel), along with retro carnival tickets. They are reasonably well-designed, but I just felt the graphics could have been bolder and brighter. It just felt a little old and childish to me.

I also found the animated girl at the left of the grid a little underwhelming. Her movements seemed jerky and unnatural, and she made some annoying noises.

That said, I did enjoy the animations that highlighted the successful paylines whenever I won, along with the sparklers that appeared at the end of the bonus round. The gold coin animations worked well too, and the reels spun quickly and smoothly.

The role of sound: 3.5/5

Carnival Cove features a pretty laid-back soundtrack. You’ll initially hear the waves gently crashing against the shore, punctuated by the odd call of a seagull and distant scattered dialogue.

When you spin the reels, a mellow guitar will start to play. It’s not particularly upbeat or exciting, but it doesn’t detract from the gameplay either. It sounds like the sort of generic music you’d hear when riding a carousel. So it’s fitting, even if it didn’t really excite me much.

As mentioned above, the girl sometimes makes a “woo” noise if you win, which I didn’t care for. The coins make a gentle tinkling sound too, and I did think that was nice.

I also quite liked the more dramatic music that begins during the bonus round.

Gameplay journey: 4.5/5

A large, twisting rollercoaster provides the backdrop to this online slot. That felt appropriate, as my gameplay journey proved to be a rollercoaster ride. There were lengthy losing streaks, but I also landed some thrilling “Big Wins” and “Mega Wins.” Here’s how it all unfolded:

• I chose a bet size of $5 per spin. To do so, I set the “Bet Level” to 2 and the “Coin” value to 0.10.
• After spinning the reels for a few minutes, I was down by $88.60. However, I then secured a “Big Win” of $90, which left me up by $1.40. That highlights the volatile nature of this online slot.
• Another reasonably big win left me with a $45 profit. That may have been an opportune moment to walk away, but I wanted to test out this slot over a longer period of time. Unfortunately, a losing streak then ensued, and I was down by $204. However, I then won $90 again, which recouped some of those losses.
• At that point, I decided to activate the bonus buy feature. It cost 50x my bet, so that set me back $250. I received eight free spins. The first few spins were unspectacular, but I then secured a “Mega Win” on my fourth spin. In total, I won $399.40 from this bonus round, which exceeded the $250 I paid to activate the feature. That left me up by $33.40 overall.
• I really enjoyed this bonus round, so I decided to activate the feature a second time. A similar pattern ensued, as I made a slow start before securing a “Mega Win.” However, this time I won just $211. That was less than the cost of activating the feature, and it left me with a slight loss overall.
• I activated the feature a third time and won $59.40, which was disappointing. On my fourth attempt, I triggered an extra 16 free spins. That helped me win $283.40. I then won a mere $29.40 when I activated the bonus round for a fifth time. On my sixth attempt, I won $84.20.
• I decided to try once more. Fortunately, I earned a “Super Mega Win” of $582 this time. That was swiftly followed by two “Big Wins,” and I earned a total of $701.20 from this bonus round. I was now down by just $98, so I decided to take a break.
• An hour later, I played Carnival Cove on my iPhone. Once again, I chose a bet size of $5 per spin. I didn’t have much luck. However, this is a highly volatile slot, so I was expecting prolonged barren streaks.
• After playing for another 15 minutes, I had lost an additional $300. I then finally triggered the bonus round by landing three scatters. Unfortunately, I only won $29 from my eight free spins, which was disappointing.
• I then started to enjoy more success during the base game, which narrowed my losses. However, I was still down by $150 in my second session, and $248 overall, so I decided it was time to try the bonus buy feature again. It cost me $250, and I received just $108.20.
• Undeterred, I activated it again. I secured a “Mega Win,” but my total winnings of $195.20 didn’t justify the cost of purchasing the feature. However, I found the bonus round more appealing than playing the base game, so I activated it again. This time, I earned a “Super Mega Win” of $415. In total, I earned $446.60, which wiped out most of my losses.
• I was now down by just $50 in my second session, and $148 overall. I paid another $250 to dive straight into the bonus round. This time, I only won $148, so I was down by $250 overall.
• I activated it again, and I retriggered another seven free spins. On my penultimate free spin, I clinched a “Super Mega Win.” I won $848 on this round. That left me up by $348 overall, so it seemed like a good time to walk away.

Bonus features through my eyes: 4.5/5

Carnival Cove is a simple online slot which offers a single bonus round. However, there is also a “Super Bet” option and a buy bonus feature.

Balancing risk and reward: 4/5

Carnival Cove has an attractive 96.86% RTP rate. The average online slot has a 96% theoretical payout rate, so that’s well above average.

But it’s a highly volatile game, so you can expect unsuccessful streaks. However, the prospect of winning up to 5,000x your bet is appealing.

Ultimately, I struggled to build up any momentum during the base game. I won far more than I lost, and I only triggered the bonus round once.

However, I really enjoyed the bonus buy feature. The free spins round is exciting, and I liked delving straight into it. It’s reasonably expensive, as it costs 50x your bet, but the round offers the potential for large wins.

Overall, this category is always a matter of personal preference. If you like high-risk, high-reward, Carnival Cove is a nice fit for you. For me personally, though, I prefer the base game to offer more.

The good and bad of Carnival Cove

Overall, I enjoyed playing the Carnival Cove slot. However, I also identified several aspects that could be improved.

Final Thoughts on Carnival Cove

I wasn’t particularly impressed by Carnival Cove when I started spinning the reels, but I found myself enjoying it more as the session progressed. The base game isn’t particularly innovative, but I really liked the bonus round. In particular, the special symbols in the carousel added a degree of intrigue to each spin, and they often proved lucrative.

Carnival Cove also offers a strong RTP rate, a useful bonus buy option, and the chance to win up to 5,000x your bet. It won’t appeal to players seeking small, regular wins, but it could entice thrill seekers hoping to ride the rollercoaster to riches. I may play this online slot again, but if so, I’ll probably stick to the bonus buy feature and skip the base game.

Final Score: 4/5