Say what you will about farm life, but it’s something incredibly rewarding. It’s a lot of work and effort, as you have to get up early in the morning, really put your back into it, but there’s no denying that after you finish for the day, lay back all exhausted and worn out, there’s some part of you that tingles with pride. Barnyard Bonanza is for people who wouldn’t mind to try the farm life, but perhaps without having to actually go and do it. The title offers a medium volatility and a jackpot worth 50x your wager, alongside a free spins bonus with slight variations, and a chance at some bonus cash wins.

We can’t say that Barnyard Bonanza is going to win anyone over with its graphics. The title was released in 2015, but the symbols have more of an early 3D look to them. Some of them, like the chicken and cow, look perfectly fine, but the horse and pig seem to have this soulless look to their eyes that really ruins the aesthetic of the whole thing. The scarecrow and the barn also look quite nice as symbols, and the playing card icons were cleverly disguised as fruit and vegetables you can find growing on the farm. The backdrop visuals is where the Ainsworth title falls behind, as the whole environment doesn’t really feel cohesive to us. The bale of hay and the horse seem really out of place for some reason, though everything else fits just fine. There’s also no music playing during regular spins, and instead, the upbeat tune is reserved only for when you have free spins active. Speaking of which, the gameplay for the title is remarkably simple and to the point – you’re spinning over and over in hopes of activating the free spins bonus, which is the real money-maker in this title – both because of the special feature, and the fact the Scatter is the highest paying icon in the game.

There are two special features, but you can’t access one without the other. The free spins bonus can be activated at any time by collecting three or more Scatters, which are the chicken symbol. Once the feature is activated, you are given a choice between five different types of free spins. You have Barn, Scarecrow, Pig, Horse and Cow, in that order. Barn gives fourteen free spins and creates stacked Barn icons all over the reels, and the amount of free spins lowers, so Cow only gets ten free spins and stacked Cow symbols. The advantage here is that you’re trading in one free spin for more valuable stacked symbols, making it a balancing act on top of the luck factor. While free spins are active, you can also come across golden eggs, which can reward a minor cash prize, with 5x being the biggest win, or you can win one, two or three extra free spins.

When you put everything together, the title is somewhere above average. The visuals have a few missteps we can’t say we’ve like. The gameplay does help pull things together – we’re suckers for medium volatility titles that give us fun special features, and the ability to pick between five different free spins bonuses really worked out well for us. However, at 93% RTP, we really can’t give it any glowing recommendations.