Game Theme & Other Basics
The game’s theme is based around the Mr. Cashman character,
which has become a national symbol for gambling minded
Australians. Mr. Cashman is a mascot of sorts, an
anthropomorphic gold coin who, with his old-fashioned black top
hat, actually bears a slight resemblance to the Mr. Peanut
character.
Mr. Cashman is always featured while flashing his signature
smiling face and the image is completed by a cartoonish pair of
white gloves. Due to the overwhelming popularity of the
character in Australia, where game designer Aristocrat is based,
the company has also included Mr. Cashman as a symbol on other
slot machines.
Among the titles to feature Mr. Cashman, who Aristocrat
proudly bills as “the most iconic personality in slots,” as a
supplemental character are African Dusk, Jail Bird, Jewel of the
Enchantress, and Magic Eyes. While these alternatives are each
based on a distinct theme, they include references to Mr.
Cashman at every opportunity, and Aristocrat designed the
foursome to replicate the original Mr. Cashman’s gameplay
structure.
The enduring success of the first Mr. Cashman slot has
prompted Aristocrat to release direct sequels to the original,
including Cashman Fever, Cashman Fever 2, and Cashman Live.
Conversely, rival slot designers have attempted to imitate the
game with knockoffs like Playtech’s Mr. Cash Back game.
Oddly, Aristocrat has never adapted Mr. Cashman for the
company’s growing lineup of online slots, so this title can only
be found in land based casinos.
With the star of the show clearly Mr. Cashman himself, the
original slot machine’s background screen depicts nothing more
than a stock city skyline set against a dark blue sky.
The title screen for the game is similarly simple, with Mr.
Cashman’s smiling face looking down on players as he invites
them to take a seat by doffing his top hat. In Australia,
however, the machines are usually banked together under a huge
sign decorated by stars which surround Mr. Cashman’s familiar
face.
As one of Aristocrat’s oldest slot machine models, Mr.
Cashman features the company’s usual arrangement of reel
symbols, so you’ll find the card rank symbols of 9, 10, J, Q, K,
and A. The rest of the reel symbols appear to be stock cartoon
animal characters with no connection to Mr. Cashman. These
include the grinning cat, the angry bulldog, the flying bird,
the dog policeman, and the red dynamite.
The Mr. Cashman slot machine harkens back to a prior
generation, before the advent of 50 pay line games and multiple
bonus features. For some slot players, the game might not as
modern as they might hope, but a session at the Mr. Cashman
slots has proven enjoyable for millions of players around the
world since its release.
Gameplay Features and Mechanics
The original Mr. Cashman slot is a five reel, 20 pay line
game, with each reel featuring three symbols.
When playing any of the four additional Mr. Cashman oriented
slot titles mentioned in the introduction, the game remains at
five reels and 20 pay lines, but players can exercise an ante
bet of five additional credits when max betting.
As a pioneer in the world of penny slots, Mr. Cashman titles
all begin with a $0.01 minimum coin, and a $1.00 maximum. This
means that penny slot players have a cost to cover of $0.20 on
the original machines and a $0.25 cost to cover when utilizing
the ante bet in the updated versions.
Of course, players have the option between activating one pay
line, all pay lines, or any amount in between. But regular slot
players know that the best way to enjoy an Aristocrat game is by
activating all of the available pay lines. By using the ante bet
in the updated Mr. Cashman four title series, players are
entitled to extra bonus features and additional payouts.
The original Mr. Cashman slot diverges a bit from the classic
Aristocrat gameplay setup known today, so players will miss the
usual excitement of wild symbols which create an additional
winning combination. The multipliers and free spin bonuses
remain intact, though, but unlike in most slots today, they
can’t be triggered and only appear at random. The game is not
included within any progressive jackpots. See below for a full
listing of basic specifications for Mr. Cashman:
- Wilds: No
- Free Spins: Yes, at random
- Multiplier: Yes, up to 10x
- Bonus Game: Yes, at random
- Progressive: No
- Return to Player: 92.39%
During the base game for the original Mr. Cashman slot, and
its four associated update titles, you’ll be playing for a
payout table which many players report being on the low side.
Unfortunately, no information on the exact payouts distributed
by the game has been published.
The red dynamite symbol is considered a scatter symbol in Mr.
Cashman, creating winning combinations from anywhere on the
screen and multiplying payouts. However, unlike most Aristocrat
titles, the red dynamite scatter symbol bears no connection to
triggering the free spins bonus round.
Triggering the Bonus Round
In Mr. Cashman, along with African Dusk, Jail Bird, Jewel of
the Enchantress, and Magic Eyes, the free spins bonus round and
other bonus features are triggered entirely at random. This
means no combination of reel symbols will bring you to the bonus
game, so when it occurs, it will always be a surprise. In each
case, however, the smiling face of Mr. Cashman will appear on
the screen to announce your impending bonus round and celebrate
along with you.
When playing on the updated Mr. Cashman four-game suite, each
of the game titles you can alternate between offers its own
bonus feature. These bonus games can only be played when you are
max betting with the ante bet in play or betting 25 credits per
spin.
The bonus games for the Mr. Cashman four-game suite are
described below.
Random Spin
You’ll see the Mr. Cashman character appear on screen, and
he’ll randomly spin one or more of the base game reels. Any
winning combinations landed will be paid at with 3x, 5x, or a
10x multiplier applied.
Choose A Feature
You’ll be transported to a side screen featuring Mr. Cashman
offering you a simple choice. You can touch the money bag and
win up to 1,000 free credits, multiplied by the line bet. You
can also touch the gift box to win five, 10, 15 or 20 free
spins, and during the free spins bonus all winning combinations
will be paid with a 2x, 3x, or a 5x multiplier applied.
Random Bonus
Mr. Cashman appears on screen and awards a random bonus of up
to 50,000 credits, multiplied by the line bet.
Match the Prize
You’ll see a screen filled with stars, touching them until
two matching prizes are revealed. These prizes range up to 1,000
credits, multiplied by the line bet, or five, 10, 20, or 40 free
spins with all winning combinations multiplied by 1x, 2x, 3x, or
5x, respectively.
Poker Machine
Mr. Cashman appears on the screen and reveals a random bonus
prize of up to 999 credits, multiplied by the line bet.
Summary
The Mr. Cashman slot machine line has withstood the test of
time for good reason: players love the character and feel a
special affinity toward games featuring his familiar face. While
that may not be enough of a draw for modern slot players
accustomed to 50 pay lines, animated graphics, and triggered
bonuses, fans of the game are quite content with what it has to
offer.
The excitement of randomly generated bonus rounds makes every
spin of Mr. Cashman and its associated titles in the four-game
update a potential for both surprises and significant scores.
