Blueprint Gaming

A pub-machine designer working online

Look at a Blueprint Gaming slot and you can usually spot the UK arcade influence within a few spins. Post-win decisions, linked jackpot tiers and chunky, readable symbols all come from the fruit machines found in British pubs and seaside arcades. Layered over that heritage is Megaways, a reel system Blueprint uses under licence from Big Time Gaming, its inventor. Traditional UK machine habits on one side, a modern licensed reel engine on the other: keep both in mind and the catalogue makes sense.

Ownership timeline

• 2001: Blueprint is set up in Newark, according to MERKUR GROUP (the name now used by the former Gauselmann Group).
• 2008: Gauselmann takes a stake.
• 2012: Gauselmann acquires the whole company.

The group states that Blueprint content runs on upwards of 100,000 gaming machines across the UK, Germany and Italy, plus online channels. On the demo network SlotSpecs draws from, Blueprint Gaming has 372 titles.

Lucky Pharaoh on the spec sheet

Our listed Blueprint game comes from the earlier part of its back catalogue:

You may also see the name written "Lucky Pharoah", and our own catalogue uses that spelling too. The layout is 5 reels by 3 rows with 10 fixed lines, filled with gems and card symbols. Two things are missing that most slots include: a wild, and a conventional free spins feature. In their place is Power Spins. Land a win of 4x the total bet or higher and play stops to offer a decision. Take the win, or swap it for spins played across four reel sets at the same time, with a Mystery symbol in play.

This is the fruit-machine DNA at its clearest. Arcade cabinets have long offered a collect-or-gamble prompt after a win. Lucky Pharaoh keeps the prompt but swaps the straight gamble for extra spins.

Why the 94% is only half the story

On paper, 94% trails most current releases. Our review explains why that headline needs care. The 94% describes the base game only. Inside Power Spins, the return is 96.25%. These are not separate builds of the slot. They are two phases of one game. That means the long-run figure shifts with player behaviour: the more often wins are converted into Power Spins, the more play happens at the higher rate.

We have found no statement from Blueprint on how many RTP builds it ships across its range, so we avoid drawing wider conclusions.

Megaways under licence

Megaways belongs to Big Time Gaming, which debuted it in Dragon Born towards the end of 2015. The mechanic randomises reel height: each spin changes how many symbols each reel shows, so the count of winning ways moves as well, reaching 117,649 on six reels. Big Time Gaming announced an agreement licensing the patented, trademarked mechanic to Gauselmann, Merkur and Blueprint, and Blueprint managing director Matt Cole said it would feature in the studio’s upcoming releases.

Among Blueprint’s award-winning games, MERKUR GROUP’s page lists Megaways editions such as Fishin’ Frenzy Megaways and Eye of Horus Megaways. Each is a Megaways rebuild of a theme the studio had used before, which is typical of how Blueprint deploys the licence.

The Jackpot King layer

Linked prizes are the other pillar. MERKUR GROUP says a single jackpot system connects 40 of its games. Blueprint’s progressive network goes by Jackpot King and pays tiered jackpots across multiple titles. August 2026 brought Fishin’ Frenzy Reely Big Catch Jackpot King onto the network, and with it the first expanding reels in that franchise’s bonus round. The structure mirrors a pub machine: a well-known base game, with a jackpot tier stacked above it.

Branded licensed slots are part of the mix too, and MERKUR GROUP cites The Goonies as one of the studio’s most recognised titles.

Is Blueprint your kind of studio?

Yes, if UK fruit machines shaped your idea of a slot, or if you prefer making a call mid-game over watching features fire automatically. Yes, too, if you enjoy Megaways and want familiar themes on shifting reels. Probably not, if your preference is modern grid slots built around stacking multipliers; other studios cover that better.

The balance sheet

In its favour

• A recognisable UK fruit-machine style, including collect-or-convert decisions.
• Officially licensed Megaways editions of established games.
• Jackpot King, a linked jackpot network spanning multiple titles.

Against it

• Older games such as Lucky Pharaoh carry a low base-game RTP.
• Repeated remakes and Megaways editions of one theme can start to feel interchangeable.

Blueprint Gaming questions answered