Mystic Orbs

Mystic Orbs Overview

Designed by the prolific and exciting provider ELK Studios, Mystic Orbs takes players to the intriguing and mysterious land of the orient. Specifically, ELK Studios has landed us in ancient China, where gods and mystic animals take on reverence and significance that they may have lost today. Mechanically, this is a five-reel, five-row game with a cluster pay dynamic. This means that players have to score wins by landing five or more matching symbols in a vertically or horizontally aligning cluster. The betting range is generous at 20p to £100, and the max win is fairly promising at 10,000x the stake. Sadly, the RTP is quite low, and the volatility is rather high.

The features for this game include an avalanche feature, typical of most cluster pay slots. This feature means that every time you score a win, the winning symbols are removed and replaced by a new set of symbols that slide into their vacated places. This gives players multiple chances to score wins from the same spin. Also included in this game is the feature row bonus. You’ll notice that there is a feature row with five symbols that change per spin above the playing board. Landing a wild orb activates the feature indicated vertically above the row on which the wild falls. Six modifiers can be activated in this way. There is also a free drops feature and bonus buy feature.

Theme and Symbols

The theme for this game is inspired by Chinese mythology, specifically the tale of Yinlong, a dragon god who in Chinese legend is the guardian of the five elements. The game takes place at the entrance of this dragon’s lair. The vague narrative here is that you are trying to tempt the dragon away from the cave so that you might find the treasure hidden inside. If this isn’t the case, then the game is just a generalized Chinese theme that centres on powerful animistic gods such as the hawk, leopard, turtle and dragon.
As mentioned, the background for this game is the entrance to the great Yinlong’s cave.

This is a large stone edifice into which a gate has been carved with pillars made from carved bamboo. The board is full of natural materials to ensure that players feel like they are in the wilderness deep in an ancient forest. The only living things that players can see here are a few plants that stick haphazardly from the rock, absorbing the little sustenance that there is. The whole background looks to have been hand-drawn.
The playing board here is constructed to look like the gate of Yinglang’s imposing cave fortress.

The symbols for this game are split into low-value, high-value and special symbols. The low-value symbols for this game are the yin and yang, paying out at 100x the stake for the top combination, the Chinese gold symbol and the red Chinese symbol. The red one is the most valuable, paying out at 200x the stake for the top combination. The more valuable symbols, however, are the animal gods. These are the turtle, the dragon, the leopard and the hawk. The hawk is the most valuable of these paying out at 1,000x the stake for the top combination. However, the most valuable symbol is the Yu the Great golden symbol, paying out at 2,000x the stake for the top combo. Finally, the specials are the blue orb scatter and the golden dragon wild.

Game Play

Mystic Orbs is played on a 5-reel, 5-row machine that works on a cluster pay mechanic. This means that players need to land five matching symbols in either a vertically or horizontally aligned cluster. The large the cluster, the larger the payout.
The betting range for Mystic Orbs is 20p to £100 per spin. To adjust their bet levels, players can toggle their stake up and down using the tool located at the bottom left-hand side of the screen.

Further information, including a short tutorial and a display of the paytable, can be found via the menu button in the right-hand corner of the screen. The spin and auto spin buttons are located in the centre of the screen.
Volatility for this slot is rated in the high range. The return to player percentage for Mystic Orbs is 95%, which is below average. The biggest payout that players can win on one spin is 10,000x your stake.

Features

The features for this game start with the avalanche feature. This feature is triggered every time a winning cluster is registered. The winning symbols in the cluster are then removed and replaced by a new set from above. The avalanches will continue until a new win is not found.

Next is the feature row bonus. You’ll notice that there is a feature row above the reels filled with five bonus features, which change with every spin. Landing a wild blue orb activated the feature directly above the icon on the feature row. The six different bonuses are explained below:

Bonus feature: Awards entry to the Free Drops Bonus Game feature.
Extra Life feature: An additional symbol drop is awarded when no new wins are formed.
Orb Payout feature: Pays the value as a stake multiplier.
Upgrade feature: Upgrades all one symbol type to a higher value symbol or wilds for up to 3 avalanches.
Multiplier feature: Adds its value to the total multiplier.
Orb Siege feature: Up to 4 symbols around the orb are replaced with one chosen symbol or wild.
Next, there is the free drops bonus game. This is triggered when players collect five or more orbs. Five or more free spins are awarded when activated, depending on the number of scatters landed. You can also add to your free spin tally by landing additional orbs within the round. The feature row is also available during these free spins.
Finally, as with every ELK Studios game, the X-iter feature basically lets you enter different bonuses for a certain price. This option is sometimes unavailable depending on the country through which you access the game.

Conclusion

With an excellent selection of features, a decent top win and some fun graphics, ELK Studios have done a good job here. It’s a shame about the high volatility and low RTP. However, they aren’t as bad as some of ELK Studio’s other products.