Pacific Gold

Pacific Gold Overview

Pacific Gold is the latest product in ELK Studio’s ‘Gold’ series, which follows the wide-ranging adventures of Mr Kane, an intrepid explorer seeking rare treasures from across the globe. This latest adventure places Kane on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean at a WW2 dog fight graveyard. The location is a novel one that excites players with its promise of mystery and intrigue. In terms of this slot’s mechanics, it is a six-reel game with a huge number of potential pay lines and a decent top win of 10,000x the stake. The RTP is a little low at 95%.

There is a lot of bonus feature content here too. One of these bonuses is the avalanche feature, sometimes called the cascade feature. This bonus comes into play every time a win is registered on the reels. Winning symbols are removed from the reels and replaced by a new set of symbols. Wins will also add another row to increase the number of available pay lies. This game also has a big symbols feature, meaning that all low, medium and high symbols can fall in sizes up to 4x4. This game also carried a power stack bonus, a pacific wave feature, a ghost box feature and a pacific wave free drops feature. All bonuses will be explained in more detail later on in the review.

Theme and Symbols

The theme for this game is a difficult one to pin down. On the one hand, we have the tropes of WW2 with crashed planes and debris strewn around, giving the impression that the location for this slot is a well-known crash site or ‘graveyard’. However, on the other hand, we have the strange Polynesian-style faces on the board, which hint at a more tribal theme. The narrative we believe is that Kane has arrived at the site looking for WW2 relics but has also encountered some Pacific Island spirits who are upset by his arrival.

This is supported by the spectral graphics and spooky soundtrack that portends something otherworldly.
The background for this game is a secluded cavern presumably located on a Pacific Island where planes from WW2 crashed. The carcasses of the planes can be seen here and there, now covered in vines and other undergrowth. The setting is like one you might encounter in a Lara Croft film, yet for this adventure, the bearded Mr Kane is exploring this fascinating yet unnerving area. The level of detail in the artwork is superb.

The playing window is a set of symbols arranged between two plane wings that have been dug into the ground.
The symbols for this game are split into low-paying, high-paying and special symbols. The low-paying symbols are the standard card royals: J, Q, K, and A. These all pay out the same at 0.3x the stake for the top combination. On the other hand, the more valuable symbols start with the four different coloured swirls. The red swirl is the most valuable of these, paying out at 1x the stake for the top combination. Then there are the three masks in blue, purple and red, and finally, Kane himself, as the most valuable symbol, paying out at 5x the stake. The specials here include the gold metal wild, the ghost box, and the plane bonus scatter.

Game Play

Pacific Gold is played on a 6-reel, 4-row machine with up to 262,144 pay lines. To win combinations, players must land three or more matching symbols on pay lines moving from left to right, starting from the leftmost reel.
The betting range for Pacific Gold 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 very high range. The return to player percentage for Pacific Gold is 95%, which is below average. The biggest payout that players can win on one spin is 10,000x your stake.

Features

The first feature included in this game is the avalanche feature, triggered every time there is a win. When this occurs, the winning symbols are removed from the reels and replaced by a new set. Every win will also introduce another row to the playing board, boosting the number of available pay lines. With all eight rows in play, pay lines jump to 262,144. The avalanche mechanic will continue until a new set of symbols does not trigger a win. The number of rows also resets to the standard set when a new set does not form a win.

Next on the feature list is the big symbols feature. All symbols barring scatters, and ghost box symbols can fall in expanded sizes, ranging from 1x1 to 4x4. These symbols are calculated by the number of spaces they occupy on the board. Big symbols also destroy 1x1 symbols as they fall, making them the same type.

The next feature is called the power stack feature. Now and then, you’ll see special power stack symbols. These count for four normal symbols and will grow by two for every avalanche they are present for but not part of.
The pacific wave feature is next. This bonus concerns the creation of a horizontal stack of the same symbol filling the empty spaces beneath it. However, this set of symbols is removed when part of a win or avalanche.
The ghost box feature concerns the ghost box symbol, which collects all symbols part of a win. Big symbols are then broken into their 1x1 sizes. Collection stops when no extra wins are made. The box then scatters the collected symbols row by row to help find more wins.

Finally, there is the pacific wave free drops feature. This bonus is triggered when players land three or more scatter symbols anywhere in view. The more scatters landed, the more free spins you are awarded. The game then takes you into a multi-level free spins game that adds pay lines every time you get a win or avalanche. This game can be retriggered by landing an additional three or more scatters.

This game also has the classic ELK Studios X-iter option, which allows you to purchase access to features. However, this is not available in the UK.

Conclusion

From a style and playing experience perspective, this game is amazing. The original theme, the great graphics and the awesome features make for a really fun slot. The winning potential, however, isn’t all that. This comes down to the low RTP, the high volatility and the relatively small top win. Bearing this in mind, perhaps this one will be more fun in the demo mode than in real money mode.