What a fantastic Egypt-themed adventure! Cygnus, a 2019 ELK Studios’ title, treats players with a thrilling gaming experience with a concept that dares to look beyond established video slot framework. First, in front of an alluring Egyptian sunset, there will be no classic reels – you get 6 columns each containing 4 symbols. Lucky enough, you will have a chance to play with up to 8 symbols per reel. Then, the reels are not aligned so the symbols can roll down from one reel to another, making additional wins. Ways to win go from 4,096 for 4-rows game up to 262,144 when played on 8 rows. Multipliers of up to 64x can boost your jackpot to amazing 5,000x the bet. Add the Free Drops feature to the package, and you will get one of the most exciting games in years.
Visually, Cygnus video slot presents excellent graphics that vividly depicts the Ancient Egypt pyramid at dusk with the starry sky beneath it. The symbols are nicely incorporated into the theme, whether they are animals that Egyptians adored or regulars 7’s and gems. The players overly accommodated to the typical slot machines can find the reel layout and the gameplay a bit odd. Still, after a couple of minutes, most of them will start enjoying the options and dynamics that this game offers.
The stakes are always 100 coins but depending on the coin value can go from $0.20 up to $100.00. Each win is followed by Avalanche, meaning the winning symbols will be removed, creating an inclination for symbols from above, left and right to roll down and make further wins. This is because the reels are not lined up. Reels 2, 4 and 6 are lifted, allowing symbols to drop down and slide across each other, creating an arcade-game experience. The multiplier symbols can then get into the action, and each of them reaching the bottom will increase the multiplier value up to 64x. When the avalanche cycle is over, new symbols will fall from above creating an additional row of symbols at the top, which results in an increased number of ways to win. A minimum of 3 matching symbols is required to claim a win.
Scatter is also a part of these avalanches, and when one of them reaches reel 1, the Bonus Game will be activated. The Bonus Game comes in the form of 7 Free Drops played at 8-row reels. The Bonus Game always starts with the multiplier set to 1x. An achieved multiplier can never go down during the Free Drops. The multipliers go down, left and right in the avalanche and stay sticky for the remaining Free Drops.
It is also worth mentioning that, like other ELK games, Cygnus video slot features 3 Betting Strategies. This means you can program the autospins according to your gaming style to increase or decrease the stake after wins or losses and so on.
Cygnus is an out-of-the-box game offering much more than most video slots do. An atypical layout, incredible 262,144 ways to win, the Avalanche feature, multipliers and a whopping 5,000x the bet as a maximum payout. The RTP of the game stands at the industry average level of 96.1%.
