Tome of Madness Slot Review

Slot Description

Tome of Madness plays out on a 5x5 transparent grid panel. There are no paylines involved since the game uses the cluster pays mechanics to dish out wins. The expedition requires wagers between 0.10 to 100 coins per spin, and in return, players can bag the highest game prize of 2,000x the stake.

But since the malignant Cthulhu can pull out any trick against you, the game runs on high volatility. High variance slots pay less frequently but provide better chances of bagging big wins. A positive gleam of light comes from Tome of Madness RTP of 96.59%, which is pretty great considering the industry average is 96%.

Play’n Go has done a decent job of conjuring an unfathomable world of Cthulhu Mythos. The bizarre horror elements are on point, and the game looks promising. Stat-wise, things look impressive as well. The only hitch we have from it is the slot’s max win potential, especially considering how volatile the game is. Since hitting the max prize is always an extreme rarity, let’s find out how strong the slot is from all aspects, including its capacity to rake in payouts.

Theme, Design, and Sound

Tome of Madness opens inside an abandoned ancient-looking temple with no sights of lamps to illuminate the place. Even though moonlight and peals of thunder ensure everything is visible, the slot’s color tone and mood remain dark. After all, what else can we expect from a horror-themed slot? Our protagonist, Mr. Wilde, stands next to the reels with a book or tome in his hand, which perhaps contains the source of riches.

Play’n Go is known for providing visually stunning slots, and this one didn’t disappoint either. We especially liked the smoke effect behind the reels. The BGM is also on point and helps elevate the game’s eerie vibes. Thumping beats matched with guitar cater not only to the slot’s menacing setting but also add to the high-octane spin anticipation. And the intro quote from H.P. Lovecraft is also worth the mention. Although there is a skip button if you have gotten used to the echoing speaker.

Symbols and Payouts

Hitting a cluster of at least 4 matching symbols anywhere on the reels qualifies you for payouts. You get 8 paying symbols in total divided into low and high categories. Four gems in different colors constitute symbols with low payout values as they offer 3x to 9x the stake for hitting a +10 cluster. Among premium symbols are assets of Cthulhu, including a gem-studded skull, ring, knife, and locket. Keep an eye on the Cthulhu locket: it’s the highest-paying game symbol, offering up to 150x the stake. Meanwhile, the three other high-paying symbols offer 45x to 90x the stake.

To help you reach closer to the slot’s top prize of 2,000x the stake, 3 different kinds of wilds might come to aid you. They are explained in detail in the features section.

Features and Bonuses

While there’s nothing new in Tome of Madness that we haven’t already seen from Play’n Go, it’s good to have an extended list of features to keep the gameplay engaging.

Cascading Effect

When a cluster win hits, winning symbols are removed from the reels, creating space for more new symbols to fill up the vacant positions. Consequently, players get the chance to get multiple wins from the same spin.

Wilds

Now, coming to the wilds, you will find three of them in the game:

• Book of Madness Wild is a regular wild symbol substituting for other pay symbols.

• Rich Wilde Wild offers a 2x multiplier to double all your wins. The wild must be part of the winning combination for the multiplier to apply.

• Mega Wild symbol appears exclusively during the bonus rounds. The symbol moves down after each spin to create bigger winning opportunities.

Eye Marks

Landing a win on the marked positions on the reels called Eye Marks opens those eyes. Once opened, the eyes provide 2 special wilds when no new wins are created. Triggering the Eye Marks during the Other World Free Round brings the Mega Wild symbol on screen.

Portal Meter

You’ll find the Portal Meter hanging on the left side of the reels. Winning symbols start filling the meter, and once you reach a certain level, the corresponding benefits unlock:

• You get 2 special wild symbols for collecting 7 winning symbols in the portal meter.

• 2 special wilds are awarded when the meter fills with 14 symbols. Also, if you land a win via any of the special wild symbols, it triggers the Abyss Portal Effect feature.

• 2 special wilds are awarded when the meter fills with 27 symbols. Also, if you land a win via any of the special wild symbols, it triggers the Void Portal Effect feature.

• Lastly, fully filling the meter by hitting 42 symbols activates the Other World Free Round feature.

Portal Effects

If the Abyss Portal Effect gets triggered, it removes a column or row containing the special wild symbol, charges the meter with the removed symbols, and adds new symbols to the empty positions. On the other hand, if the Void Portal Effect gets triggered, all instances of a randomly picked symbol get removed from the reels, and new symbols fill up the vacant positions.

Other World Portal Effect

Filling up all 42 positions on the Portal Meter triggers the Other World Portal Effect. The feature initially offers 3 randomly chosen portal effects. Moreover, over-charging the Portal Meter provides additional portal effects for each set of 3 extra symbols accumulated. However, you cannot trigger more than 7 portal effects at once. These portal effects come to action only on a non-winning spin and provide the following benefits:

• 4 special wilds

• 4 special wilds, along with a chance to unlock the Abyss Portal Effect if a winning cluster hits with one of the special wilds

• 4 special wilds, along with a chance to unlock the Void Portal Effect if a winning cluster hits with one of the special wilds

Furthermore, you will find 11 or 12 Eye Marks during the bonus feature. Once you activate all these positions by landing wins on all the Eye Mark positions, a Mega Wild symbol appears on the reels. With each spin, the Mega Wild symbol nudges down one position until it gets removed from the reels.

About the Game Provider

Established in 2005, Play'n Go has earned widespread acclaim as a leading force in the igaming industry. Originating in Sweden, the company traces its roots back to the mid-90s. Through years of unwavering dedication and effort, the burgeoning success of Play'n Go is acknowledged by everyone.

Play’n Go is renowned for pioneering the concept of mobile slot gaming, allowing enthusiasts to enjoy their favorite slot games on portable devices. Among Play'n Go's many triumphs, Book of Dead stands out as one of the most enduringly popular titles, retaining its allure even today. But the game provider has a ton of other quality slots in their stash, like Reactoonz, Rise of Olympus, Tome of Madness, and more. You can easily find these popular Play'n Go slots in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto casinos.

Final Verdict

Tomb of Madness carries a lot of potential, even for a 2019 slot. Whether you look at the game’s art or mechanics, it goes to show how much effort Play’n Go has put into it. Through our multiple playing sessions, we didn’t find the gameplay going stale after a few initial spins, which is quite the case for many slots. But once we get past the gameplay aspect, there are a few key areas where the slot fails to hit the mark.

First and foremost, keeping a max winning size of 2,000x the stake didn’t make any sense to us. High rollers generally pick the game that carries the anticipation of giving out something big. But with Tome of Madness, it feels like the risk levels are designed for high rollers, whereas the payouts would mostly satisfy players with moderate risk appetites. The best we could reap from the slot was 241x the stake.

Also, the portal meter is pretty common in Play’n Go cannon, whether you call it Rush Meter in Honey Rush or Quantum Leap meter in Reactoonz. Moreover, the Mega Wild symbol is reminiscent of the Gargantuan wild found in Reactoonz. While absolute innovation in each game is too much to ask, a bigger prize could have eased things with the borrowed mechanics.

But be that as it may, the biggest strength of Tome of Madness rests with its brand infusion that seamlessly blends the character of Rich Wilde with the popular Lovecraftian imagery. Even the features are highly enjoyable, and if you can make peace with the top prize, Tome of Madness might pull the right strings for you.

Slot Ratings

• Gameplay and Mechanics - 8/10

• Graphics and Sounds - 8.5/10

• Themes and Concept - 8.5/10

• Bonus Features - 7.5/10

• RTP and Volatility - 8/10

• Slot Provider Reputation - 9/10