Cluster Kingdom Slot Review
If you happen to be a fan of Tarasque by Print Studios, you’re going to love ELK Studios‘ newest creation titled Cluster Kingdom, which has a very similar look and feel to it as Tarasque from Print Studios. Granted, Tarasque is based on the French mythology character and Cluster Kingdom gives off more of an English royalty vibe. However, both games take a rather unassuming role when it comes to their respective graphics, which is partly what makes them seem quite similar.
Appearances aside though, Cluster Kingdom has admittedly more in common with some of ELK’s other titles, such as Ashoka Eternal, Buggin, Cluster Slide, and Squeeze. That’s because all of these games (Cluster Kingdom included) are cluster pays slots.
Boasting a generous maximum payout of up to 10,000x bet, Cluster Kingdom is a high volatility slot game that offers a 94.00% RTP.
Base Game & Features
The slot grid for Cluster Kingdom features 5-reels with 5-rows each, making it a true 5×5 grid slot game. And as noted above, this is a cluster pays slot, which is quite different from traditional fixed payline slots.
With cluster pays, in order to produce a winning combination, you simply need to match 5 or more of the same symbols in a cluster on the reels. This can happen anywhere on the reel grid as opposed to needing to start from the leftmost reel like a lot of traditional slot games.
Cluster Kingdom features 5 paying symbols, which award prizes of as little as 0.10x bet for matching 5 of the lowest paying symbols and as much as 250x bet for matching 20 or more of the highest paying symbols.
Dropping Symbols
As is the case with most (perhaps all) cluster pays slots, Cluster Kingdom features dropping symbols. Also known as cascading or tumbling symbols, whenever any winning combinations occur, the winning symbols are removed from the grid and are replaced with new symbols. This feature gives you an opportunity to generate multiple winning combinations on a single spin.
Sticky Redrops
With this game’s sticky redrops feature, you’ll be awarded one additional redrop for every redrop that occurs with at least one new matching symbol. This process continues until there are no new matching symbols, at which point you’ll be awarded any and all applicable payouts.
Wild Symbols
Cluster Kingdom features a regular wild symbol, represented by a jester, which substitutes for all paying symbols. Cluster Kingdom also features a multiplier wild symbol, which multiplies all cluster winnings by the multiplier value displayed on the symbol.
Feature Symbols
The following feature symbols are available while playing Cluster Kingdom:
- King – Upgrades one payout symbol type to a higher paying symbol type.
- Princess – Places 1-4 wild symbols randomly on the reels.
- Queen – Rearranges symbols both horizontally and vertically adjacent to the queen symbol.
Bonus Game
In order to trigger the bonus round on Cluster Kingdom, you must line up the king and queen symbols either horizontally or vertically. Once you’ve done this, you’ll be awarded 6 free drops. During the free drops, the queen symbol moves one position towards the king symbol after each win.
Mini Bonus Game
Similar to the regular bonus game, Cluster Kingdom also features a mini bonus game. When this bonus feature is activated, a total of 3 free drops are awarded with a guaranteed increasing persistent multiplier wild symbol.
Super Bonus Game
In addition to the regular bonus game and mini bonus game, Cluster Kingdom also offers a super bonus game. The super bonus game is very similar to the mini bonus game in that you’re guaranteed to land an increasing persistent multiplier wild symbol during this feature. The only real difference between the super bonus game and the mini bonus game is that the super bonus game awards 6 free drops instead of the 3 free drops that are awarded in the mini bonus game.
X-iter Bonus Buy
If you’d like to speed things up a bit with regards to triggering the bonus features on Cluster Kingdom, you’ll be happy to know that this game is equipped with Elk’s X-iter bonus buy options. In total, there are 5 different bonus buys available, which are as follows:
- Bonus Hunt – For a cost of 3x bet, you’ll be awarded one drop with more than triple the chance to trigger the bonus game.
Sticky Redrops – For a cost of 10x bet, you’ll be awarded one drop with a guaranteed sticky redrop. - Mini Bonus – For a cost of 50x bet, you’ll be awarded 3 free drops with a guaranteed increasing persistent multiplier wild.
Bonus – For a cost of 100x bet, you’ll be awarded the bonus game with 6 free drops. - Super Bonus – For a cost of 500x bet, you’ll be awarded 6 free drops with a guaranteed increasing persistent multiplier wild.
As is always the case, even while utilizing any of these bonus buy options, this game’s maximum payout of 10,000x bet still applies.
Conclusion
Having played Cluster Kingdom a time or two now, it’s safe to say that this game may not have the same widespread appeal as some other titles from Elk Studios, but there’s definitely a segment of players who will appreciate what this game has to offer.
The biggest takeaway we can give you about Cluster Kingdom is that there’s a lot more to this game than what it seems like initially. The graphics are a bit underwhelming (intentionally though of course), but this cluster pays slot still has plenty of great features to go along with its engaging bonus round.
It’s rated highly volatile with an RTP of 94%, which in our view is a little on the low side. What players will appreciate, however, is its 10,000x maximum payout.
For Elk Studios, Cluster Kingdom is a bit of a departure from some of the other hit games that they’ve created over the years, but it’s definitely worth having a spin or two on in order to see if it’s the right game for you.
