Since the first Tumbling Reels/Falling Reels/Cascading Reels online slots appeared, every developer has been falling over themselves to come up with a similar feature.
The idea is simple: instead of winning paylines staying put, the symbols explode from the reels and are replaced by the symbols sitting above. This essentially gives players a 'free' spin, because if they hit another winner the process can keep going...and going...and going.
Playtech's Collapsing Reels is found in a decent range of the developer's best slots, and with the Legacy Of The Wild video slot there's an added progressive meter too. There's no download needed and you can load up the slot in your browser.
If you like your horror-themed slot games, you'll enjoy the atmosphere of Legacy Of The Wild. The background music sounds like it has come straight from a classic horror movie, and the drawn backdrop depicts a sorceror's lab.
The reels are set up in a 4x5 arrangement, with all 40 paylines fixed. Line bets start at just 0.01 but punters can up this to 3.00 for a 120.00 max bet. Players also have the option to add in a Turbo Mode for quicker real cash bets.
Payouts are made depending on which symbols you hit on a payline. Many of the icons appear stacked as well. With a max bet of 120.00, however, you want to be hitting some decent wins. Unfortunately, with the Collapsing Reels feature included, many of the base wins are small.
The low limit win symbols are the amulets. The purple and red amulets pay a top 50x prize for 5OAK, with the green and blue designs paying 75x maximum. The orange circular amulet is the best payer at 125x for 5OAK.
The high limit icons are the main characters of the game: the boy assistant (purple) pays 5x-150x, but the 30x for 4OAK won't even cover your total stake. The sorceress also pays a top 150x for 5OAK. The green ogre doubles that win for 5OAK, as does the evil warlock (300x for 5OAK). The Gandalf-lookalike wizard is the highest payer in this online slot, dishing out 750x for five on a payline. You'll also earn yourself a small consolation 5x-line bet win for hitting just two.
The small payouts can be bumped up using the Collapsing Reels feature. Any winning combination will result in the symbols disappearing and being replaced by the ones sitting above. This can keep going, although typically we found three-in-a-row to be our best result.
Like Playtech's Streak Of Luck online casino slot, Legacy Of The Wild features a progressive meter up the side (here called the Wave-O-Meter). On every consecutive winning spin you hit, the meter will light up, one crystal ball at a time. If you land five consecutive wins you'll trigger free spins. But of course, you can keep hitting more consecutive winners to win even more spins. (In Streak Of Luck, you only need four winners to win 5 free spins.)
Five consecutive wins bags you 8 free spins, while 6 game wins gets you 10 free spins. If you land 10 or more winning spins in a row - and that includes ones achieved using the Collapsing Reels - you'll earn yourself 50 free spins.