Io Slot – Free Demo

Symbols that drop instead of spin

Io is a 6-reel, 4-row video slot with 4,096 ways and a 96,00% RTP. Wins pay for matching symbols on adjacent reels, starting from the leftmost reel. It was created by Elk Studios, a studio that's seen a massive surge in fame as of late, and players are permitted to wager between 0.20 and 100. I played 400 drops at 6.00 each from a balance of 5,000.00, which peaked at 5,026.40 on drop 9 and fell as low as 3,509.00.

This play contains a Free Drops mode and Charged Wild, Wild Forge and Laser mechanics. Symbols drop into the grid instead of spinning.

A 7 worth ten times the stake

The slot contains 4 high-paying symbols, royal low-paying symbols, a wild symbol and a bonus symbol. Wilds substitute for all regular symbols. The low-paying symbols are depicted by royals, while the high-payers are depicted by 7s, diamonds, clovers and stars, and the highest high-paying symbol is the 7. It is the most lucrative. It awards 10x for 6 of a kind. For 6 of a kind, the diamond pays 2.4x the stake, the clover 1.2x, the star 0.9x and each of the A, K, Q and J 0.3x.

Rows that pile up to 262,144 ways

The primary game revolves around the Avalanche feature. This comes into effect over the span of successive winning drops, and in other terms, the winning symbols are cleared for each win. The remainder shift down and laterally into the holes and a row is appended, up to 8. Avalanches continue until no new win forms, and a full 8-row grid offers 262,144 ways.

There are three kinds of unique features:

• Charged Wild: When this wild is on the board, it holds 4 lives, sheds one per win and departs when they expire.
• Wild Forge: When this mechanic is on the board, it packs the vacant area below it with a multiplier wild, and the multiplier increases each time the Wild Forge assists a win.
• Laser: This mechanic wipes itself and the regular symbols in the way it aims when it is on the board. Two intersecting rays convert the symbols in their routes into wilds.

Tahiti Gold and Black River Gold, two other Elk Studios titles, run on the same grid that grows from 4 to 8 rows.

Seven free drops on eight rows

The Free Drops feature is activated with 7 starting free drops if 3 bonus symbols appear, and during the free drops, the board is used on the complete 8 rows. Landing 6 bonus symbols raises the award to 15 free drops. During the feature, Charged Wilds and Wild Forges remain at the foot of the board between drops. I triggered the feature twice in 400 drops, on drop 277 and again 103 drops later on drop 380.

And what's even nicer - 3 bonus symbols during the feature grant 7 additional free drops. Neither of my two rounds retriggered, and together they paid 312.00, a third of everything I won.

Minty’s Expert Conclusion: However, the payout is not simple to get to. Over 400 drops I wagered 2,400.00 and won back 943.80, a session return of 39.3%. The best I achieved during my testing session was 7 free drops on 8 rows returning 36x the stake. That round on drop 277 paid 216.00 and took the balance from 3,727.40 to 3,937.40, while the second, on drop 380, paid 96.00, or 16x the stake.

Twenty-four dry drops before drop 72

Avalanche merely comes in to effect on winning drops, with the board expanding with every following avalanche. My longest run without a win lasted 24 drops, ending on drop 72, and only 76 of the 400 drops paid anything. I suppose you could state this mechanic brings some additional volatility to the game - miss, miss, miss, miss, miss, miss...boom!