ABOUT
From Play'n Go comes a slot that takes place in a blessed forest where instead of apples and oranges you can find diamonds, rubies, sapphires and all types of gems. But the magic of Shimmering Woods extends beyond the lively illustrations to the gameplay as well where every shiny crystal can split into two.
Betting Options and Bonus Features
The stats of Shimmering Woods follow its chill atmosphere with a 7/10 volatility and default RTP of 96.2%. But it doesn't mean you can't win big, though: the max bet being $100 coupled with the 25,000x max win means that it's possible to bring home $2,500,000 in one spin.
Shimmering Woods looks like a very conventional 3x5 slot at first sight until you look up and see a box above the reels. Randomly selected after each spin, the symbol shown on the box will turn all symbols of its kind into splitting symbols which skyrocket the supposed 243 win ways up to 7,776. The split mechanics can apply to wilds as well.
There are quite some layers to the base game as there is also cascading and a win multiplier in play. Each consecutive win triggers the cascade effect and nudges the multiplier counter up one notch. This multiplier resets every spin.
The scatter symbol comes in the form of a purple crystal. Lands 3 of them to go into the free spins round but before it starts, there's a chance that 0-3 scatters split, resulting to 6 scatters at the maximum:
- 3 scatters: 10 free spins + 1 splitting symbol
- 4 scatters: 13 free spins + 2 splitting symbol.
- 5 scatters: 16 free spins + 3 splitting symbol.
- 6 scatters: 19 free spins + 4 splitting symbol.
So depending on the number of scatter symbols, the Shimmer feature of the game will choose 1-4 symbols to be splitting symbols for the entirety of the free spins. You will see the box enlarged to display all symbols, some locked some unlocked. This is because landing 3-6 scatters again will unlock 1-4 extra splitting symbols, so there's a chance that you can have a slot full of split symbols.
Roshtein's Verdict
If I could choose a slot to play while having morning coffee, it would be Shimmering Woods. Everything is just so perfectly cozy here from the heavenly forest background to the colorful gems, a lovely contrast from many other action-heavy slots in my streams.
But of course, the game still has a lot of things to love even for those who seek excitement. The splitting symbol makes the base game really fun and varied. And the free spins feature simply multiplies that unpredictability by ten, if you unlock a lot of splitting symbols that is.
