Introduction
Like the grand old Duke of York and his 10,000 men, developer ReelPlay has trundled out its favorite 5-digit number for the online slot 10,000 Wonders Multimax, a descendant of 10,000 Wonders 10K Ways. In a plot twist, however, this game makes a departure from the 10K Ways set-up and adopts characteristics associated with partner studio Yggdrasil Gaming’s Multimax mechanic, as seen in the likes of MultiFly!. Developing the twist even further, 10,000 Wonders Multimax features a hold ‘n win bonus round rather than free spins, connecting cc6 prize symbols to individual reel multipliers instead.
Thematic Setting
As we’re stepping into a One Thousand and One Nights kind of situation, 10,000 Wonders Multimax splits its time between two thematically related background scenarios. The base game finds itself in a domed cityscape, a classic slot depiction of urban Arabia, while the bonus round occurs in a treasure-strewn Aladdin’s cave replete with a golden lamp. Clichéd, sure, but the visuals should cater quite well for gamblers in the mood for a fantasy Middle Eastern-inspired game world.
Game Layout and Mechanics
10,000 Wonders Multimax shrinks the active area of the previous slot down to a 5×3 grid space where there are 243 ways to win. Winning combinations pay left to right from the leftmost reel, and the symbols involved in them are removed and replaced by a cascading wins feature. The volatility has been tuned up to ‘super high’, and of the several RTP models available, 96% is the default. Bet levels aren’t vast, likely as a reflection of the high max multiplier, going from 20 cents up to $/€7 per spin.
Symbol Details
In the base game, special symbols and regular pay symbols land side by side, while the bonus round is a special symbol-only event. The regular pays consist of 9-A card royal lows, awarding 0.6 to 1.5 times the bet for a 5-of-a-kind winning combination. Up from them is a bird and three character symbols, paying 2 to 4 times the bet for 5 OAK. Temple symbols have two jobs. One is to substitute for any regular cc6 paying symbol, the other is to increase the reel multipliers. Temples do not pay as standalone symbols.
Multimax Feature
Anyone who’s played a Multimax slot will be aware that each reel gets its own growable multiplier. 10,000 Wonders Multimax does this, but it also mixes reel multipliers with a hold ‘n win bonus respins round. Each reel has its own Multimax Multiplier. At the start of each game round, all multipliers are set to x1. When a Temple symbol appears on the grid, the multiplier above the reel it landed on increases by +1. Before symbols drop following a winning cascade, a Temple symbol is added to a random empty position. The total multiplier for use in a winning combination is the product of all multipliers above reels containing winning symbols. The win for the combination is multiplied by the total multiplier.
Bonus Respins Round
The bonus respins round is triggered by landing at least 6 Lamp symbols. Once triggered, 3 respins are awarded, and Lamp symbols are held. When new Lamp symbols hit, they are held and respins are reset to 3. If a Temple symbol lands, it increases the multiplier on its reel by +1. The round completes when no more respins remain or all possible positions are filled by Lamp symbols. When complete, each Lamp symbol awards a prize or a bonus prize. Possible bonus prizes are the 10x Red Diamond, 50x Pink Diamond, 250x Green Diamond, or the 2,000x Blue Diamond, while the non-bonus prizes range from 1 to 100 times the bet. The prize or bonus prize per Lamp is multiplied by the cc6 Multimax Multiplier of the reel it landed on. Lastly, if all reel positions are filled with Lamp symbols, players are awarded a 10,000x the bet 10K Bonus.
Feature Buy Option
Players may choose to buy the Bonus Respins feature, where a spin is played that results in 6 Lamp symbols. The choices are 50x the bet for Bonus Respins with 0-3 multiplier upgrades (RTP 96.7%), 75x the bet for Bonus Respins with 3-6 multiplier upgrades (RTP 96.8%), or 100x the bet for Bonus Respins with 6-10 multiplier upgrades (RTP 96.9%). Each upgrade adds 1 to the multiplier for a random reel.
Conclusion
From memory, this is the first time Multimax has gotten jiggy with a hold ‘n win, streak respin, style bonus round. One interesting result of this is that because ReelPlay has shrunk the grid and ways to win down, the 10,000 from the title no longer links to the number of ways to win but to the 10K bonus prize instead. To activate that Aladdin’s cave of loot requires filling the grid with Lamp symbols, and since the grid has shrunk to a 5×3 number, it doesn’t seem like a monumental challenge – in theory. In practice, well, good luck if you cc6 decide to take up the 10,000 Wonders Multimax chase.
