Alchemy can be traced back to Hellenistic Egypt around the 1st century AD. The practice involved a mixture of chemistry, philosophy, and mysticism. Practitioners aimed to transform base metals into gold, create the elixir of life, and discover the philosopher’s stone, believed to grant immortality. While mostly a load of bollocks, the practice did give birth to modern chemistry, so there’s that.

While alchemy is reserved for swindlers and the insane in our reality, in the realm of fantasy, it makes for some fantastic fun. Fantasma appears to agree with me if its new release Shadow Summoner Elementals slot is any indication.

Can you feel the magic?

Standard paylines were the first payout mechanic ever introduced to slot games. Payout mechanics have evolved to include ways to win, and cluster pays. Shadow Summoner Elementals slot, however, uses something different. Fantasma simply refers to the slot’s payout mechanic as “pays anywhere.” In practice, this means that a win is paid out when eight or more of the same symbols appear anywhere on the slot’s six reels. Winning symbols don’t need to be connected in any way like they would need to for cluster pays. 

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Fantasma pairs this unique payout mechanic with the avalanche feature, which is just the slot provider’s name for cascading reels. This feature removes symbols involved in winning combinations and allows new symbols to fall into the empty spots, giving you a chance to hit multiple winning combinations on a single spin.

When it comes to bonus features, the most prominent is the one shown as a meter to the right of the reels with a book at the top. The meter will slowly be filled with each winning combination you manage. Once filled, symbols unlocking the bonus feature corresponding to the color of the book at the top of the meter will begin to appear on the reels.

• Level 1 (Blue): Up to four symbols on the reels will be transformed into wild symbols. 
• Level 2 (Green): An explosion is activated, and all symbols in the blast radius are transformed into the same symbol. 
• Level 3 (Yellow): On a non-winning spin, up to 12 random regular symbols will be removed and replaced with new symbols. Additionally, a multiplier symbol will be added to the reels. 
• Level 4 (Red): One to four low-paying symbols are selected, and all instances of those symbols that appear on the reels are transformed into their corresponding high-paying symbols.

The slot’s round of free spins is triggered by four or more bonus symbols. However, the bonus symbols will not appear on the reels until you reach Level 4 (completely fill the wins meter four times). If that’s too big of a commitment, you can also purchase a round of free spins.

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During a round of the free spins bonus feature, you will initially be awarded four free spins. All four bonus symbols may appear on the reels during free spins. As a result, the wins meter will be replaced by a free spins meter. If you manage to fill it to the top, you will receive four additional spins.

Is Shadow Summoner Elementals slot sensational or silly?

Shadow Summoner Elementals slot offers the chance of winning up to $112,200. However, to play for those big amounts, you will need to be betting at $20 a spin. If you’re going to be betting at the $0.10 a spin minimum, you can expect to win up to $561 thanks to the 5,610x max multiplier. The slot does, however, offer medium volatility, which gives the gameplay a nice balance between small, consistent wins and the rarer big wins. The slot features an RTP of 96.31%.

There is a ton to love about this slot. The graphics and animation are sensational, particularly those concerning the slot’s main character. I’m not sure if I agree with the choice of music, though. Instead of the battle-ready intense music, I think an ethereal soundtrack may have been the better choice. That’s a very small gripe, though. The slot’s bonus features are plentiful and well-themed. I also do like how you have to unlock the bonus features one at a time. It gives the slot a gamified feel that slot providers are generally weary of implementing into slots. It is a little frustrating that you need to make it to level 4 to even get a shot at triggering a round of the slot’s free spins, but it makes the triggering worth the wait. All in all, a great slot that doesn’t put a foot wrong. I give this one a ten out of ten.

If you’re looking for a few other interesting slots from Fantasma, try out Hades: River of Souls and Wins Of Mermaid: Multi Power.