Valhall Gold

Review Valhall Gold

For Kiwis remembering Ecuador Gold, this was the first time Kane made it to the screen in the Gold-series by ELK. Since his very first trip he has travelled through the world, coming across all the continents and cultures one could imagine. Although it’s Kane stealing the show in each pokie game, each part has its own look and feel, as one would expect from different countries and destinations. In Valhall Gold, the player is taken to the snowy landscape of Scandinavia so you’d better prepare yourself for ice cold temperatures. If you’ve got your coat and scarf ready, then make sure to read more about the details of Valhall Gold.

How to Play

The best online casinos in NZ work with the games by ELK Studios which is why you should find this pokie in many casino lobbies. If it’s the first time you’re playing a Gold-game in the series, here is how to play Valhall Gold:

• Valhall Gold is played on a grid with 6 reels and 4 rows. The ways to win can grow up from 4,096 to 531,441 per game round which is rather impressive.
• Winning combinations are made with 3-6 identical icons. This is done starting from the leftmost column, appearing consecutively.
• Playing this game is very straightforward. Set a bet between $0.20 and $100, and then spin the reels. This is done via the regular Spin or alternatively via the Autoplay button if you have a preference to do it automatically.
• As in other games, the Menu icon is meant for the paytable, rules, and the settings.

Symbol Wins

The symbols are presented in ancient Scandinavian style which means there is room for blocks in different colours, representing the low value symbols. The payouts are 0.1x to 0.3x the total stake for 3+ of each symbol. Then we’ve got a few celtic-symbols that fall into the mid range with combos of 3+ paying out between 0.15x and 1x the current stake. The most valuable symbols in Valhall Gold are the Owl, Horse, Wolf, and Viking. With again 3 to 6-of-a-kind you can get yourself ready for payouts of 2x, 2.5x, 3x, and 10x the stake. The wil symbol substitutes for any regular symbol and is meant to give you a hand and complete winning combinations. There are also symbols that are part of the bonus features which is why you’ll come across Thor Wild, Odin’s Ravens, Spike Symbols, and the Bonus icon. Here is a detailed explanation of the different symbols in Valhall Gold:

Bonus Features

There are HEAPS of features in the Valhall Gold pokie which won’t come as a real surprise as this was the case in other instalments of the series as well. Get ready for Free Drops and Multipliers and symbol upgrades as well as Trickster Loki and the typical X-liter feature. Below, we’ll explain more about the different features in Valhall Gold.

Avalanche Feature

The avalanche feature is characterised by removing winning symbols, allowing new symbols to fall down and fill up the empty spaces. During the Avalanche, an extra row of symbols is added up to a max of 9 rows. This increases the number of ways to win, up to a total of 531,441.

Big Symbols Feature

The Big Symbols feature pretty much does what its name indicates. The Super, Mega and Epic symbols will grow in size leading to sizes 2×2, 3×3 and 4×4 in size and can drop down in any symbol drop. This essentially increases your chance of landing a bigger win.

Odin’s Ravens

The Odin’s Ravens symbols are blocker symbols. With 2+ landing on the reels, they become Wild and will consequently pay as a regular wild symbol.

Almighty Thor Wild

The Almighty Thor Wild is a wild symbol, 2×2. It will remain sticky during a single drop.

Trickster Loki

This is also a blocker symbol, 2×2 in size. It can activate on any win, activating 1 of the following 4 features:

• Multiplier: All Wins during a win are multiplied by the value as shown.
• Spike Storm: Turns a random number of symbols into spike symbols.
• Both Ways: Evaluates wins, both left and right.
• Axe Fury: Upgrades a random number of symbols to the same symbol.

Spike Symbols

A Spike symbol can land anywhere around a paying symbol. Any Spike symbol part of a win will replicate itself. This happens in the direction of the spike. Wins with spike symbols are able to occur multiple times resulting in additional evaluations.

Free Drops Bonus Game

Landing 3+ bonus symbols in the base game will activate the Free Drops Bonus Game. When this happens, you’ll start with 10 free drops, but here’s how many you could get initially depending on how many Bonus symbols land in the base game:

• 3 Bonus Symbols: awards 10 Free Drops.
• 4 Bonus Symbols: awards 15 Free Drops.
• 5 Bonus Symbols: awards 20 Free Drops.
• 6 Bonus Symbols: awards 25 Free Drops.

The Safety Level and Loki’s Inventory will come into play during this minigame. A win with the Trickster Loki help during the Free Drops will trigger Loki’s Inventory, whilst the next win with the same modifier saves the respective feature. It also remains sticky during the minigame and is triggered on every Free Drop. Loki Multipliers are able to accumulate and are not capped whilst doing so. Safety Level shows the number of rows and win ways that each consecutive Free Drop will start from. The minigame starts with 5 rows and 15,625 paylines. Every round that ends with 1+ win will move the Safety Level with one row above up to level 8.

X-iter Valhall Gold (Bonus Buy)

Like the rest of the series, the Valhall Gold by ELK Studios also comes with its well-known X-iter feature. This is basically ELK Studio’s bonus buy feature. Here are the 5 options:

• Bonus Hunt: 2x.
  • More than double the chance for Free Drop activation.
• Big Block: 5x.
  • Get least one big symbol during the drop.
• Trickster Loki: 25x.
  • Trickster Loki feature on the next spin.
• Bonus Buy: 100x.
  • Get +10 Free Drops.
• Super Bonus: 500x.
  • Loki’s Inventory becomes active from the Free Drops start.

Payout Metrics

As you might know from the other games in the series, the RTP in Valhall Gold is set at 94%, which is low. The upside about it is that it’s the only RTP so you won’t have to worry about other RTP levels. When it comes to the variance of the game, it falls into the high range (8/10) so this is definitely something to bear in mind. The hit rate of the Valhall Gold pokie is 21%, which basically means that a fifth of all spins will lead to a winning combination — on average that is. The top win is 25,000x the stake which is one of the stats New Zealanders will be most pleased with. The payout metrics of Valhall Gold are sweet as.

Summary

First things first, let’s talk about the RTP of 94%. This isn’t a lot and might be a reason for some Kiwis to click away, but still, everything else in this game is impressive. Those familiar with ELK Studios will have seen this RTP level in other games but it might be a shock to players but we want to stress that it shouldn’t be a deal breaker considering the rest on offer. The gameplay and the many bonus features make it an outstanding game and this might be the last title in the series, so they’ve really put an effort into this new online pokie. Not only the bonus features are interesting though as the base game has a lot going on too. You’ll make it to one of the bonus features fairly quickly and if you want to buy direct access you can make use of one of the five different options there.

Though not as good as Avalon Gold, this is still another game that sets ELK Studios aside from other providers. ELK is now amongst the game studios that has a highly successful series and gives their fans yet another reason to look forward to their releases. The audio fits the game and makes you feel part of ancient Scandnavia whilst the top wins of 25,000x the stake are impressive too. All together, Kane’s journey really pays off. Make sure to try out the free demo in New Zealand to prepare yourself for real money spins.