Empress of the Shadows

Empress of the Shadows: Slot Overview

Hope you're feeling brave, players, because we are about to enter 'a realm where darkness reigns supreme and uncover the secrets of the underworld.' We can thank Hacksaw Gaming partner studio Bullshark Games for the opportunity to do so in its online slot Empress of the Shadows. The name of the game implies mystery, which is apt because mystery symbols play a huge part in the game's enjoyment, revealing, amongst other things, multipliers and cash prizes, which can be combined.

Perhaps Bullshark Games had been listening to old-school heavy metal music at the time Empress of the Shadows was gestating, as it has a similar look and feel to it. A not unattractive empress sits on her throne, protected by red-eyed wolves in a high arched ceiling room, bathed in eerie crimson light. So, is she a vampire, a witch, something lycanthropic, or something else? Feel free to fill in the blanks from whatever dark, shadowy fantasy you may have, which should be helped along by quality artwork and a heavy gothic atmosphere.

20 paylines are entwined in Empress of the Shadows' 5x5 gaming matrix, where winning combinations of 3 to 5-of-a-kind is possible, feeding into a 28.53% hit frequency. Dwelling even deeper in the shadows is Empress of the Shadows' game engine, which is medium volatile (3/5), and while two RTP models are available, the highest is 96.31%. Bets of 10 c to $/€100 may be placed on individual spins, or four feature buys might be more tempting for bonus buy-minded players.

Heavy metal-designed 10-A royals start the paytable, all paying 2 times the stake when a 5 OAK line hits. Next is a book, a knife, a ring, a cup, and a crown, awarding 5 to 25 times the bet for a 5 matching high pay win. Wild symbols land on all reels and are able to replace any paying symbol. Wilds pay 25x for a 5 OAK line.

Empress of the Shadows: Slot Features

Empress of the Shadows is indeed a mysterious game, full of mystery symbols, multipliers on mystery symbols, Dark Fortune free spins, and bonus buys.

Mystery Symbols

On each spin, 1 to 10 mystery symbols may land. In the base game, mystery symbols may reveal any regular pay symbol (all revealed pay symbols will be the same), wilds, or the Cash Prize feature. For the Cash Prize feature, all mystery symbols reveal a value of 1x to 100x the bet, which is added to the spin's total win. When at least 3 mystery symbols land on the same spin, a respin is awarded. For the respin, mystery symbols move to a new position. If new mystery symbols land, an additional respin is awarded.

Multipliers on Mystery Symbols

When a new mystery symbol lands on top of an existing mystery symbol, a random multiplier of x2 to x100 is applied to it. If the mystery symbol already had a multiplier, the new multiplier is added to the original. Multipliers on mystery symbols are progressive during respins. When a win forms, any multipliers involved in the win are added together to form a total multiplier, which is applied to all wins from that spin. At the start of each new spin, the total win multiplier is reset. During the Cash Prize feature, multipliers on mystery symbols apply to the cash prize values of those same mystery symbols.

Dark Fortune Spins

Getting 3, 4, or 5 scatter symbols on a base game spin awards 8, 10, or 12 free spins. Landing 5 scatters trigger Extreme Dark Fortune Spins, where at least 3 mystery symbols land on the first spin.

During free spins, all mystery symbols remain on the grid, able to move positions till the round is complete. Respins do not occur when landing 3 or more mystery symbols, however. Multipliers on mystery symbols progress till the round ends, and landing a scatter symbol awards +1 extra free spin.

Bonus Buys

Four options are available at Empress of the Shadows' bonus buy: BonusHunt FeatureSpins - 3x the bet, each spin is 5 times more likely to trigger free spins, Dark Dame FeatureSpins - 30x the bet, each spin guarantees at least 3 mystery symbols, Dark Fortune Spins - 100x the bet to trigger 8 or 10 free spins, and Extreme Dark Fortune Spins - 200x the bet to trigger 12 free spins with at least 3 mystery symbols on the first spin.

Empress of the Shadows: Slot Verdict

After a couple of comedically minded slots, Holy Heist and Pickle Bandits, Bullshark Games turns its attention to more serious subject matter and has come up with Empress of the Shadows. Well, Jawsome Pirates is wedged in between them, as well, but Empress of the Shadows is the more serious slot, attitude-wise. No complaints with the theme treatment either. Bullshark Games has done an excellent job of setting up a dark, mysterious world populated by dark, mysterious beings to lead willing players like a sinister Pied Piper and see if all that mystery will lead to profit or ruin.

All the talk of mystery symbols in the paytable did create hype for seeing how Empress of the Shadows would utilise them in practice. The Coin Prize feature played a key role in the allure, so it was a teeny bit disappointing, to begin with, when mystery symbols were landing about the place, revealing less interesting loads of pay symbols and wilds. However, the disappointment did not last long, as the multiplier element began to appear alongside Cash Prizes, and yes, this could be quite exciting. In fact, Empress of the Shadows' features, in general, have been well thought out, link together nicely, and can be effective when they're snowballing out of control.

One piece of evidence for their effectiveness is that the maximum winning potential of 12,000x is achievable in free spins as well as the base game, all game modes, actually. That's a nice way to wrap up what was an enjoyable romp on the darker side of Bullshark Games' slot library and a fine example of the studio's world-building skills while incorporating multipliers and cash symbol features.