In April of 2023, Area Vegas Games debuted Area Link Phoenix, a video slot game powered by Microgaming and created by Area Vegas Games.
As the name indicates, this slot machine is based on the mythical Phoenix bird, and it allows players to spin the reels while immersed in flames for the chance to win up to 5,000 times their wager.
Modeling a Slot
The gameboard for Area Link Phoenix is a basic 53, with 20 fixed paylines over 5 reels and 3 rows.
This slot has a return to player percentage of 96.45% with a medium volatility.
This slot is great for a huge variety of players since the betting range is so large, from a minimum of 0.20 dollars to a maximum of 50.00 dollars.
The bet menu is flawless; it should be the standard structure for all developers due to its simplicity, speed, and small footprint.
There is also a win/loss limitation and an Autoplay menu with a Quick Spin option hidden somewhere within.
A well-designed, straightforward menu was used once again.
Sounds and music are combined into a single section since there are no other options in this slot other than the speaker symbol, which mutes the sound.
The gameboard and symbols are well designed; they are lively and flaming, just like the Phoenix they represent.
Options for Slot Machines
Every time a fireball appears anywhere on the board, you have a chance to activate the Area LinkTM function. The upgrade(s) you receive is/are determined by the hue of the fireball and the egg that activates the feature. You’ll get three respins to start, and if you land another symbol, you’ll get another three. Jackpots and monetary rewards are awarded by the flaming orbs. The Grand Jackpot is won if all slots are filled. After 3 re-spins, if no new symbols have shown, or if all positions are full, the feature will finish. The larger an egg is, the more likely it is to hatch with this special ability.
In this snapshot, all three eggs have grown to be roughly three times their normal size, ready to initiate their respective upgrades.
If the Orange Phoenix Upgrade is activated, the player will receive a multiplier of either 2x, 3x, or 5x on their current spin. Prizes can drop after the multiplier is locked, and they’ll be increased by the locked amount.
This function is typically the slowest since locking the multiplier takes a few additional seconds. This one appears to be the most hit or miss because to the unpredictability of the multiplier and the landing rewards.
If the Magenta Phoenix Upgrade is activated, then a second array will be used to kick off the feature.
The three dots with flames in between the arrays represent a respin counter. We didn’t see them at first, and we didn’t notice them at all until the very end. Perhaps a counter of some sort would have been more obvious. The average payoff was almost 55 times the investment.
If this upgrade is used, a red fireball may appear to immediately capture the landed prize, and a fresh award will appear in its place. When a fireball appears, all outstanding awards are immediately claimed.
Your final reward is calculated when this feature has concluded and all prizes have been collected. During this bonus round, we hit the fireball three times, resulting in a 45x payout.
Combination Upgrades: Several eggs can activate the Area Link function, which is where the characteristics combine to make it so lucrative.
When this happens, a unique animation plays, and the phoenix flies down from the top left, over the board’s center, and into the feature proper.
With these three conditions met, this is the most lucrative event trigger that may occur. We hit the jackpot, had it doubled, and had it collected again in quick succession.
The total payoff was almost 143x, and it might have been even greater if we hadn’t lost the rolls on array 2 after three consecutive spins with no hits.
Verdict
We had a lot of fun playing Area Link Phoenix.
The slot is exciting despite its lack of features because of the multiple ways in which the same feature may be played.
The immediate collect in the red upgrade was our favorite part, as it allowed us to collect all of our rewards several times and once more at the end of the bonus round.
If there is a jackpot coin, the prize is paid out many times as well.
In sum, Area Vegas Games has produced yet another excellent slot machine, raising the bar for every other developer in the industry.
Yukon Gold Casino, a top-tier Microgaming establishment, offers this slot machine.