Fate of Fortune

Theme and Design

A Mash-Up Of Celtic Mysticism, Druidism, Fate and Fortune!

Fate of Fortune appears to draw on a few different thematic strands, taking in fate and fortune of course, but layering that up with a dose of Celtic mysticism too judging by the emerald greens that appear in places on the paytable and the fast-paced string led / choral soundtrack.  There might even be a nod to Druid religion here with the strange stone carvings that appear next to the reels.

It all takes place against the backdrop of an evergreen forest, bathed in an ethereal blue light. This slightly crazy-paving way of building a theme is very ELK Studios but it does seem to work and sound and vision create a real sense of drama that befits a high risk game like this one.

RTP and Variance

Fate of Fortune has one RTP setting of 95%. Whilst this is below the average of around 96%, it’s not uncommon for ELK Studios slots. So you either accept it, or move on!

This is a highly volatile slot with a stack of features that can make the game go off at any time. But it will be unpredictable. It’s a characteristic that anyone who regularly plays ELK Studios games will recognise.

Maximum Win

The maximum payout in Fate of Fortune is a very respectable 10,000x. ELK do have higher paying games in their catalogue like Avalon Gold (25,000x) or Dropz (also 25,000x) if you want to aim higher with the same provider.

Symbols and Paytable

Just Six Symbols On The Paytable And Low Values 

ELK have opted for an original reel set for Fate of Fortune which feels a little disorientating at times but you get used to quite quickly. There are 5 reels with a 5-3-2-3-5 row pattern. The diminished row numbers are offset by having 81 paylines which pay both right to left AND left to right, providing 3 or more identical symbols land across them.

The paytable also looks a bit strange at first – like parts are missing. But they aren’t! There are just SIX pay symbols. The values are low, but we have stacks of features to power them up and give you a chance of hitting that 10,000x mark.

The low payers are runestones of the Queen, King and Ace in green, blue and red. These are valued at from 0.2x for 3 Queens up to 0.7x for 5 Aces. The premiums are the fortune telling ladies with green, blue or red hair, valued at from 0.5x for 3 greens up to 2x for 5 reds.

There are also Wilds that help to complete paylines for substituting for pay symbols. As I will explain, these expand and walk as well. And finally, you have a Bonus symbol with 3 golden faces on it which unlocks free spins.

Features and Gameplay

Lots Of Ways To Enhance Those Low Paytable Values

ELK having held back on the features here so there are a few to walk you through.

Watch The Crystal Ball For Random Modifiers

Starting with the Fortune ‘s Favour, this is triggered when the Crystal Ball, sitting front and centre of the grid, displays a picture representing a modifier during a spin. I should say that more often than not it does NOT display anything! But here are the modifiers:

• Multiplier: a random multiplier of up to 50x is shown to be applied to any wins
• Lady Swap: One of the premium lady symbols appears and ALL premium symbols visible on the reels are transformed into that symbol
• Locked Wilds: A Green Wild symbol is shown. This Wild appears then appears on the middle reel and locks in whilst a Respin is awarded. You keep getting spins here with a multiplier on the Wild increasing by 1 until you hit a win.
• Walking Wilds: A Red Wild is displayed on the Crystal Ball and a Wild appears on the central reel and a Respin is awarded. Then, an interesting thing happens. The Wild splits, and walks one reel to the left and one to right for the next 3 spins until each one leaves the screen.

Wilds Expand Sideways

In the world of Fate of Fortune there are TWO types of standard Wild – the pink and the blue. Pink are standard, doing what is required to complete win lines. Blue are more interesting and you should look out for them. They land on reels 2 and 4 and in an interesting twist they expand horizontally rather than vertically. They do this to GUARANTEE a win.

Mystery Symbol Are Stacked

There are also Mystery Symbols. You’ll find these in countless online slots. They land with a ‘?’ on them before all turning into the same pay symbol. If you have 3 or 4, or more, you have a good chance of triggering a win this way. And better still, I don’t recall seeing this in any other game, these ones are stacked and appear on reels 1, 2, 4 and 5.

Free Spins Comes With Nudging Mystery Stacks And Progressive Multipliers

The Free Spins round is a little different in Fate of Fortune. It is tough to unlock and it didn’t happen for me in 100s of spins. However, for those who make it to there, the configuration looks promising.

To start the round you need 3 or 4 Bonus Symbols to land. If you land 3 you get 1 Mystery Stack during the spins. If you land 4, you get 2 Mystery Stacks. These are the same Mystery Symbols that appear in the base game, each transforming into the same pay symbol when the reels stop spinning.

However, in this case there is a difference. The stack(s) land on reels 1, 2, 4 of 5, only covering the top row to start. With each spin, they nudge down one place and reveal the same pay symbol, with a new one revealed on each spin. At the same time, a win multiplier that starts at 1x increases by 1x with each spin.

Whilst you may start with just 1 or 2 stacks, it is in fact possible to land more on further spins. And the round just continues until no more stacks are visible.

Breaking that down it means that 1, 2 or more reels will be displaying multiple version of the same symbols – maybe a premium if you are lucky – on consecutive spins whilst your multiplier grows and grows too. Factor in the other features from the Fortune’s Favour Crystal Ball and you can see how this slot can deliver.