Theme & Design

Just as with every other aspect of Tombstone RIP, the visuals are on a different plane to what we are used to in an online slot, whilst also being totally in keeping with the developer’s usual aggressive style. Load up this slot and you are immediately thrust into a monochrome world where the images of the Wild West are only from its most brutal moments.  This is no Sticky Bandits, or even Dead or Alive. There are no fun cartoons of tumbleweed and cheeky cowboys. Instead it’s all very grim – the reels are framed in a bloody gallows, whilst hangings, amputations, arson and murder feature throughout.

And all its all interweaved with the usual array of high impact features.

When the Splitting Wilds land it is with the crash of a bloody axe head through the reel set. When an xNudge Wild lands it depicts an outlaw swinging from a noose. And when 2 Hang Em High Scatters land, a flurry of bullets ricochets around the grid as the final reels spin to a hault to reveal your fate.

To be fair, Tombstone RIP isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Personally, I love it. It has an atmosphere that sticks with you long after you close the game down, and that’s a rare thing.

RTP and Variance

Like most Nolimit City slots, Tombstone RIP has more than one RTP setting – 96.08% and 94.08% in this case. Which you play at will be at the discretion of your casino. Now, in truth there isn’t much to pick between these two and playing at 94.08% wouldn’t feel any different to playing at 96.08% for a few hundred spins. These numbers are calculated based on millions, if not billions, of spins. However, particularly when playing a slot where so much has been made of the extreme volatility and high-risk level, it always makes sense to find a site where the Return to Player is at the optimum setting to give yourself the very best chance of walking away with winnings in your pocket.

So, my advice would be … don’t settle for that 94.08%. We have checked out the RTP at five top slot sites and this is what we found:

• Pub Casino (L and L Europe) – 96.08% RTP
• Betfred Games (Petfre) – 96.08% RTP
• Duelz (SuprPlay) – 94.08% RTP
• BacanaPlay (Skill on Net) – 94.08% RTP
• Dream Vegas (White Hat Gaming) – 94.08% RTP

As you can see, not all sites will offer this games at the optimum level. I recommend Pub Casino, or any other L and L Europe site, or Betfred Games for the optimum 96.08% setting.

From the Nolimit City site we also know a bit about the breakdown of the RTP of this game. It says that 40.08% of the RTP is saved back for the free spins round which itself will only trigger once in 194 spins on average.

We also know the overall hit rate of this slot – how often a winning spin occurs – which is 9.08%. That, for the record, is extremely low!

So, what does this all mean? In short, Tombstone RIP is a classic high variance slot. It deals in infrequent wins in the base game and a free spins round that only triggers rarely. But, when it does, you might find a lot of that payout has been saved for just that event.

The good news is you can get involved from just 10p per spin though in the average session it is still likely you will get rinsed in super quick time! Welcome to Tombstone RIP!

Maximum Win

And now to the headline – Tombstone RIP is the highest paying non-jackpot slot right now. It has a top payout of 300,000x. That means, with just a £1 bet you could bank £300,000!

That is a staggering number that dwarves the previous NLC record of 150,000x set by San Quentin xWays.

But make no mistake, this game has been built for those who like the action to be mean and nasty, a slog-fest and a 1 in 130,000,000 chance of scoring the biggest non-progressive jackpot on the market. So be ready and beware.

We thought we should tell it like it is!

Symbols and Paytable

Built to be different, Tombstone RIP’s reel set is off-kilter as well. There are 5 reels but the row configuration is 2-3-3-3-1. It is also a Win Ways slot rather than a Paylines slot. That means, you trigger wins by landing 3 or more identical symbols on adjacent reels from left to right, regardless of the row they are on.

This creates 108 Win Ways per spin.

The values in the paytable are pitiful compared to most slots, maxing out at just 4x for 5 of the highest paying. However, let’s remember this is no ordinary slot and if you’re playing for basic wins then you are missing the point.

It’s all about hitting the big, big pay offs in free spins instead.

So, with that in mind, this is what you get …

The low payer cards, 10 through to Ace, are worth from 0.01x for 3 10s up to 0.9x for 5 Aces. The premium characters – 3 outlaws named El Gordo, Edda Star and Skinny Joe, and a female gun slinger and a Sheriff, labelled a ‘Bad Ass Killer’ – pay from 0.03x for 3 Sheriffs up to 4x for 5 El Gordos.

Other symbols to help along the ways here include the Tombstone Wild, which substitute for other symbols to complete Win Ways. And there is also a Hang ‘Em High Scatter and Boothill Scatter, which are required to trigger each of the Free Spins rounds.

Features and Gameplay

There is no let-up in the features in Tombstone RIP. Most of these you will have seen in one form or another on other NLC slots if you’ve played them before. And if you have, you get used to the flow pretty quickly. If you have not, I recommend you load up in demo mode first for some free play before taking the brave step of showing your money.

Hanging xNudge Wilds Trigger Multipliers

These Wilds appear stacked on the reels and nudge to move fully in view. They attract an increased Multiplier for each new nudge. xNudge Wilds only appear on reels 2,3 and 4 and Multipliers are added together if more than one appears at the same time.

Wild Symbols Split To Increase Your Win Ways

There are regular Wilds and Splitting Wilds.

When the latter land, they split into 2 along with all other symbols on their reel, doubling the potential rewards. If a Splitting Wild affects an xNudge Wild, the Multiplier will also double.

There are also xSplit Wilds which land only on reel 5. Symbols in rows to the left will be split in four.

xRIP – Beware Of This One

This feature is one you don’t want to trigger. If a winning combination lands that is worth less than your base bet, and the xRIP feature is triggered, you won’t win anything that spin. Harsh.

Scatter Symbols Trigger The Free Spins Rounds

Landing 3 Hang ‘Em High Scatters triggers 8 Free Spins, while landing 2 will transform them to Split Wilds. Landing 3 of these Scatters at the same time as 1 Boothill Scatter will trigger 10 Free Spins. If the Boothill Scatter lands on its own, it transforms into a cowboy symbol, which becomes Wild and awards a Multiplier from 5x up 999x.

Hang ‘Em High Free Spins

Hang ‘Em High Free Spins awards a Multiplier at the start. It appears in the top right of the screen. It will increase each time any type of Wild symbol lands on the reels like this:

• Regular Wilds – increases by 1x
• Split Wilds – increases by 2x
• xNudge Wilds – increases by 3x

Importantly, multipliers DO NOT re-set but instead remain throughout the round. So, if you keep landing wilds, it keeps growing.

During Hang Em High you also get 2 more Free Spins if a Boothill Scatter lands on the 5th reel, PUS you get an upgrade to the Boothill Free Spins round.

Boothill Free Spins

Without question this is where you want to be and it’s what everyone is playing for.

During the Boothill Free Spins you also get the Multiplier that appears top right. But now, you need to watch the 5th reel to see which cowboy premium lands on every spin. It will transform ALL instance of that symbol on other reels into a wild.

And … one random cowboy symbol will have a random multiplier added to it. That multiplier is anywhere from 5x up to 999x. It impacts the chosen cowboy symbol as well as the global multiplier and the two are added together before the win calculation is made.

El Gordo’s Revenge

The top payout of the game is capped at 300,000x. If (IF!!!) the total win on a spin exceeded this value, El Gordo’s Revenge is enacted, the round ends and the 300,000x win is awarded.

The Final Verdict

Putting aside the maths of this game for just one moment Tombstone RIP is still a breathtaking game whose production style mirrors the no-prisoners gameplay. If you get that far, and let’s be honest, most of us won’t, when you trigger the final free spins round – Boothill Spins – you will see the town engulfed in blood-red flames and bodies swinging from the gallows with every win. These shocking scenes blow the cobwebs away and make you feel like any other slot is just going to feel lame in comparison.

That’s all well and good. But what about those stats? How long will you want to be involved in a game that offers such little in the base game and makes it so tough to reach the free spins rounds?

Well, NLC have made no apologies, it is what it is – unplayable in many respects. But for the love of high-risk slots action we will continue to bang at the door and see if we can hit the big numbers. And we’re sure many others will too. The interesting part is that the visuals are so compelling and unlike anything you’ve seen in a slot before that despite the frustration you’ll keep going as those dark clouds reflect your mood. And of course, those numbers present something of a challenge to overcome, right?! And can you really hit a 999x multiplier in Boothill spins?!

You see, it seems that in this instance No Limit City just doesn’t care about ridiculous things like winning, enjoyment or fun in the usual sense. The theme is bleak, the gameplay insanely volatile and the violence extreme. This is another out-there option in this contrary developer’s catalogue that will delight fans, while perplexing all others. But that’s what they are all about. How else do you shake things up?

Indeed, I wasn’t sure if NLC could ever top the madness of Mental, but if you want more insanity, come to Tombstone once again!