The Rift

It’s an evening like any other. You’ve gone out for a walk, strolling down the exact same street like you always do. Only, something is different. It might be the odd patterns you keep seeing repeated on the walls.

Or the occasional writhing mass of purple tentacles scurrying in the darkness. Perhaps it’s the large gash in reality from which all manners of ungodly horrors are escaping from? Yeah, that one might be it. And while you could close it and save humanity as a whole, you’d be forsaking some awesome jackpots.

The Rift Slot Review

The Rift is played on a five reel board, where each reel is three symbols high. The slot fully embraces the madness, and gives you seventeen fixed paylines. Not twenty-five, nor twenty. Seventeen. There’s no changing the number of active winlines either – you can only choose Thunderkick’s pre-approved wagers. Still, at €0.10 as a minimum stake, you are still saving cash compared to other games.

Winning is as simple as collecting three or more identical icons in adjacent positions, starting with the leftmost reel. All winning combinations must follow one of the active paylines, or else the cash prize won’t be awarded.

Special features are interesting twists on existing concepts, which we were big fans of. There’s the re-spin round which turns all non-winning Wilds sticky, and adds up to three more sticky Wilds. There’s also a free spins round, where you can get up to 20 extra turns by collecting Scatters! Here, players are completing a mysterious seal, and every third step is rewarded by more spins and sticky Wilds.

Theme & Symbols

While it doesn’t go full Lovecraft on gamblers, the world is brimming with potential! The dark street, only lit up by the occasional street light, could be anywhere. This massive gash in reality, where you can just barely make something out on the surface coming for you? It could be somewhere in your city, right now. Existential dread is a fantastic concept, and Thunderkick’s release uses it to great effect. We didn’t expect to see it in a slot and like it, but that’s innovation for you!

If we’re perfectly honest, the background image is what’s carrying The Rift’s visuals. The contrast of colors highlights everything except the large symbol that’s keeping the wound in reality open. And by the time you notice it and try to get closer? Odds are you’ve already fallen into the trap! There’s also the barest hint of animations, too. The idle glow of the rift, and the occasional shift of the branch in the upper left corner are the only ones we can see. Not counting icons, of course.

Honestly, we wish we could not count symbols, permanently. Because icons have dropped the ball hard. All the awesome visuals in the world couldn’t save this game when your reels are flooded with generic coin symbols. Unique icons are a potion, a pocket watch, a grimoire and an octopus. And honestly, apart from the octopus, the other three wouldn’t look amiss in a fantasy themed release. If Thunderkick truly want to win our attention, they should have added icons that fit the theme better.

How to Play The Rift

The Rift is played on a 5×3 board with seventeen fixed paylines. Yes, the number of paylines is quite odd, and no, we cannot turn them on and off at will. We’re not sure why the developers chose seventeen paylines instead of twenty or twenty-five. It doesn’t fundamentally change anything, except make it more difficult to hit wins. Which would make sense if this was a high variance slot. But it’s not. It has a medium volatility.

At first glance, the special features are nothing new or interesting. I mean, we have seen free spins and re-spin about a thousand times at this point! What won us over, and will win you over if you let it, is all the sticky Wilds shenanigans! Both bonuses use them liberally, which helps increase your odds of winning. It may not be the biggest jackpot you’ll ever win, but it will certainly be one of the more memorable ones.

Your minimum bet is €0.10 per spin, which is good value for money. After all, you’re getting almost 20 full paylines, for the price of 10. But while casual players get to celebrate, high rollers will feel slightly left behind. Your maximum stake only goes up to €100 on each spin. Paired with a 815x jackpot, it sends a clear message. Gamblers who want massive wins will have to seek out another game.

Bonus Features

The running theme of the special features in this Thunderkick release are sticky Wilds! They’re everywhere. In your re-spin, in the free spins, in your kitchen sink. In your child’s smartphone? It’s more likely than you think. Because of that, let us give you a brief explanation on what to expect from these lucrative symbols.

• Sticky Wilds

First off, they will only appear during a re-spin or a free spin. When they appear, they lock in place, and remain there until one of two things happen. One, they become part of a win, and ascend to good icon heaven. Two, they remain frozen in place until they become part of a winning combination.

• Re-Spin

To activate the re-spin, you need two Scatters in any position. Any Wilds that aren’t part of a win will turn sticky, and up to three more will be added. We were pleasantly surprised to see how often we managed to score three extra sticky Wilds! If this is Cthulhu building good PR with players, it’s working wonderfully!

• Free Spins

Collect three, four or five Scatters to win ten, fifteen or twenty free spins. The inactive seal lights up, and slowly starts becoming active. Every time a Scatter lands, another part turns on. And on every third Scatter, online gamblers win two more free spins and a guaranteed sticky Wild. Activate all nine Scatters to get six more extra turns, and three guaranteed sticky Wilds on each spin.

The Rift Payouts

The Rift has a medium volatility, and a jackpot worth 815x your total stake. The slot’s RTP is 96.3%, which is above the current industry average.