A Dark Matter slot review (MicroGaming)

A Dark Matter is a Microgaming slot made by Slingshot Studios

The slot has an exciting background story: it takes place in the dark Victorian era, where people were obsessed with the occult.

In the Wraith Manor house, strange things have happened since the master of the house passed away. A big mystery.

It is up to the charismatic Nathan Highmore to find out what is going on in the bewitched house. Lady Eleanor Wraith, the owner of Wraith Manor, is anxiously waiting to hear his findings.

If you expect a slot full of intrigue, surprises, and horror effects, you will be disappointed.

Nevertheless, A Dark Matter is atmospheric and looks stunning.

The name of the slot can be explained in two ways:

• A Dark Matter means a dark, melancholic story.
• The game’s invading wilds move like a black-dark substance: A Dark Matter.

Gameplay and features of the A dark Matter slot

Although A Dark Matter has 5 reels with 3 rows of symbols, there are only 5 paylines, where you might expect at least 20 paylines.

It is a relief that winning combinations are both ways (from left to right and from right to left).

Betting is done with a fixed amount per spin: the minimum bet is $€0.05 (which is excellent news for players with a limited bankroll), and the maximum bet is $€50.

What are the theoretical RTP, the variance and the maximum win of the A Dark Matter Slot?

The theoretical payout percentage is 96.18%. It is neither very good nor awful: it is around the average of an average online slot.

The maximum win is capped at 2,400x the total bet. As the maximum bet is $€50, your winnings cannot be higher than the cash amount of $€120 thousand.

All in all, the slot is medium variance. The top prizes of A Dark matter are more in the range of 500x to 1,000x the bet. You should be over the moon to get a win above 1,000x the stake.

Symbols and payouts

The five beautifully designed premium symbols are the main characters of this creepy story.

• Researcher Nathan Highmore, who does all the work, is the best paying symbol and will give you 600x the total bet if you spin five of them on a payline.
• If you get a 5-of-a-kind of the troubled Lady Eleanor Wraith, you are guaranteed a win of 160x the total bet.
• The other three premium symbols award you a win of 60 x to 120 x the bet, in the case you spin 5 of them on a payline.

These are all substantial wins, but remember that there are only 5 paylines (both ways). Soon, you will find out that it is challenging to get 4-of-a-kind, let alone getting a 5-of-a-kind.

Even if you get a 5-of-a-kind of the lower card symbols, will you still get a high payout: between 10 x and 16 x the bet.

It just tells you that you should already be happy with a 3-of-a-kind or maybe even a 4-of-a-kind. Unfortunately, the wins will be significantly less, in that case!

Stacked wilds, invading wilds and double multipliers

The wilds are incredibly crucial in this game.

There are three types of wilds:

• Regular wilds, which replace all symbols except the scatters
• Stacked wilds on reel 2 OR 4, multiplying (the Invading Wilds)
• Stacked wilds on reel 2 EN 4, where reel 3 is also made entirely wild.

What is so appealing is that if you get stacked wilds on reels 2 or 4, that these wilds become invading. For example, if you get stacked wilds on reel 2, the three symbols on reel 1 or reel 3 become wilds as well. In that case, you are definitely in for some nice wins.

Free spins bonus

If you spin 3 scatters on reels 2, 3 and 4, you get 12 free spins.

It is possible to earn more free spins during the free spins: each scatter yields an additional free spin.

If you manage to spin stacked wilds on reels 2 and 4, you get double luck. In that case, reel 3 becomes completely wild. Moreover, all prizes are doubled.

Our verdict on the A Dark Matter slot

A Dark Matter is a beautiful Microgaming slot.

The atmosphere is sultry and somewhat creepy.

We liked the invasion wilds, which is an original feature and above all, very lucrative.

It would have been perfect if Microgaming had done a bit more with this background story. Now it’s more like an introduction to an exciting and scary story, but that misses a big climax. We have no clue if Nathan Highmore has solved this mystery or not.

The slot is medium variance, so if you are in the hunt for enormous wins of, say, 5,000x the bet, you need to find your luck elsewhere.

Besides that, we are more than enthusiastic about this great release of Microgaming.

3.8 out of 5 stars.

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