AvatarUX keeps making ground-breaking innovations, and its PopWins mechanic is no different. I’ll explain how this mechanic works and what it actually represents in detail. Stay tuned!
AvatarUX’s PopWins mechanic is very but very popular
AvatarUX, founded in 2018, is a relatively new game studio based in Malta. They are one of the original partner studios of Yggdrasil’s YGS Masters programme.
They distinguish themselves with slots with spectacular and beautiful Asian art.
They are best known for the PopWins mechanic, though, which they designed in 2020 and is (for now) exclusively available for AvatarUX slot games.
Till mid-2021, they released six PopWins slots (including BountyPop PopWins or TikiPop PopWins), and the seventh (PapayaPop PopWins) is on its way.
The mechanic is top-rated and gaining ground. As a result, it has tremendous win potential, and that also translates into possible massive wins.
The win potential of PopWins slots is enormous.
PopRocks PopWins, CherryPop PopWins and BountyPop PopWins have a maximum win of an incredible 72000x, 56000x and 55000x respectively. These are also in our list of slots where the maximum payout is at least 50000x the bet.
The table below provides a brief overview of the seven PopWins slots with all relevant details.
As you can see, we have seven PopWins slots, and most of these slots are incredibly volatile. PapayaPop is not as volatile as the others, and it’s evident that this AvatarUX is also targeting players who seek less volatility.
The table also shows that their latest five releases come with the Buy a Bonus feature, where it’s possible to buy the free spins straight away.
| AvatarUX slot | Year | Bonus Buy |
| PapayaPop | 2021 | Yes (75x) |
| HippoPop | 2021 | Yes (85x) |
| TikiPop | 2021 | Yes (100x) |
| BountyPop | 2020 | Yes (100x) |
| CherryPop | 2020 | Yes (75x) |
| Wild Pops | 2020 | No |
| PopRocks | 2020 | No |
| Avatar UX slot | RTP | MAX Win | Variance |
| PapayaPop | 96.00% | 10,542x | mid-high |
| HippoPop | 96.10% | 48,150x | super high |
| TikiPop | 96.10% | 32,000x | super high |
| BountyPop | 96.00% | 55,000x | high |
| CherryPop | 96.14% | 56,386x | high |
| Wild Pops | 96.20% | 17,707x | high |
| PopRocks | 96.40% | 72,188x | high |
A detailed explanation of this fascinating concept
Below you have an illustration of how this mechanic works. I use a detailed example of PapayaPop.
The idea is simple. Every time you land a winning combination, the winning symbols “Pop” (or explode) and create two new icons. You gain a free re-spin, whereby new symbols appear. This way, you get new chances for another win.
This sequence is called the PopWins sequence.
Illustration
Below I have an illustration where you see how it works.
Step 1: You see that you’ve 486 ways to win at the start. You start with five “Q’s”, and these account for four wins on reels 1, 2 and 3 combined.
Step 2: These five winning symbols “pop” and immediately disappear afterwards. You see that ten new positions make way.
Reels 1 and 2 have five positions each, and reel 4 has four positions. In total, you have 5x5x4x3x3=900 ways to win. But these are both ways (also from right to left). So you end up with 1800 ways to win. And more importantly, new chances to win!
Step 3: You get a new win again. Four winning symbols on reels 1, 2 and 3. These “pop”.
Step 4: The 4 “popped” symbols become eight new positions. You end up with 6x6x6x3x3=1944 win ways. But these are both ways, so you end up with 3888 ways to win.
Step 5: you land quite a few new wins. The winning symbols on reels 1, 2 and 3 “pop” but are NOT replaced by two new icons (only by one new icon), as these reels already have reached the maximum of 6 positions (symbols) each.
Step 6: The good news is that reels 4 and 5 expand (from 3 symbols to 4 symbols) as these reels also have winning symbols that “pop” into two new icons. Now you have 2x6x6x6x4x4= 6912 win ways.
It’s like the avalanche mechanic – with expanding reels
The PopWins sequence resembles the Avalanche (cascading) mechanic, with two differences:
- The winning symbol is replaced by two icons (symbols) rather than by one new symbol
- The other symbols remain at the original positions (do not drop to the bottom of the reels).
What’s triggering with this feature is that the reels expand. The reels have three symbols initially, but these can grow to reels of six (or even more) symbols.
The win all ways mechanic
Indeed does the PopWins mechanic rely on the win all ways mechanic.
What’s different (to most win all ways slots) is that you can win both ways. You win if you have identical symbols from left to right (starting from reel 1) and right to left (starting from reel 5).
The result is that the number of win ways doubles.
As all PopWins slots have 5 reels with 3 symbols at the start, you have 486 ways to win (calculated as 3x3x3x3x3=243 and multiplied by 2, as you can win both ways).
The maximum number of symbols per AvatarUX PopWins slot
All seven PopWins slots have 5 reels with 3 symbols each at the start and 486 ways to win.
The slots have different maximum reel heights, and these also differ for the base game and the free spins bonus game.
The table below gives you a handy overview.
Let’s take CherryPop PopWins as an example.
When you play the main game (base game), you can win both ways, and the reels can have at the most 6 symbols. It boils down to 15,552 (2x6x6x6x6x6=15,552) win ways.
With the free spins game, the reels can get up to 9 symbols. That gets you 118,098 (2x9x9x9x9x9=118,098) ways to win.
Conclusions – The PopWins mechanic offers colossal potential and fireworks
The new mechanic will (most likely) not have such an impact as Big Time Gaming’s Megaways mechanic, but by no means is this one to be ignored.
The PopWins mechanic has a tremendous win potential, is graphically spot-on, is spectacular and is also easy to understand.
It has a proven track record already: many players love it, and slot streamers make a lot of noise, thanks to the enormous win potential of most of these slots.
At the moment, we have seven of these beauties, but I expect many more will follow.
Will other providers get a license for this mechanic? I expect some will in the future. It’s the best way to make a great idea accessible for everyone. Ask Big Time Gaming!
Play PopWins slots at these online casinos
If you are looking for any of these PopWins slots, you can check out the reputable online casinos in our list below.
These online casinos offer you the chance to play real money casino games or play with practice money.
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