Totem Lightning slot review (Red tiger)

Totem Lightning is an online slot by Red Tiger Gaming with medium to high variance and a unique symbol removal feature

Red Tiger Gaming is still a somewhat unknown entity with online casino players, but we suspect that it won’t be long before online video slots fans will be discovering these games.

Not only do they look fabulous, but all of them also have something special to offer. Lots of unique features, fun bonuses and gaming mechanisms – you will not be bored anytime soon.

On top of all, that is the fact that the variance is nice and high, which allows you the opportunity to get your hands on some huge payouts.

If we have a bone of contention with these slots by Red Tiger Gaming, it’s that the payout rates are a bit low: usually around 95.5%. Just one percentage point higher, and we would never play any other slots ever again.

What are the payout rate and the variance of Totem Lightning?

The theoretical payout rate is 95.53%. And that immediately leaves us with a moral dilemma because we never play slots with real money if they have a lower payout rate than 96%.

But this slot is a whole lot of fun. Go on then, making an exception to your own rules every once in a while, won’t hurt anyone.

The variance is medium to high. You can go through a sequence with 20 free spins and not win a single thing, to then suddenly get your hands on a huge payout. The bonus game can even get you up to 1,000 x your total bet. Not bad, not bad at all.

How does the Totem Lightning slot work?

There are 40 paylines on a playing field consisting of 5 reels with 4 rows of symbols. You always play with a fixed amount per spin, ranging from a minimum of $€ 0.20 up to a maximum of $€ 60.

The symbols comprise 4 totem poles symbols and the card symbols 10, J, Q, K and A.

The totem poles pay out the most: between 120 and 888 coins for a 5-of-a-kind on an active payline. The card symbols have a much lower return, between 16 and 80 coins.

Most of the symbols occur in mini stacks of 2 or even 3. When a winning combination is created, these symbols are removed to make way for new ones who drop down in their stead. This way, you can get your hands on hefty sums of money in the same spin.

Symbol Removal Feature

When you make a winning combination with a low card symbol, it results in all of them being removed from the game. This means that as the game progresses, there are ever more high-value symbols left, which in turn means that your chances to hit some mega payouts are increasing as well. This is a unique and adrenaline-inducing feature that we have never encountered anywhere else. Fun!

Lightning Blast

This feature drops at random times and removes a low symbol from the game. A lifesaver when you didn’t have a winning combination.

The Totem Multiplier Bonus

The main bonus feature is activated when 3 or more scattered bonus symbols drop. You are taken to a totem pole, with multipliers on every square. You start at the bottom, and by choosing peace pipes, you determine the number of steps you can climb up.

The highest multiplier is 1,000 x the bet, but to get this, you have to be able to climb to the very top without landing on “collect”.

The great part of this bonus is that you always get a nice prize, and if you are lucky and get to go up to the top, the payouts can increase very fast.

Our verdict on the Totem Lightning video slot

Totem Lightning has managed to entice us quite a bit, although it is a fickle game. Sometimes you hardly win a thing for ages, to then suddenly see your balance soar to great heights. The gaming mechanism with the Symbol Removal Feature and the dropping symbols is unique and is definitely addictive – the further in the game you get, the bigger your chances are to get a humongous win.

The main bonus is, in comparison, less volatile but can also reward you handsomely – 1,000 times your bet is nothing to sneeze at.

3.7 out of 5 stars.