Chi from ELK Studios: Slot Review - climb the Stairway to Fortune!

Travel to the Himalayan mountains in search of a lost city of treasures in this exciting new release from top software producer ELK Studios. To guide you on your way through the treacherous grounds and dangerous routes there are two helpful spirits called Chi and Mow. These spirits are depicted by a pair of adorable feline-like animals and appear as totems in the main game but don’t let their cute looks fool you as they wield great power as Chi can control fire whereas Mow commands the element of wind. Let’s see if their spirit powers will help us on our way to landing a heavenly cash prize in this slot?

Chi is a 3 reel slot with 27 paylines that features Extra Wilds, Sticky Wilds, Free Spins, Increasing Multipliers, and a Stairway to Fortune Bonus Game.

Special Features

The first feature to talk about is that this game features 27 paylines that not only pay from left to right but also from right to left essentially giving you 54 paylines. With this many ways to form wins on the reels, you will be leaving the mountains with plenty of cash in your pocket in no time at all!

The Wild symbol in this game is represented by the word ‘Wild’ displayed inside of a red and gold frame. This symbol like most Wilds replaces all other symbols except for the Free Spins and Scatter symbols to help create winning combinations on the reels.

As you play the game, you’ll notice a red and a blue stone totem on opposite sides of the reels. These totems represent the Fire and Wind spirits known as Chi and Mow. With every spin you make then a draw is made on the totems and if a totem symbol lines up correctly then it will release the respective spirit and its power. The red totem Chi when lined up will add 1 to 6 Wilds to the reels while the blue totem Mow awards a multiplier ranging between 2X to 5X.

Chi comes with 2 special bonus features. The first one is the Free Spins game which is triggered when you land 3 or more Free Spins symbols anywhere on the reels. 3, 4, or 5 of these symbols will get you 10, 15, or 20 Free Spins. The totems are also active here but have even more power as all wilds added by Chi become sticky while Mow offers a progressive multiplier starting at 2X that can increase to a maximum of 5X. It is possible to retrigger this feature again and again by landing additional Free Spins symbols which means you can benefit from potentially unlimited Free Spins.

The second bonus feature is Stairway to Fortune. This triggers when you land 3 Scatter symbols anywhere on the reels on one spin. The Scatter symbol is illustrated by a Yin Yang image. In this fun bonus game, Chi and Mow will work together to try to help you reach the top of the Fortune Reels. Chi will draw a random number between 1 and 6 while Mow will move the corresponding number of steps along the cloud path increasing a multiplier value as she moves. The journey up the clouds continues until Chi draws ‘Collect’ and when this happens then the multiplier held by Mow is then paid out. You will then be awarded a spin on each of the 5 reels at the top of the clouds with all the collected multipliers added to it. This feature is highly lucrative as if you manage to hit the arrow on the uppermost reel of the Fortune Reels then you will be rewarded a spectacular 10,000X your bet! This can result in winning the top prize which is an enormous payout worth 12,500X your wager!

Theme, Graphics and Sound

This game features sumptuous graphics as well as top-notch animations. It is wonderfully designed and yet another great looking game to add to ELK Studio’s burgeoning library. Chi takes place in front of the Himalayan mountains with swaying cherry blossom trees beside the reels along with tall temples and green hills in the background. Symbols are bright and colourful and consist of Vases, Lanterns, Fans, Lotus Flowers, Jade Stones, Flutes, Gourds, Lanterns, and Fish. As mentioned already, the animations are superb as symbols move rapidly from right to left rather than the typical way of just moving downwards. The Stairway to Fortune bonus game deserves special praise as it takes place on a whole new screen with Chi and Mow on hand to help you reach the Fortune Reels at the top.

The music features a soft and gentle Oriental inspired soundtrack. It is relaxing and complements the Asian Fantasy theme of the game perfectly.

Win lines, Payouts and Jackpots

The game has 27 paylines, a solid RTP of 96%, and a fantastic maximum payout worth 12,500X your original bet.

Below is a summary taken from the PayOut Table from the game. The amount won for each combination depends on the value of the bet when you spin the reels.

Bet Range: 0.20, 0.40, 0.60, 0.80, 1.00, 2.00, 3.00, 4.00, 5.00, 10.00, 15.00, 20.00

Based on a bet of 0.20:

• Red Lotus Symbol: 0.40 for 3X, 1.60 for 4X, 0.40 for 5X
• Pink Lantern Symbol: 0.30 for 3X, 0.80 for 4X, 1.20 for 5X
• Gold Gourd Symbol: 0.20 for 3X, 0.60 for 4X, 1.00 for 5X
• Jade Stones Symbol: 0.20 for 3X, 0.40 for 4X, 0.60 for 5X
• Red Fish Symbol: 0.10 for 3X, 0.25 for 4X, 0.50 for 5X
• Blue Vase Symbol: 0.10 for 3X, 0.25 for 4X, 0.50 for 5X
• Yellow Fan Symbol: 0.05 for 3X, 0.20 for 4X, 0.40 for 5X
• Green Flute Symbol: 0.05 for 3X, 0.20 for 4X, 0.40 for 5X

Our Verdict on Chi

This game comes from Swedish-based software studio ELK Studios and is a heavenly gaming experience not to be missed! Chi features outstanding graphics, a soothing soundtrack, along with the perfect amount of bonus features to keep you glued to the reels for countless hours. The fire and wind totems triggered quite frequently when playing with Chi being the most lucrative especially when this spirit adds 6 Wilds to the reels! The most rewarding feature by far is the Stairway to Fortune Bonus Game as it is here where you can win the top prize which is a massive 12,500X your wager! It’s also satisfying that you can retrigger Free Spins indefinitely. Variance-wise, this slot is definitely High so make sure to pack plenty of bankroll before trekking the mountains here! For slots with a similar Asian Fantasy theme, check out The Legend of Shangri-La: Cluster Pays and Wins of Fortune.

Let the spirits Chi and Mow guide you to a heavenly win on the reels when you play Chi!