Niagara Falls from Yggdrasil Gaming: Slot Review - cascading gold coins everywhere!

Head back in time to the roaring 1930s for some retro casino fun in this new title from Yggdrasil Gaming. This game is rather special as it is powered by Yggdrasil’s new YGS Masters concept that allows software developers to work together to launch top-quality games. Niagara Falls is the first release from YGS Masters in partnership with Northern Lights Gaming and is all about spinning the reels on a fruit machine slot set inside a plush 1930s casino-style environment. Let’s find out if this game has what it takes to stand out from a crowd of hundreds of other similar fruit machine themed slots?

Niagara Falls is a 5 reel slot game with 20 paylines that includes Free Spins, Sticky Wilds, Respins, and Wild Reels.

Special Features

The first feature to discuss is the Wild symbol which is represented by an orange swirling cloud with the word ‘Wild’ displayed inside. This symbol along with the Niagara Falls logo is the highest paying symbol in the game. Land 5 of either of these symbols on an active payline and you’ll be leaving the casino with a fine payout worth 10X your wager.

Niagara Falls comes with a few interesting bonus features. The first one is Coin Drop. This triggers when a gold coin appears on the last reel. When this happens then the coin will leave a trail and land on a bonus slot at the bottom of the reels. If the coin lands on a bonus slot that displays a bonus then one of the 5 following bonuses is triggered:

• Free Spins – you will trigger the Free Spins feature and receive 5 Free Spins.
• Multiplier Bonus – you will be awarded a Multiplier ranging between 2X and 5X.
• Shake – 1 shake bonus is added to the shake counter with a maximum of 5 shakes per stake.
• Stacked Spin – the reels will proceed to respin with stacked symbols.
• Wild – all coin trail symbols are replaced by Wild symbols.

The Scatter symbol in this game is illustrated by an image of a barrel with the word ‘Bonus’ in front of it. Land 3 of these symbols on reels 1, 3, and 5 on the same spin to trigger the Free Spins Bonus Game. Alternatively, you can trigger this feature as mentioned above via the Coin Drop feature. Once activated, you will be awarded 5 Free Spins with the bonus slots at the bottom of the reels only displaying Wild bonus text now. If a Wild bonus text is displayed on any bonus slot after a Free Spin then the entire reel will become Wild and stay in place for the duration of the feature.

The last feature to highlight is the Cash Fall Bonus feature. This is triggered randomly and when it does trigger then coins will fall down the reels and land into slots under the reels where they are added to a special meter displayed below. If a coin drops into a slot with a set cash value then that value is added to the meter and paid out when the Cash Fall feature ends. Keep a close eye out for Super Coins as these coins can double the cash value of the slots below the reels! The Shake bonuses as highlighted in the Coin Drop feature also come into play in this feature as they are used at the end of it to trigger more cascading coin wins.

Theme, Graphics and Sound

The presentation of the game is wonderful as it is set inside a stylish looking casino filled with 1930s inspired decor. For instance, the reels are surrounded by a static waterfall design which is a neat touch to tie in nicely with the name of the game. Symbols consist of a range of classic fruit machine icons such as Bells, Bars, Cherries, Oranges, and Lucky 7s. They are bright and colourful featuring a slick retro design. The animations are impressive as symbols zip down the reels and it's particularly satisfying when you land a win as a small old-school register style button pops up at the bottom to show you exactly how much you have won.

The music features a soft and pleasant piano backing track. It fits in nicely with the 1930s theme of the game.

Win lines, Payouts and Jackpots

The game has 20 paylines, a good RTP of 96.2%, and a decent maximum payout worth 1,000X your total 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, 4.00, 6.00, 8.00, 10.00, 20.00, 40.00, 60.00, 80.00, 100.00, 200.00, 400.00

Based on a bet of 0.20:

• Flame Wild Symbol: 2.00 for 5X
• Niagara Falls Symbol: 1.00 for 3X, 1.60 for 4X, 2.00 for 5X
• Red 7 Symbol: 0.60 for 3X, 1.00 for 4X, 1.60 for 5X
• Blue 7 Symbol: 0.40 for 3X, 0.60 for 4X, 1.00 for 5X
• Bar Symbol: 0.30 for 3X, 0.40 for 4X, 0.60 for 5X
• Bell Symbol: 0.20 for 3X, 0.30 for 4X, 0.50 for 5X
• Blueberries Symbol: 0.15 for 3X, 0.20 for 4X, 0.40 for 5X
• Orange Symbol: 0.10 for 3X, 0.15 for 4X, 0.30 for 5X
• Cherries Symbol: 0.05 for 3X, 0.10 for 4X, 0.20 for 5X

Our Verdict on Niagara Falls

Top software developer Yggdrasil Gaming produced this fun online slot in association with Northern Lights Gaming. It offers a great slice of classic fruit machine action and has a certain charm to it thanks to its excellent retro-style graphics and amazing bonus features. The Coin Drop Bonus feature triggered quite often when playing and it is here where you can benefit nicely from Respins, Multipliers as high as 5X, as well as Extra Wilds. The Free Spins feature, on the other hand, took quite some time to trigger but is worth sticking around for as you can enjoy fully stacked Wild Reels that stay in place for the entire feature. Although it has to be said that it is rather disappointing that you cannot trigger additional Free Spins. The top prize for this slot is a decent 1,000X your bet which can be won on any spin. For slots with a similar Retro Casino theme, check out The Grand and Cabaret Royale.

Drown the reels with lots of cascading gold coins when you play Niagara Falls!