Game: Icy Wilds Deluxe
Manufacturer: IGT
Advantage play potential: Low
What Makes it Special: Get a reel of the same symbol (but only of the semi-premium symbols) and that reel will turn wild for the next spin.
Some of the IGT persistent state reels games have been out a few years now, and they’ve certainly endured on the casino floor, so it’s not surprising sequels have been popping up over the past year or two. Icy Wilds being one of the earliest, it was also one of the earliest to get a sequel, and as such today’s post covers Icy Wilds Deluxe.
The Advantage Play here is as slim as the original, but there’s still one to look for.
Understanding the Game
Icy Wilds is a 5×6 reel set game, and like its predecessor has 50 lines. The bet increases to 75 cents. Interestingly, the pays go down, despite the bet going up. Each bet has its own set of persistent state reels.
I presume this is because of the impact of the wilds on a larger reel set, and also the larger stacked reels that come out of this configuration. Volatility also probably differs a bit accordingly.
The gameplay mirrors the original: Whenever a full stack of mid-level symbols lands (not the top symbol of the Icy Wilds princess, and not poker symbols), the border of the reel turns sparkly, and the next spin the reel turns wild.
You can trigger more than one wild reel in a spin, which can help with lining up pays. Also, the top symbol (the Icy Wilds princess) and the wilds pay when two consecutive reels have them and line up on pay lines, so you can win just by the nature of having two wild reels adjacent to each other, or a wild reel adjacent to the Icy Wilds princess. This is also similar to the It’s Magic series of games reviewed last week.
The free spins bonus also works basically the same as before.
Understanding the Advantage
Given the gameplay is identical, you won’t be surprised to learn that the same goes for the Advantage Play opportunities. I feel like I summed it up pretty well last time, so let’s just repeat that:
That one spin with the wilds, when left behind, could pay something. Or it could not. That single spin at least has a set cost to it, but if you don’t line anything up, then the advantage is gone. Mutliple wilds of course would make it more advantageous. This is why, however, I rate it a low advantage.
Icy Wilds review
Free Spins Bonus
Get at least one free spin symbols on each at least three of the five reels to get the free spins. The free spins range from 10 to 45, depending on how many you land, as the symbols are stacked, and the more you land, the higher the free spins count.
Persistent state reels from the base game do not carry into the bonus, but they can be triggered just like they do in the base game, with the same wild benefit in the bonus.
Watch and Learn
Here is a video from TheBigPayback that features a first spin bonus!
And here’s a video from RandomSlots where he talks about the differences between the two games, particularly the paytable, since the game has the same line count but a different reel height:
