The Alchemists Gold

The proto-science of alchemy obsessed generations of clever minds with its endlessly appealing promise of turning low-quality metals into gold. In this slot, Synot Games lets players take part in a modern version of the same pursuit. A sage-like alchemist presiding over the reels with his magnificent beard carries an air of authority: perhaps this robed figure does know the secret of gold production, and perhaps he’s willing to share it.

Theme

After introducing the wise-looking alchemist with this phenomenal beard in a welcome screen, Alchemist’s Gold’s five reels are set in a bird’s eye view of his desk. Books, potions, and scrolls festoon the edges of the gaming space as the reels spin. Gaming symbols include the purple elixir of life (another dream sought after by alchemists), the elemental symbols of a volcano, a tidal wave, a tree, and a tornado, as well as the golden mystery symbol. The playing card values ace through jack acts as lower-value symbols. Celebratory music blares throughout, and the overall gaming feel is simultaneously studied and chaotic, like a science class taught by Doc Brown from Back to the Future.

Betting Options, Functions, and Features

Attention to detail is a strong point among Synot’s slot titles, and Alchemist’s Gold is no exception. There are ten fixed paylines that all pay both ways, and a per-spin bet range ranging from 0.20–100.00 times the betting currency. Autoplay is available up to 1,000 spins, or without end, though players should be advised to use such high limits with caution, as there is no available loss limit. Detailed game rules and paytable information are available on separate screens. The overall theoretical return to player ratio is listed as ranging from 88%-98%, which is not terribly helpful, as these extremes would place this slot as either the least or most profitable ever released… it’s likely that players will find their individual success rates somewhere in between.

The mystery golden symbol is a nice touch from the design team. This circular symbol, like most others in this slot, appears stacked: after the reels have stopped spinning, a gaming symbol is selected at random, and all mystery symbols transform into it. When the stacked mystery’s arrival symbol matches those around it, big wins can be the result.

Though the Synot design team does not include free spins or bonus features, a sophisticated gamble feature is on offer here. Players can play for double-or-nothing on any win, with the option to bank half of their winnings, and gamble with the other half.

Our Take

It’s nice to see the Bratislava-based Synot Games turn its 25 years of design experience towards a classic slot like this one. Alchemist’s Gold may be light on bonus features, but the strong Gamble feature helps to vary the rhythm of gaming, and the mystery bonus symbol provides an added element of excitement to base play. Hopefully, modern slot gamers will be more successful than ancient alchemists in achieving their golden goals.