Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades: Slot Overview

Games Global partner Alchemy Gaming has pushed its Chronicles of Olympus line forward with a third entry called Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades. It arrives soon after Chronicles of Olympus II – Zeus and brings many of the same mechanics and features, with the main fresh touch being the new Diamond X-Up symbol. Beyond that, the formula is largely familiar: build the biggest multiplier the slot will let you reach, then carry it into free spins to help inflate payouts.

With Hades taking the spotlight instead of Zeus, the presentation has been reworked accordingly. The production values are still strong, and as with the prior title, Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades is an attractive game. Greek mythology may be a staple theme in slots, but Alchemy Gaming shows it can still feel impactful when executed well. The backdrop depicts a fiery, crackling, rocky underworld, while the character symbols look like miniature artworks. A suitably intense soundtrack rounds things out, creating a dramatic atmosphere mythology fans should appreciate.

On the stats and mechanics front, Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades doesn’t stray far from what came before. It again uses a 5-reel, 1,024 ways to win layout, matching the previous Chronicle of Olympus slot – while the original game, for reference, ran on a 5×3, 243 ways setup. Just like last time, Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades is a highly volatile title, although the default RTP has dipped slightly to 96.05%. Stakes range from 20 c to $/€50 per spin, and on the default RTP model, wins land at a frequency of 25.33%.

Since it’s a ways-to-win game rather than paylines, a win is paid when matching symbols connect from the leftmost reel across at least 3 consecutive reels. A 5 symbol low pay 10-A combination returns 0.8 to 1.2 times the bet, while 5 matching high pay character symbols pay 1.6 to 4 times the bet (there are 5 character types). Wilds can land on every reel and pay 5x the bet for a 5 wild hit. They also substitute for any regular paying symbol, and each wild used in a winning combo can contribute an individual x2, x3, or x5 win multiplier.

Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades: Slot Features

As for bonus content, Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades comes equipped with the X-Up feature, free spins, Upsizer, and a bonus buy.

Scatters

Red scatters can land on all reels in the base game, and on the leftmost and rightmost reels during free spins. Blue scatters show up on the leftmost and rightmost reels in the base game but do not appear in free spins, whereas diamond scatters can appear on the leftmost and rightmost reels in both the base game and free spins.

X-Up

Beside the reels, players can see a set of multiplier values on the X-Up Trail, with one value highlighted to indicate the current level. When 2 red scatters land, players collect 1 X-Up token. Gathering tokens unlocks higher multiplier values along the X-Up Trail. Landing 2 blue scatters in the base game permanently upgrades one X-Up multiplier level, beginning at the top of the X-Up Trail. Once the X-Up Trail has been entirely turned blue, any further 2 blue scatters will double the top-level multiplier again to x25. Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades also introduces a new diamond scatter. Hitting 2 diamond scatters in the base game triggers free spins and grants the current highest X-Up multiplier.

Free Spins

As another route in, landing 3, 4, or 5 red scatters in the base game awards 8 free spins using the active X-Up multiplier – plus a win of 2x, 20x, or 100x the bet, respectively. In free spins, hitting 2 red scatters grants +2 free spins plus 1 X-Up token. Landing 2 diamond scatters during the feature awards the top-level X-Up multiplier plus 2 additional free spins. Any collected X-Up tokens are cleared when free spins end, and X-Up tokens cannot be collected while the highest free spins multiplier is active.

Upsizer

When free spins are triggered, players may choose to activate a higher free spins multiplier by paying a calculated price. Any X-Up tokens already collected lower the cost of increasing the free spins multiplier.

Buy Bonus

Players can purchase the free spins feature with an x25 multiplier for 200 times the bet. If free spins are bought, X-Up tokens cannot be collected.

Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades: Slot Verdict

Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades feels like a confident continuation where the studio knows exactly what it wants to deliver and largely sticks to the established blueprint. That doesn’t mean it’s lazy in a negative sense. As with the two earlier entries, it’s a striking-looking game, with the characters and environment carrying plenty of mythic presence. Visual design is clearly a strength for Alchemy Gaming, and the audio does a solid job supporting the theme as well.

Where Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades is a touch less exciting is in the gameplay evolution. There’s nothing here that should stop fans of this style from enjoying themselves; it’s simply that the feature set is, for the most part, a repeat of what came before, so players craving novelty may feel underfed. The standout new element is the diamond scatter and the chance to enter free spins with the current highest multiplier when 2 land. How frequently that occurs is unclear, since neither the paytable nor the game documentation provides diamond scatter hit-rate details. Still, the diamond scatters exist, and that’s at least a small extra angle.

As with the previous game, one slightly odd point is that the first Chronicles of Olympus X-UP title offered an x50 multiplier at the top of its trail and didn’t require blue scatters to progress. On top of that, the maximum win here is 5,000x versus the original slot’s 50,000x, though whether either is realistic or mostly theoretical is a discussion for another time. Overall, Chronicles of Olympus II – Hades doesn’t move far beyond the Chronicles of Olympus II – Zeus version, but minor gripes aside, it delivers a polished mythology-themed slot experience.