Depths of Fortune: Slot Overview

A 2017 Forbes piece estimated that the 20 million tons of gold in the sea were worth $771 trillion at the time. The catch is that this gold is dispersed in seawater, not conveniently sitting in wrecked galleons on the ocean floor. That makes recovery a problem, since each litre of seawater holds only billionths of a gram of the precious metal. So much for that easy payday. While you’re brainstorming the next big scheme, you can instead join us for a look at Depths of Fortune from developer AvatarUX. This online slot goes treasure-hunting beneath the waves and, notably, does so without the studio’s notorious PopWins mechanic.

Head far enough down and you reach depths where sunlight can’t reach. This pitch-black, otherworldly zone is still largely uncharted thanks to darkness, crushing pressure, temperature, and other hazards like toxic elements. Depths of Fortune doesn’t venture quite that far, but it does sit in a gloomy-looking stretch of ocean, visible through a portal behind the active grid. There’s a hint of Jules Verne-style steampunk in the cast and the metal pipework, with possible visual nods to Nolimit City’s Das xBoot as well. That fits, since the game info references “savvy sailors” unearthing hidden riches in the early 20th Century.

Depths of Fortune links a Loaded Reel to the far-left side of a 5-reel main matrix. Each main reel displays four symbols, and an expanding effect allows for up to 16,807 ways to win. Stakes range from 10 c to $/€100 per spin, and the volatility has been set to medium. There are also several extra betting options, and Depths of Fortune’s RTP reaches 96% at best, although two lower versions exist as well.

To score with the pay symbols, you need combinations of at least 3 of a kind across 10 symbol types. The low pays are 10-A card royals, returning 0.5-1 times the bet for five, while the top tier consists of 5 character symbols paying 2 to 5 times the bet for a 5 OAK hit. Wilds support this by substituting for any standard pay symbol. A cascade mechanic removes winning symbols from the grid and drops new ones into place, giving you another shot at winning from the same spin.

Depths of Fortune: Slot Features

The Loaded Reel is the most obvious mechanic, so it’s the best place to begin. It sits beside the main reels, and the top cell of the Loaded Reel is called the Trigger Zone. As the reels spin or cascades occur, reward symbols and blank spaces travel upward from bottom to top on the Loaded Reel. When a reward symbol reaches the Trigger Zone, it activates. The available rewards differ between the base game and the bonus round. In the base game, the rewards are:

• Trigger Zone Expansion – the Trigger Zone expands 1 position downwards.
• Grid Expansion – all reels expand up to 3 positions upwards.
• Multiplier – the multiplier on the reward is applied to the on-screen win.
• Lower Pay Upgrade – randomly upgrades up to 5 low pay symbols to high pay symbols.
• Wilds and Colossal Wilds – are added to the reels.

Hold & Win

When at least 5 Coin symbols land on the reels, the bonus game starts. It runs on a grid that drops only blanks, Coins, and rewards triggered via the Loaded Reel. As Coins appear, they cascade down to the lowest available position. After that, all Coins stay locked on the reels between spins and carry values of 1 to 100 – Colossal Coins have values of 500 to 5,000. Hold & Win begins with 3 lives (3 spins), and landing a new Coin resets lives back to 3. The Loaded Reel produces fresh rewards each spin and shifts upward with every cascade. In the bonus round, the Loaded Reel rewards are:

• Coin and Colossal Coin.
• Coin Upgrade – visible Coins upgrade to a higher value.
• Extra Lives – players get up to 3 extra lives.
• Collect – a treasure chest lands on the reels to collect all visible coins.
• Collect and Multiply – a treasure chest lands on the reels to collect all visible coins and multiply them by the multiplier value.

Also, Grid Expansion and Trigger Zone Expansion rewards can appear in the bonus round.

Xpress

The Xpress area in Depths of Fortune is where players can choose the following:

• Fully Loaded – 5x the bet, each spin has no blanks on the Loaded Reel.
• Bonus – 60x the bet to start with 5 Coins on a 5×4 machine.
• Bonus Plus – 120x the bet to start with 6 Coins on a 5×5 machine.
• Bonus Premium – 240x the bet to start with 7 Coins on a 5×6 machine.
• Bonus Max – 500x the bet to start with 8 Coins on a 5×7 machine.

Depths of Fortune: Slot Verdict

There was a time when finding an AvatarUX slot that wasn’t built around pop mechanics felt like a real event. These days, the studio has made it clear it’s happy to step away from its favourite PopWins mechanic now and then to try something else. The good news is that the non-PW releases have generally been strong. Think back to Worms of Valor, Nugget, and FloridaMan as three solid, playable examples. Depths of Fortune belongs in that group. AvatarUX not only takes a break from PopWins here, but also experiments—successfully—with feature ideas you rarely (if ever) see in its catalogue.

The two big highlights in Depths of Fortune are the Loaded Reel and the Hold & Win round. One important detail about the base-game Loaded Reel is that the Trigger Zone seems to begin each spin empty, even if you’re spending 5x per spin via the Fully Loaded betting option. In practice, that means you need at least one win to push a reward into the Trigger Zone and give it a chance to fire. More wins help when there are blank spaces to cascade through, and there’s still no certainty a reward will translate into a payout. It can, though—and while straightforward cascades can already deliver nicely, they can feel even stronger when rewards start interacting with them.

Depths of Fortune’s Hold & Win is also worth attention, since this isn’t the type of feature AvatarUX is best known for. Credit where it’s due for creating a streak respin round that plays a bit differently than usual; the Loaded Reel again deserves some of that praise for keeping things unpredictable. Treasure chest collects can help by opening up space as well. This isn’t about to dethrone Money Train overnight, and the 20,000x win cap—while solid—still sits below what the Train can achieve. Still, if you’re in the mood for a hold ’n win with a twist, Depths of Fortune is one to add to the “try it” list.