The Library: Slot Overview

In what looks like another step toward total market takeover, software provider Hacksaw Gaming has brought yet another studio under its umbrella. This time it’s Kitsune (Japanese for fox) Studios, and its first release, The Library, is up for inspection. For its debut, Kitsune Studios has been equipped with Hacksaw Gaming’s Stackways mechanic, previously used in titles such as Mayan Stackways (2023) and Ronin Stackways (2023), to name a couple. The concept can quite literally pile symbols onto a reel—like cramming books onto a shelf—and Kitsune Studios combines it with a light ‘Book of’ flavour during the free spins bonus rounds.

A library might not seem like the most natural venue for gambling—quiet rules and all—but Push Gaming made Mystery Museum work, so perhaps Kitsune Studios can make a book archive shine too. And really, libraries have their own kind of magic: they’re vaults of knowledge, doorways to adventure, and borrowing a book is usually free. Not bad at all. They’re also often housed in impressive buildings, and the book-lined room created for The Library feels like a warm, inviting spot to settle in and read a page or two. Beyond the books, The Library also reimagines several well-known literary figures. More on that in the symbols section.

The Library’s 5×4 gaming area offers a massive number of ways to win, ranging from up to 100,000 in the base game to an enormous 3.2 million during free spins. Of course, to reach those levels you’ll need the Stackways feature to go completely wild. Players can choose a stake of 10 c to $/€100 and take on a game that is highly volatile with a maximum RTP of 96.34%.

The Library’s symbols include 10 to A as the lower card ranks, followed by four characters that look like AI-styled takes on Lewis Carrol, Dante Alighieri, Edgar Allan Poe, and Beatrix Potter. A 5 OAK royal win returns 0.5-0.6 times the bet, while a 5 OAK premium win pays 1.5-3 times the bet. Wild symbols do not appear in this game.

The Library: Slot Features

Stackways are the core feature in The Library, appearing in the base game and also throughout Stack the Shelves Spins and Super Stack the Shelves Spins.

Stackways

When a Stackways symbol lands, it stacks 2 to 10 symbols on its reel. There are two types. Normal Stackways carry values of 2, 3, or 4, while Revealing Stackways uncover values of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10. The symbol that gets stacked is determined by whichever option would create the longest winning combination from the symbols currently on the grid when the Stackways symbol triggers. If there is more than one option, the final selection is made randomly from the valid choices. Stacking only happens when it results in a win.

Stack the Shelves Spins

In the base game, landing 3 book scatters activates this feature and awards 10 free spins. Players are randomly assigned 1 symbol as the Special symbol. The Special symbol stacks and pays when it appears on 3 or more reels. Indicators beneath the reels display a number of 2 to 10, showing how many symbols will be stacked.

On top of that, the Stackways symbol can also land on the grid. When it does, it functions as the Special symbol, further increasing the stacking on the reel by the value it displays. Stackways merge their shown value with the value displayed beneath their reel, boosting the total stacking amount for that reel. Using this method, up to 20 symbols can be stacked on a reel. Stackways symbols only trigger when a Special symbol is included in a winning stack on its reel.

Players can gain +2 or +4 extra free spins by landing 2 or 3 scatters, respectively. If 4 scatters land, the feature upgrades to Super Stack the Shelves Spins and awards +4 free spins.

Super Stack the Shelves Spins

10 Super Stack the Shelves Spins are granted from the base game when 4 scatters land. This works like the standard Stack the Shelves Spins feature, except players are assigned 2 Special symbols at the beginning of the round.

Bonus Buy

Pressing the bonus buy button shows these choices: BonusHunt FeatureSpins mode costs 3x per spin to make each spin 5 times more likely to trigger a bonus game, while Stackways FeatureSpins cost 50x, and they guarantee at least 2 Stackways symbols land. Lastly, players can buy Stack the Shelves Spins for 150 times their bet.

The Library: Slot Verdict

Hacksaw Gaming is known for taking a favourite feature and driving it hard—tweaking, shaping, and repurposing it across multiple releases. With that in mind, it’s fair to wonder whether it says something that the studio hasn’t dramatically evolved its Stackways mechanic. Mayan Stackways was decent, and Ronin Stackways was too, but for whatever reason Hacksaw Gaming hasn’t explored the concept much beyond that. For its first release, Kitsune Studios has adopted the mechanic and built a game with attention-grabbing stats, especially the enormous number of potential ways to win, while the 10,000x win potential is appealing as well.

Still, figures alone don’t make a slot, and The Library does offer enjoyable moments that aren’t purely about the math. Stackways behave much as they have before, though the way they’re presented on the reels could have been stronger if the animation better matched the theme. The glass tube and electricity vibe feels a bit strange for a library setting. It’s a minor point, and ultimately the reel-altering impact is what matters. On that front, layering Stackways symbols on top of Special symbols during free spins is a smart touch, and The Library can flood the screen with symbols—if that kind of visual payoff is your thing.

As a debut slot, The Library holds up well. It’s missing some of the refinement that comes with time, and the AI-like look of the premium artwork is a little unusual. Still, it’s a bold choice for Kitsune Studios to lean into a mechanic Hacksaw Gaming hasn’t heavily championed, and it’s been implemented effectively here. And if the game ever lands 3.2 million ways, hopefully someone captures it, because that would give The Library some serious bragging rights.