Cygnus 6

Cygnus 6: Slot Overview

Ever since humankind took a break from running from predators to look up at the sky, stars have been one of our earliest mysteries. From the spirits of ancestors to holes in the sky dome, cultures across the globe have tried since early times to explain what they might be. Even now, with modern scientific instruments, the galaxy brims with unexplained mystery, and nowhere in slots is the feeling of nighttime wonder more pronounced than in developer ELK Studio's Cygnus range. What started in 2019, we catch up with in 2025 due to the release of Cygnus 6, another celestial-themed slot that evokes a primal wonder of the sky while providing a place for mysteriously minded gamblers to have a punt.

The Cygnus series has sent players to various exotic nighttime locations over the years, and in the sixth installation, we're elevated above the clouds in the 15th-century citadel of the Incas, Machu Picchu. Except, this is Machu Picchu come to life, where the 'ancient light stirs once more', which may refer to the burning fires dotting the landscape. As before, the night sky is one of the main focal points, and this has been brought to life with an ocean of stars, Inca imagery, and constellations that are directly connected to some of the features. Cygnus slots are known for their cosmic mystery, and ELK Studios has ensured Cygnus 6 brings the enigma.

In the base game, symbols drop into a 6x4 grid with 4,096 ways to win. Winning symbols explode after awarding a payout, causing remaining symbols to drop downwards, left or right to a resting position. An additional row is added at the top, and the grid is filled. This Avalanche mechanic continues as long as new wins appear, and the grid is capped at 8 rows high, where there are 262,144 ways to win. Bet selection varies from a minimum of $/€0.20 to a maximum of $/€100, while the math model is highly volatile, and the RTP is 94% when betting normally or using X-iter feature buys.

The pay symbols are blue, green, and red gems, as well as birds, serpents, cats, and stars. The gem symbols pay 0.2x the bet when 6 form a winning way, increasing to 0.3x to 5x the bet for landing 6 matching higher paying symbols. The wild symbol substitutes for any payout symbol.

Cygnus 6: Slot Features

Cygnus 6's cluster of features is made up of Star Constellations, special symbols, a starlight effect, Cygnus Realm, free spins, and X-iter buys.

Star Constellations

The game begins with star constellation 1, which is a butterfly with 3 stars. Each star in a constellation has 3 states - inactive, active, and consumed. Stars start inactive. A star becomes active after a winning symbol appears in front of it. A star becomes consumed after it has been part of a starlight feature. Triggering the starlight feature, Cygnus Realm or bonus round advances to the next star constellation on the grid. Progress is indicated by advancing one step on the rightmost pillar's mini map ladder. After completing the final stage 4 constellation, the progress system returns to constellation 1. Progress is saved at each bet level.

Special Symbols

Special symbols are the star charger, multiplier, scatter symbol, wild, and Max Win.

• Star Charger - This symbol is activated when it reaches the bottom. It activates 1-3 stars in the star constellation before converting to a wild.
• Multiplier - When this symbol reaches the bottom or the leftmost column, it increases the current active multiplier by 1 before becoming wild. The multiplier multiplies all wins and resets for a new base game spin. Multiplier symbols activate before star charger symbols if both activate on the same spin. The multiplier increases before the payout.
• Max Win - If this symbol reaches the leftmost column, it pays the remaining amount needed to reach the maximum win. A max win symbol on the bottom of row 2-6 is redropped on the column to the left at the end of an Avalanche cycle, just once per cycle. Scatters are redropped in this way as well.

Starlight

This feature is triggered when 2 or more stars within the current star constellation are in the active state at the end of an Avalanche. It transforms all symbols on one or more constellation lines into matching pay symbols or wild. When activated, the active stars in the constellation become consumed and cannot contribute to a new starlight feature in the current game round.

Cygnus Realm

Cygnus Realm triggers when all constellation stars are activated or consumed. It is played on a 6x8 grid, and has three symbols - blocker, mystery and the premium mystery. The current active multiplier is carried over, and 3 spins are granted. All symbols in front of stars in the star constellation are transformed into mystery symbols. Blocker symbols fall out with each spin; mystery symbols are sticky. Landing a premium mystery symbol resets the counter to 3 before converting to a regular mystery symbol. When no spins remain, all mystery symbols transform to matching pay symbols.

Bonus Game

A bonus scatter symbol reaching the leftmost column triggers the bonus game, where players are awarded 7 free spins, with the current active multiplier. Should a scatter reach the leftmost reel, +3 spins are granted. The round starts with the safety level at 4 rows high, but each winning spin adds +1 row to the safety level up to a maximum of 8. The multiplier is persistent during free spins.

X-iter

The X-iter is where players may engage various bonus modes.

• The Bonus Hunt - 2.5x to buy a spin with more than 3 times the chance of triggering a bonus.
• Mega Bonus Hunt - 5x the bet to make it more than 6 times the chance of triggering a bonus. In both bonus hunt buys, if the Cygnus Realm triggers, the swan constellation is carried over.
• Cosmic Spins - 50x the bet to draw a pillar multiplier and a round played on 8 rows.
• Bonus Game - costs 100x to buy, and if the Cygnus Realm triggers, a 9-star Cygnus star constellation carries over.
• Shooting Stars - 500x the bet, which draws a pillar multiplier from 2 to 10, and 1-4 star constellations are selected on the rightmost pillar. Cygnus Realm plays out, and all collected constellation stars are placed on the grid as mystery symbols.

Cygnus 6: Slot Verdict

Cygnus 6 reinforces why ELK Studios' long-running night sky series has become such a popular choice. Each new entry tends to push the aesthetic and mechanical identity a little further, and number six is no exception. The shift of location to a reimagined Machu Picchu gives Cygnus 6 a distinctive flavour that is part mythic, cosmic, and ancient. ELK Studios excels at building an atmosphere, and here the studio has drawn on its experience to make excellent use of the celestial theme, weaving stars, constellations, and cosmic progression into the gameplay. As a result, Cygnus 6 has a nice feeling of cohesion, is visually striking, and builds on feature ideas found in previous releases.

Keeping the positives going, Cygnus 6 treads familiar ground while introducing enough new things to keep the series going. The Star Constellation effect mixed with the starlight feature adds a progressive element, and creating matching symbols along constellation lines can be a boon in a game with so many potential ways to win. Constellation patterns also link neatly to the Cygnus Realm feature, which is a new addition to the series, splitting the focus between two bonus rounds rather than having just a batch of free spins to look forward to. Winning potential is massive, too, equalling the 50,000x cap found in Cygnus 4 and Cygnus 5, but teasing players with the max win symbol instead of needing to reach the top of a multiplier pillar. On the less positive side, Cygnus 6 could be hard work, X-iter buys could be punishing, and winning big at times felt like a fleeting dream whisked away on etheric winds upon waking. Progression slots may also not be everyone's cup of tea.

But, this is a slot, so good fortune is also possible to find amongst the bad, and there is a lot up for grabs here, helping Cygnus 6 come across as a confident continuation of ELK Studios' atmospheric series. It smartly expands the Cygnus formula, not so much through the means of reinvention, but by taking a skeleton of things that have worked well before and slapping slabs of new meat on there for gamblers to continue their star-strewn journey.