In the Zone

In the Zone: Slot Overview

A while back, software provider ELK Studios went on a classic slot binge, releasing games such as Win Win, Hit it Hard, and Knockout Diamonds. Proving that the pull of the past is too hard to resist, the team has once again found inspiration from yesteryear and mingled the spirit of an earlier time with modern twists and turns. The outcome is In the Zone, a modern fruit slot that squeezes quite a lot of gameplay onto its limited grid space, mixing old and new into something ELK Studios calls a 'Modern Classic.'

If you're used to ELK slots exploding off the screen with gorgeous graphics, deep gaming worlds, and popping artwork, you better take a deep breath before having a peek at In the Zone. That's because while In the Zone has been tastefully painted, it does look plain when judged by the developer's own standards. A lot of developers' standards, really, where the grid sits in a bare, brassy contraption in a bare, stripy room. The graphics probably aren't going to blow hair back, but fortunately, the gameplay is more intricate than a first impression might suggest.

For starters, even though In the Zone might only utilise 3 reels, thanks to what ELK Studios calls Bigways, on every spin, including respins, the grid lands 2, 3, or 6 symbols per reel, producing 8 to 44 connecting paylines. Wins are generated when matching symbols are connected horizontally or diagonally on all reels. Furthermore, despite looking small, the slot packs an 8 out of 10, highly volatile math model, though the 16.3% hit rate is on the lower end as it tends to be on fruit slots. As for the RTP, it's the usual default ELK figure of 94%, which falls below the industry standard. The studio has worked out a way to bolt on five feature buys, which are optional, though base bet choice is mandatory, and the options range from 20 c to $/€100.

Going through the pay symbols from the lowest value to the highest, we find cherries, lemons, oranges, watermelons, bells, bars, sevens, crowns, and diamonds. Payout values vary from 1x the bet when landing 3 winning cherries up to 25x if 3 diamond symbols create a win. When wild symbols hit, they may be used to substitute any regular paying symbol.

In the Zone: Slot Features

For a small-looking slot, In the Zone comes with a lot of bells and whistles. The extras are multipliers, respins, Nudging Wilds, Linked Spins, a bonus game, and X-iter feature buys. Nudging reels keep the same number of symbols on them and Linked Spins always land with the same number of symbols on them.

Gameplay Features

• Multiplier - Multipliers can randomly appear above any symbol except scatters. Each payline going through a multiplier position is multiplied.
• Respin - If 2 reels display the same symbols but there is no win, the 2 reels lock in place, and a respin occurs on the third reel. Multipliers on a locked reel are persistent and stay in their positions. Multipliers on a locked reel stay in their positions and are persistent.
• Nudging Wilds - Landing a wild on a reel forces the reel to nudge down 1 step at a time, triggering respins on the other reels until the wild is no longer in view. Multipliers on nudging reels follow their respective positions, nudging down with the reel and are persistent.
• Linked Spin - The Linked Spin feature links 2 or 3 reels together by landing identical symbols on them.

Bonus Game

Hitting 3 scatters triggers the bonus game with free spins and a global multiplier. Landing scatters on a free spin triggers additional free spins. The global multiplier starts at x1 and increases for each new free spin and multiplies each win with its current value.

X-iter

In the Zone also manages to wedge in five X-iter bonus modes. First is the Bonus Hunt, giving players more than triple the chance of triggering the bonus game at a cost of 3x the bet. Multiplier Mania costs 10x the bet and buys 1 spin with at least 1 guaranteed multiplier on each reel. The Locked Spin buys a spin, guaranteeing the Linked Spin feature for 25x the bet, while the bonus game can be bought for 100x. At a cost of 250x, players can guarantee a Super Spin where the leftmost and rightmost reels only show diamonds.

In the Zone: Slot Verdict

In the Zone has been billed as a 'Modern Classic', but it's hard to see the same gamblers who got their rocks off playing contemporary slots like those in the Nitropolis range, for example, having the same reaction to this. Some may find it a little too classic than modern for their tastes. However, In the Zone is not as old-fashioned as it might first seem. ELK Studios has built up considerable experience in making classic-looking slots stacked with a wealth of features, and In the Zone certainly counts as one of those.

It starts by doing so via the reels themselves, so even though there are just 3 reels, they can land up to 6 symbols and create up to 44 connected ways to win, providing more space to manoeuvre. Within these parameters, the game gets to work nudging reels, nudging wilds, respinning, linking, all sorts, giving curious players a fair amount of details to explore. A lot of these things, maybe all of them on a feature-by-feature basis, don't glow with originality, but mixing them together in a game like this manages to give In the Zone a spark of individuality.

After weighing the angles, In the Zone seems to have enough spark to attract players who enjoy blending classic and modern elements in their gameplay. It stands apart from the usual 3x3, 5-payline fruit or joker slots, offering a bit more flair. That said, it's a tricky one to pin down. While it has appeal for a niche audience, the relatively modest 2,500x potential, basic gameplay, and lower-than-ideal RTP might not be enough to entice more hardcore players to give it a spin.