Orbitfall

Orbitfall: Slot Overview

It might not have been the first video game, but Space Invaders is said to have been the first shoot 'em up and the first to feature endless gameplay since there was no final level. Released in Japan in 1978, Space Invaders set a benchmark for the genre as it sent wave after wave of invaders creeping down the screen while players blasted them to smithereens with a horizontally moving laser. Archaic by modern standards but huge at the time, Space Invaders' DNA permeates the gaming industry, and its influence can be felt in ELK Studios' online slot Orbitfall.

Orbitfall tweaks the formula in some ways, though, since the spaceship symbols in this game move upwards, though blocker symbols do drop down. Spaceships land in a 6-columned, 6-8 row gaming area beneath rows of blocker tiles and a malevolent, multi-eyed entity from beyond the stars. Orbitfall might look a lot more advanced than the early Space Invaders game, but a cracking bleep-heavy soundtrack and an overall old-school vibe reinforce its retro credentials. A comparison could be made with Nolimit City's Space Donkey and Inspired's slot Space Invaders.

Like slotting a coin into an arcade game, players stake 20 c to $/€100 per game ground with the goal of blasting blockers and levelling up. Rated 7 out of 10 by ELK, Orbitfall is a medium-high volatile slot bearing the studio's favoured 94% RTP. Orbitfall is a cluster pays slot, so wins are created when 5 or more identical pay symbols are connected in horizontal or vertical directions.

Eight pay symbols appear in the game. Little versions of blue, green, yellow and red spaceships are the low pays, while larger versions of the blue, green, yellow, and red spaceships are the higher pays. Clusters of 5 OAK award 0.25x to 1x, while clusters of 10 OAK pay 2 to 50 times the bet. The wild substitutes for everything except the bonus symbol, and a payline of wilds has the same value as the highest payout symbol. Wild symbols and regular pay symbols may land in standard 1x1, super 2x2, or mega 3x3 size, counting as the number of 1x1 symbols they consist of. Empty spaces above big symbols are filled with 1x1 symbols of the same type.

Orbitfall: Slot Features

In Orbitfall, all symbols that were part of a winning cluster are removed from the gaming area, and empty spaces are filled by symbols zooming upwards, with new ones coming in from the bottom. Avalanches repeat as long as new wins appear. Cluster wins destroy blockers. All winning symbols shoot upward towards the blocker symbols. One blocker symbol per column per cluster is destroyed.

Orbitfall's first level has 5 rows of symbols and a row of blockers above. The second level has 2 rows of blockers, the third level has 3 rows of blockers, and the final level has 1 row of blockers. Play advances to the next level when all blockers at the current level have been destroyed. When going into level 2 or 3, remaining symbols carry over, and each level increases the chance of feature symbols.

Each symbol drop in the final level causes the blockers to move downwards one step, adding another row of blockers at the top. The final level ends when a blocker symbol reaches the bottom symbol row. The current active multiplier and potentially remaining redrops are brought into the final level when it is triggered.

Feature Symbols

Blocker symbols may contain a feature symbol, which is released when the blocker is destroyed. These are:

• Redrops - increases the redrop count. A redrop is triggered and consumed at the end of the game round when there are no more wins or at the end of a free drop. All symbols are replaced in a redrop, but current blockers remain.
• Level Clear - removes all other blockers, triggering them to release their symbols and advancing the game to the next level.
• Multiplier symbol - increases the global multiplier. The global multiplier is applied to all subsequent wins in the current round.

Lazer Feature

A normal 1x1 pay symbol may drop in carrying a lazer feature. It charges the lazer when part of a winning combination. A lazer charge is consumed at the end of the game round when there are no more wins or at the end of a free drop; then, an entire column is removed.

Alien Attack

An alien attack may occur at the end of a game round when there are no more wins or at the end of a free drop. When triggered, 1 to 6 randomly chosen columns have all payout symbols removed.

Free Drops

A bonus symbol reaching the top symbol row triggers the bonus game and 5 free drops. The current active multiplier and potential remaining redrops are brought into the bonus round. The bonus game cannot be retriggered.

X-iter

The X-iter has Bonus Hunt spins, which cost 3x the bet each and make triggering the bonus game more than 4 times more likely. Fleetcall costs 10x the bet to start the game round on level 2, while Play Among the Stars starts the game round on the final level for 75x the bet. The bonus round can be bought for 100x the bet, or 500x buys Endless Annihilation, guaranteeing entry to the final level with a boosted start with multiple features.

Orbitfall: Slot Verdict

Retro nostalgia continues to ripple through the gambling industry like a cool new pair of sneakers, and numerous studios have gotten on board. The appeal isn't hard to spot either, as there is something wholesomely enjoyable about a slot that isn't trying to be cutting-edge radical but heads in the opposite direction, taking inspiration from the past. The old-school phenomenon is alive and kicking in the video game industry, and thanks to slots like Orbitfall, it's a growing force in slots as well.

Having links to a big-name classic of the past, such as Space Invaders, doesn't hurt the appeal either. And while Orbitfall's action isn't exactly the same as that classic, the spaceships, the shooting, and the upwards/downwards movement make it hard not to connect them. ELK Studios, being the creative force it is, has made sure Orbitfall belongs wholly to them, however, and the slot contains numerous twists and thrill spikers. Some of these are the trio of feature symbols, which help by clearing blockers and providing a free life. Others are the alien attack and lazer boost. Feature symbols are also able to increase the multiplier, which is a critical piece of the puzzle. Levelling up bestows the game with a mission element, giving players an incentive to keep hitting spin, and like actual Space Invaders, it could get frustrating. Achieving the objective and blasting organically into the final level might be so challenging it kills the motivation to continue, but who knows? The blasting may prove fruitful, and Orbitfall has a win cap of 7,500 times the bet to fly your ship towards.

Whether the up, down, space invaderery thing floats your boat or not, it's hard to deny ELK Studios has once again got all creative when designing Orbitfall. It might end up being a winsome novelty instead of a chart-busting hit, but there is more than enough room in the pudgy, overfed online gambling space for original slots like Orbitfall.