
Elysium Studios has released Jekyll & Hyde Co, a dark fantasy slot set in Victorian London. In this slot, you’ll hunt for demons, multiply your winnings, and compete for big cash prizes. (You can find out about the details of the game here.) The company says players can win as much as 5,000 times what they put in. And the game comes with a standard 5-by-5 grid of symbols. To get a payout in Jekyll & Hyde Co, you need to match some of those symbols next to each other on an adjacent reel, going from left to right.
To me, there’s a bigger picture here. There's a new wave of slot machines that take old ideas and turn them into interactive experiences that encourage player engagement. I think Jekyll & Hyde Co is part of this movement. As long-time readers know, the Jekyll-and-Hyde theme is well-known thanks to Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous novel. By tapping into the existing popularity of the Jekyll and Hyde theme, Elysium Studios has created a gothic-themed game that many will recognize immediately. But by adding a few unique twists, Elysium Studios also made sure Jekyll & Hyde Co doesn’t feel like a generic version of something else.
In my opinion, the core of Jekyll & Hyde Co is the Price Hunt feature. Only on reels 1 and 5 do Dr Jekyll and Ms Hyde appear, and both will begin collecting the multipliers shown above the reels. When either symbol appears, the multipliers collected are paid instantly. That means the two main characters aren't simply used as static graphics in Jekyll & Hyde Co; instead, they're both actively hunting monsters throughout the game world.
This adds yet another layer of excitement to the game. Haunted Citizen symbols show up when Jekyll or Hyde is on the board. If any of these symbols land when either Jekyll or Hyde is active, they'll be changed to monster symbols and become eligible for additional multipliers. For players who enjoy playing games with a high level of momentum during individual plays, this is a great way to make that momentum even greater. It also shows how iGaming designers are thinking differently today and creating bonus features that fit directly into the narrative rather than operating independently.
There are also Free Spins included in the game. Landing three or four Scatter Symbols will give you anywhere from eight to fifteen Free Spins on a reel set which contains nothing but Monsters, Multiplier symbols, and Jackpot symbols. Like many modern slots, Jekyll & Hyde Co has three Local Jackpot Prizes and a Bonus Buy Option, so you don't have to wait too long to enter the Bonus Round if you prefer to use it that way.
According to Anthony Dalla-Giacoma, Chief Commercial Officer at Swintt, Jekyll & Hyde Co is a remake of the classic story featuring players hunting down monsters to earn multipliers and win 5,000 times their bet. He makes it very clear that the idea behind releasing Jekyll & Hyde Co was to combine an easily recognizable literary theme with simple-to-understand reward mechanics, along with strong win potential.
For Kiwi gamers using International Casino Platforms, Jekyll & Hyde Co represents what slots based on fantasy are evolving toward. Even though most Kiwis love seeing good graphics and settings that remind them of movies or books, it seems like most are starting to look for ways to be rewarded with bonus mechanics that are fun and easy to understand.