Cygnus 2 Slot Review

We have looked at three ELK Studio games before this one, giving positive reviews to two entries in this provider’s Gold series, Tahiti and Ecuador. We recently noticed that their sequel to their 2019 Cygnus slot is trending high on multiple market charts. So, we thought that we should give it a look-see, given that the original spinner got stellar marks when it came out, and we remember it being heaps of fun to play.

ELK Studios, for the uninformed, is a Swedish developer boasting a mobile-first approach that launched its operations in 2013 and released Cygnus 2 in early August 2022. It almost instantly shot up to the top one hundred rankings in several vital interactive gaming territories. Yet, after a week or so, it dropped out of this elite society. Now, more than a month and a half after its debut, it is peaking, giving us ample reason to tell you everything about it.

Theme & Design

Cygnus is a Milky Way constellation found on the northern part of this galaxy’s plane. The name derives from the Lattin-Greek term for swan, and Deneb, one of the shiniest stars in the night sky, belongs to this constellation. In Greek mythology, multiple characters bore the name Cygnus, and most of them transformed into swans. For example, Cygnus of Aetolia, son of the god Apollo, morphed into a swan following his suicide.

ELK’s Cygnus 2 utilizes the swan theme by setting this game inside an older observatory, with the discussed constellation in view through a glass roof. The first game in this franchise, the one that introduced the gravity mechanic, featured a pyramid at dusk as its backdrop. Here, the visuals are more eye-pleasing, with soothing blues filling the observatory room that boasts ancient Greek décor, with the symbols landing in a golden-framed layout in front of a sizeable bookcase packed to the brim with different colored astronomy manuals.

The music used here is peaceful and atmospheric. The sound effects are a bit more slot-like. Yet, they are not loud or annoying. They complement the set tone. Once the left side meter starts filling, the music picks up, and its level of dynamism gets boosted, which is par the course for most reel spinners.

The spin button in Cygnus 2 is in the lower right corner, and in the top one on that side of the screen is the auto-spin function. The bet and balance info rests on a bar at the bottom of the game’s interface, while the bet adjuster, the X-iter button, and the settings icon are in a vertical stack on the left side of the screen. In that order.

Specs & Gameplay

Cygnus 2 has a rudimentary 6×4 layout that expands to 6×8. The game’s variance has gotten set to medium-high with a hit frequency of 23.6. ELK has chosen to adjust the RTP of this sequel to 94%, which is a 2.1% drop from the original. However, the max win here is an impressive x50,000, a ten-fold improvement, on a max bet of $100. The minimum wager here is $0.2, and the number of betways at default stands at 4,096, expanding up to 262,144.

Cygnus 2 is an avalanche/cascading slot. When wins form here, symbols that comprise them explode, leaving space for those above them to roll into new positions (the gravity mechanic) and additional tokens to drop on the game area. To fill all the symbol positions, you must hit a sequence of several winning combos. These will consist of at least three matching tokens landing on a predefined betway. You begin with four rows and 4,096 betways, but if you hit four wins in a row, this slot’s layout will feature eight rows and 262,144 ways to win.

The low-pay tokens in this slot are three different-colored gems, paying x0.2 for six-of-a-kind combinations. The high-paying ones are coin-like medallions that feature a scorpion, a goat, a lion, and the sun. They generate wins from x0.4 to x15 when six matching ones are in view on a betway.

The letter W is the wild in Cygnus 2, substituting all other tokens except for the bonus one and the multiplier symbol. The bonus token is a golden medallion with a purpled gem placed inside a winged ornament.

Bonus Features

Multiplier symbols can drop to the grid with x2, x3, x5, and x10 values attached. When these bonus symbols reach the bottom of a column, they will get dropped from the top again, moving one reel left. Upon arriving in the leftmost reel, a multiplier will apply its value to the game’s meter and transform into a wild. The multiplier shown on the meter will get overlaid onto all other wins in the ongoing sequence, and it resets before a new round.

When the bonus token reaches the leftmost reel, it activates the Free Drops Bonus Mode, awarding seven drops, bringing the current active multiplier into this round. If another bonus symbol manages to reach the leftmost reel, three additional Free Drops get awarded. Note that each drop begins with four rows and the active multiplier.

The X-iter feature buy button, available in specific jurisdictions, allows inpatient players to buy an increased chance to trigger Free Drops (cost x2), to get one drop with a guaranteed multiplier (cost x10), to buy one drop with multiplier wilds (cost x25). For a price of x100, Cygnus 2 will guarantee entry into its Free Drops mode, and for x500, it will deliver access to this round with wild multipliers in play.

GOSU Verdict

First off, is Cygnus 2 better than Cygnus? Essentially, this is an upgrade. It has a more polished look and better win potential. So, we say – yes. The original felt a bit like a Gold ELK slot, but now, with Cygnus 2, this hopefully long-lasting astronomy-themed series has carved out its niche with its specific tone and gameplay mechanics. ELK Studios has been ramping up the quality of its releases in recent years, and this is just another example of what this Swedish company can bring to gamblers worldwide. We are fans of the gravity mechanic and the diverse range of bonus buy options here. The lower RTP did bother us a bit, but the multiplier wilds made up for it. All in all, Cygnus 2 gets our recommendation.

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