SugarPop Slot
SugarPop is a slot that's barely a slot. In fact, it has much more in common with social and smart phone games such as Candy Crush Saga and Bejeweled than online slots. There are five 'reels', but really it's a selection of sweetie symbols arranged in a 5×5 grid. Each time you press the 'spin' button the grid clears and fills with new symbols. Instead of pay lines, you simply have to land three or more identical symbols on the grid that are touching each other.
Any winning symbols disappear and new ones fall down to replace them, in an avalanche style reminiscent of Gonzo's Quest. Each candy that lands in a winning combination has a certain 'credit' value, and of course the more candies you pop, the more credits you receive back. There are seven candies in total, and all are different colours and shapes.
To get playing, you chose your coin value from 0.02 to 1.00, and your bet amount from 50 to 250. Your total wager is these two values multiplied together. When you're ready to start popping candies, hit the green 'spin' button.
Payout & bonus rounds
The cheapest candy in the sweet shop is the pink heart at four credits per candy. The sweetest one of all is the red gobstopper at twenty credits.
You have several bonus features in this game. There are simply too many to list here so we'll just go through the most important. For the full facts, play our demo version of the game and read the games rules.
If you make a combo of four of the same candy, they merge into one 'super color' candy with a 2x multiplier. If a further combo is made with this candy when the new candies cascade down, you get double the value.
If you make a combo of FIVE or more of the same candy, they merge into a 'color bomb' candy. If this gets involved in a winning combo BEFORE your next spin, ALL the candies on the grid of that colour add to your credit balance and pop.
To the right of the grid there's a container that fills up the more candies you pop. Once it is completely full, you progress to the next level. In the game there are five different worlds to explore, and each world contains thirty levels.
The bonus pattern feature displays a special pattern on the grid that you must try to recreate by filling each position with a popping candy. Completing the pattern will win you up to six hundred additional points towards reaching the next level.
There are several bonus items that become available as you progress through the levels. From level one, for example, you might land the lollipop symbol which magically swirls all the candies about, hopefully to land more winning combos. There are ten different special candies in total, all of which have differing properties:
- Candy Cane, Cotton Candy, Jelly Beans, Caramel Chew, Gumdrop, Peanut Butter Cup, Lollipop, Chocolate, Jawbreaker and White Chocolate.
SugarPop might not actually be classed as a slot, but it's still a lot of fun to play. The numerous features certainly add to the slots' appeal, but there really isn't any decision making at all, so it's all down to random chance … just like a slot! If you're bored of watching the reels spin round and round and round as with most online slots, Betsoft's SugarPop at least allows you something very different indeed.