It’s not too often you see asian-style visuals combined with the classic ancient Egypt theme, but this seems to be what AvatarUX is aiming for in HelioPOPolis. It’s definitely not your run of the mill Egypt presentation at least, and it reminded us of some of the earliest installments in the PopWins mechanic series. The futuristic new age soundtrack is refreshing, and it amplifies the aura of mystique.
The base game is all about maxing out the grid to 5×6, and this happens via the PopWins mechanic as usual. It awards 2 free spins with either synced reels or extended win symbols, and these are the modifiers you can choose from when the bonus round triggers as well. It comes with a progressive win multiplier that keeps building, as well as mystery symbols, and you can winup to 20,000x your stake.
The premium symbols pay between 3 and 4 x your stake for 5 of a kind wins, and 5-oak wins pay only from left to right while smaller combinations pay both ways. You getscarab wild symbolsin the bonus round only, and wilds step in for pay symbols to help complete wins.
ThePopWins mechanicreplaces each winning symbol with 2 new symbols, which also expands the grid accordingly. This repeats per new win, and the base gamegrid can expand to 5x6in size. When this happens you get exactly2 free spins, and these come with1 of the 2 modifiersyou also get in the full-blown bonus round (see below).
You need3, 4 or, 5 scattersto land in the same PopWins sequence to trigger theBonus Round, and this awards the following:
You can choose1 of 2 modifiersto bring with you into the bonus round, and these areSynced Reels and Extended Win Symbol. The Synced Reels feature can synchronize adjacent reels to create mega symbols of size 2×2 or 3×3. When the chosen Extended Win Symbol is part of a win, it extends to cover the entire reel. When the PopWins mechanic expands the grid, it resets to the lowest height of any of the reels between spins.
Mystery Symbolsare active no matter which of the above modifiers you go with, and these turn into the same randomly chosen matching symbol when they land. Theprogressive win multiplierincreases by+1 per win, and it never resets for as long as the feature lasts. If you max out the grid with 8 positions per reel, the multiplier increases by+2 per winafter that. This also gives you+2 extra spins, and both modifiers described above become active.
You can turn on theAnte Betif you’re willing to pay50 % more per spin, and this doubles your bonus round chances. Non-UK players, and anyone eligible, can take advantage of theBonus Buy menu, which comes with2 options. You can choose 1 of the 2 modifiers to bring with you into the bonus round for125x the stake, or get both from the get-go for1,000x your stake.
You get to see a few smaller PopWins here and there, before we purchase the top-tier bonus round close to the 1-minute mark. We got 11 free spins, an x7 starting win multiplier, and 15,552 starting win ways. You can see for yourself how we fared by hitting the play button below.
After having released some installments with more, shall we say, “accessible” visuals, AvatarUX has gone back to the somewhat vague and strange-looking visual style you got in their earliest releases. The familiarity of the ancient Egypt theme makes this even more evident, and the pace of the base game is also an unwelcome “blast from the past”. This should be an obvious fix, at least in our view, but the problem keeps “popping” up on a regular basis.
The awkward pause both before and after you hit the spin button is something we thought this studio had ironed out by now. We would suggest making the pace the same as in the bonus round, where everything flows smoothly. Speaking of, the bonus round comes with plenty of extras in this game, and not least if you manage to upgrade via the maxed out grid. The20,000x potentialseems achievable, and we just wish this studio would sort out the spin pace problem once and for all.
Pros
Cons
HipHopPop- is a rap battle installment in AvatarUX’ PopWins range, and maxing out the base game grid to 5×6 triggers the bonus round. This is the default grid size in the feature, and it comes with wilds and/or synced reels for payouts up to 50,000x your stake.
KokeshiPop- is a less volatile installment than the game at hand, and it comes with a somewhat similar visual style that perhaps fits the asian theme better. Maxing out the grid awards a win multiplier up to 20x, and it doubles per PopWin after that. It doubles per PopWin in a row during the bonus round as well, for payouts up to 10,000x your stake.
CritterPop- is a cosmic animals installment in AvatarUX’ dynamic grid series, and maxing out the base game grid to 5×6 awards 2 free spins also in this release. The upfront Reward Spin provides you with an abundance of bonus round extras, and you can win up to 20,000x your stake.
HelioPOPolis by AvatarUX combines Asian-style visuals with an ancient Egypt theme, creating a unique and captivating experience. The game features the PopWins mechanic, where the grid expands to 5×6 by replacing winning symbols with new ones. The base game offers 2 free spins with synced reels or extended win symbols as modifiers, and the bonus round includes a progressive win multiplier and mystery symbols. The maximum win is 20,000x your stake. The game also offers scarab wild symbols and pays both ways for smaller combinations. By maxing out the grid, you can trigger the bonus round and choose from two modifiers: synced reels or extended win symbols. The progressive win multiplier increases with each win and never resets. The Ante Bet option doubles your chances of triggering the bonus round. Non-UK players can use the Bonus Buy feature to choose one modifier for 125x the stake or both for 1,000x the stake. The game has a few pacing issues, but the bonus round is filled with exciting features and the potential for big wins. Overall, HelioPOPolis offers a unique and rewarding gaming experience.