“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you,” as Joseph Heller put it in Catch-22. Shadow Society is a work by Red Tiger that may not be suitable for readers who already suspect a shadowy cabal controls the fate of humanity from behind the scenes. Shadow Society, however, stays on the safe side, never venturing too deeply into any global order theorem. Instead, it uses a progressive mechanism and free spins with an increasing multiplier to have some fun with its subject matter while still providing some entertainment value.
Shadow Society takes place in a bygone age, when people used Venetian masks to cover their identities, rather than in a dimly illuminated chamber where powerful people view tapes of the moon landings being created in a top-secret film studio on earth. Not very, unfortunately, as the masks only provide limited anonymity. The game takes place in a somewhat baffling environment, with a 3×3 grid and a progress bar, both hidden underneath what appears to be torn parchment. The music is dark and synth-like, giving the game an eerie, pulsating 1980s vibe. It fits the theme, which is secretive, but the game doesn’t convey the idea that it has the type of secret information that would cause nations to collapse and people to doubt the fundamental nature of reality.
Shadow Society may be played for as little as 10 cents per spin all the way up to £/€40 per spin on desktop computers, mobile devices, and tablets. It’s a rather risky slot machine, having a potential 95.76% RTP at its highest. Starting with just 3 reels and 3 rows and 9 possible paylines, the grid may expand as more features are unlocked. It can grow to a size of 5×5 with 25 win lines at maximum capacity.
There are 9 normal pay symbols, and a win is generated when three or more of them appear on adjacent reels, first on the left and working their way to the right. The low-paying items include assorted writing implements, keys, scrolls, pocket watches, and rings, while the high-paying items are four disguised individuals. High payouts do not appear on the reels at the outset (this is explained in further detail below). Although there is no “wild” icon in Shadow Society, there are certain bonus symbols on the reels that might help you win big.
Features of Shadow Society Slots
Understanding Shadow Society’s progression bar and emblem is the first order of business. A player advances the progress bar by one position every time the 1×2 symbol appears. A prize is available if the bar has been progressed five times. There are a total of eight attainable prizes on the bar:
The first reward enables the purple character icon.
Second reward – reveals an additional spinner.
Gain access to the green character sign for a reward.
Unlocks the fourth row as a reward.
Unlock the red character sign as reward number five.
The sixth reward enables an extra spinner.
Gain access to the golden emblem of characters for Reward No. 7.
Bonus row 8 is unlocked for your efforts.
No Risk Turns
The scatter that triggers the free spins bonus appears on reels two, three, and four in all reel configurations. If you get three scatters, you get ten free spins. The feature’s progress meter may be advanced during free spins, and landing three scatter symbols awards five more free spins. A win multiplier that begins at x1 is included in the free spins bonus round. After each victory, the multiplier will rise by 1, all the way up to x15. The bonus round’s win multiplier resets to 1 when it expires.
Judgment of the Slot Society
A slot on secret societies has the potential to go either way: either hilariously tongue-in-cheek or deadly serious in its examination of the many ways the world is ruled. Red Tiger, on the other hand, has taken the safe route by combining an engaging subject with their standard, go-to visual aesthetic. That’s not meant as an insult. Only Red Tiger routinely creates such amazing semi-mystical sights.
The studio also occasionally creates progressive slots that, once they’ve reached a certain level, require a lot of time and effort to return to their previous status. Symbols and features are unlocked as you continue, similar to how unlocking features works in 10,001 Nights Megaways. This method adds a questing aspect, but I can see why some players would rather begin their session above ground rather than in a dark cellar where they’d have to fight their way up to the surface just to see the daylight. Even if early on in Shadow Society things aren’t quite so bad, not everyone will enjoy this approach, and it may be instructive to see whether and how it affects RPG players’ bottom lines.
There is a sneaking notion that people who are fine with unlocking features are also fine with minor changes to the RTP. And to be honest, opening up a few levels along the way didn’t take too long at all. But when all the doors are open, what comes next? Even though there are free spins with an increasing multiplier, interest in Shadow Society is likely to wane once the mission is complete and the free spins have been experienced (or not). Even the maximum potential of 1957.7 times the stake may not be enough to entice you.
Overall, Shadow Society was a serviceable video game. Red Tiger might have been more innovative with the secret society concept, and not everyone will enjoy the game’s advancement. Although the demographics of the players who like these progressive-style games are murky, Red Tiger has evidently found a way to keep the games coming.
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