Tropicool 4

Toucan, flamingo and sloth characters each get their own mechanic in Tropicool 4, the February 2025 instalment from Elk Studios. It runs on a 6x6 grid with 46,656 ways to win, and a Cool Reel of feature symbols slides in above it from left to right.

Two RTP settings exist, 94% and 87%, and the 94% figure applies whether the player spins normally or buys a feature. Volatility is high, rated 8 out of 10, hit frequency is 24.1%, the maximum win is 25,000x, and stakes range from 0.20 to 100 a drop. Matches must reach at least three consecutive reels from the left. Paid symbols are removed apart from locked wilds, survivors fall, Cool Reel feature symbols drop into free space, new symbols fill the rest, and avalanches continue as long as wins keep appearing.

Everything on the grid is encased in ice. Fruit in purple, green, yellow and pink makes up the cheapest tier, paying 0.25x for six, and sliced fruit sits above it at 0.3x to 2x.

The three characters behave as follows. The flamingo is a walking wild that starts at 1x2 or 1x3, shifts one reel right whenever wins run out, grows on each step to a ceiling of six symbols, and grants a free drop with every move. The toucan is a 1x3 walking multiplier that also steps right, awards a drop, and adds +1 to the win multiplier per step. Elmo clears all paying symbols from the rows he covers; he lands inactive at 1x1 and activates once he can stretch to 1x2 or 1x3.

Big symbols of 2x2 or 3x3 can form from most pay and feature symbols, excluding Elmo, the birds, Grid Flip, multipliers and scatters. They pay by the positions they cover, crush paying symbols on the way down and fill gaps beneath them with 1x1 copies.

Other feature symbols: Mystery, which reveals one shared symbol when wins end; Row Swap; Grid Flip, which mirrors the grid horizontally and then becomes wild; Multiplier, adding 1, 2 or 3; Wild; and Locked Wild, which lasts up to three wins.

Scatters trigger the bonus: 3, 4, 5 or 6 give 6, 9, 12 or 15 free spins. Extra drop symbols add 1 to 3 drops, the Cool Reel is refilled each drop, locked wilds remain, and the win multiplier carries over.

X-iter purchases are Bonus Hunt at 3x, Locked Wilds at 25x, Double Birds at 50x, the bonus at 100x and a super bonus at 500x guaranteeing Elmo on each free drop.