Introduction to Copium
Copium is a casino slot from Hold Your Hat, where a bunch of quirky Dudes roam a mysterious space station consisting of decks with various attractions. In the style of Pirots by ELK Studios, the coloured characters, looking like crew members from the popular multiplayer game Among Us, collect paying symbols and trigger features when they stumble upon a special icon. The game draws plenty of inspiration from the bird gang's adventures besides the core mechanics, including upgrades, teleportations, symbol transformations, character swaps, and multipliers. However, Copium expands the familiar format with plenty more opportunities for interstellar action in additional rooms to which Dudes can move throughout the gameplay. At first glance, it feels like a massively rich production, where each spin can take you through multiple stages with a myriad of intertwining mechanics. Let's explore the weird space station and locate the max win of 10,000x the bet.
Theme, Gameplay & Payouts
Copium is a video slot from Hold Your Hat with 5 reels, 7 rows, and a unique win system, where characters collect symbols matching their colour. In the bet selection panel, you can choose your active stake from multiple options, starting from a Min.bet of 0.2 up to a Max.bet of 100. The game's default RTP is 96.00%, which is just on the edge of the industry average, which usually oscillates around 96%-96.5%. One alternative variant of 94.00% has also been released, so remember to verify your version before playing. Big wins should appear slightly more valuable and less frequent on average due to medium-high volatility, while the top prize from a single spin may reach 10,000x the bet. The base hit frequency is 24.9%.
After an elaborate animated intro reeling you into the story of the Dudes, you're presented with the top-down view of the station's Main Deck - your primary playing area. On the left, you have a mini-map displaying which room you're currently in, while the shaded corridors extending from the central area indicate which area they lead to. The game's graphics feature a strong 2D feel, undoubtedly meant to convey simplicity and make the setting resemble the aforementioned Among Us. A good deal of detailed special symbols and animations embellish the action every step of the way, getting more intense when you visit the other decks. You can enjoy the quirky, intergalactic adventure on any modern device, whether you prefer to play on a desktop, smartphone, or tablet.
The paytable comprises a set of 6 symbols, each divided into 5 payout levels. To score a win, you must align the matching Dude with the same symbol colour in an adjacent position. Purple, blue, green, yellow, red, and white icons award up to 1x, 1.5x, 2x, 3x, 5x, and 10x the bet, respectively, on the highest upgrade level. On the grid, you'll also witness numerous special symbols, which we will describe in the feature section below.
Special Features & Slot Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Copium?
You can win up to 10,000x the bet.
What features are available in the slot Copium?
The features are Feature Symbols, Room, Bonus & Super Bonus Game, and Feature Buy.
Feature Symbols
When a Dude collects a feature symbol, the associated function will trigger once there are no more regular moves possible.
Zero Gravity = transforms all coloured pebbles into Wild pebbles that all Dudes can pass.
Spawn = adds another Dude to the game area.
Rock Paper Scissors = triggers a Rock Paper Scissors game between two Dudes, which can double the collected amount of the one that wins.
Multiplier = multiplies the current amount collected by the Dude.
Upgrade = upgrades all surrounding paying symbols.
Teleport = switches the Dudes' places once all cascading has finished.
Key Card = activates all doors leading to the other rooms.
Rooms
Once a Dude approaches the position next to the corridor after a Key Card has been collected, he will enter it and move the gameplay to a different area. In most rooms, a Dude must activate a special switch to trigger the respective feature.
Holodeck = allows grid expansion if a Dude stands orthogonally adjacent to the trigger. It can be activated up to 6 times, but only once per Dude.
The Club = the Dude standing on the dance floor acquires collected values from other Dudes and distributes them back (except for the Dude it collected from).
Cargo Bay = once a Dude activates the magnet, one or more symbols and Dudes are selected to be dropped onto the multiplier at the end of the cascading sequence.
Casino = awards 3 spins on a mini-slot with a separate paytable.
Money Rain = awards 3 refilling respins, during which coins land on the grid. Once spins run out, the Dude moves orthogonally to collect them.
Laser Lounge = removes Dudes from the two bottom rows when the laser is activated at the end of the cascading sequence.
Cockpit = pulling the handle activates the Fortune Wheel for each present Dude. Successful hits on the wheel accumulate prizes and move the respective Dude up its column.
Crypto Trader = activates a Rock, Paper, Scissors game between the Dude and the Crypto Trader. If the Dude wins, it adds the prize to its value and returns to the Main Deck.
Bonus & Super Bonus Game
Collecting 3 Scatters throughout a single base game round triggers the Bonus Game with 5 Free Spins. The currently active room, present Dudes and payout levels are carried over. Win amounts collected by the Dudes are persistent throughout the feature. Collecting 3 Scatters in a single Free Spin retriggers the Bonus.
Feature Buy
The game offers several options for triggering enhanced spins and activating the Bonus Game instantly for a fixed buy-in that scales with your active bet.
2x = Bonus Hunt, with a 4-times higher chance to trigger the Bonus Game.
10x = Bonus Hunt+, with a 12-times higher chance to trigger the Bonus Game.
20x = Bonus Hunt++, with a 40-times higher chance to trigger the Bonus Game.
10x = enables the possibility to trigger Crypto Trader on every spin.
50x = Best 3 out of 100 spins played.
250x = Best 3 out of 500 spins played.
10x = start the round in a random room.
25x = start with 6 Dudes and upgraded paying symbols.
100x = trigger the Crypto Trader.
1,000x = trigger the Loaded Crypto Trader.
100x = trigger the regular Bonus Game.
500x = trigger the Super Bonus Game.
80x = Bonus Gamble, with a 2 in 10 chance for the Bonus Game and 1 in 10 chance for the Super Bonus Game.
Final Thoughts on Copium
It's probably been a while since we've reviewed a game as packed with various mechanics as Copium. Pirots 5 springs to mind regarding the sheer amount of features woven into the reels, as well as, of course, the overall similar technical profile, although even that one seemed to be easier to follow. What Hold Your Hat has done here is genuinely overwhelming, and not always in a good way. If you're the type of player who prefers to get accustomed to the theory first by reading the game rules, you might be better off just jumping into a demo straight away. The wall of text hardly manages to explain everything, and in most cases, we had to experience the room's mechanics ourselves to make sense of the description. Individual features available in different sections can obviously be entertaining, and going through them all will likely take some time, which gives the game lots of replayability potential. That is, if you can stomach those rounds, which move you around without any special triggers. And you should prepare yourself for plenty of those. But when gears do click together, a single round can send you on a genuinely intense journey through various decks equipped with engaging events.
It's clear that designing a complex game like Copium is quite a feat, even if you draw inspiration from an existing product. Hold Your Hat definitely took the ambitious path for its second release, so points for being bold are due. At the same time, we didn't get the feeling that it's a generally more attractive product than any of the Pirots instalments, maybe except for the advantage of collecting symbols also diagonally. Whether that's because of simpler graphics, less expressive characters, or the overload of mechanics, it's hard to pinpoint. Perhaps 'all of the above' is the most honest answer one could provide. Fans of the CollectR mechanics will surely give it a try and answer for themselves if this more elaborate rendition of the format offers better engagement and more fun. For enthusiasts of the more conventional configurations, it might be a tad too much. In any case, at least the studio has shown it's willing to experiment and push boundaries, which is a much-needed approach in the current online gambling landscape.
Copium is a massively ambitious experiment in symbol-collection mechanics, where the room-traversal system forms an engaging yet sometimes overwhelming experience.
