Lucky 8 Merge Up Slot Review

Lucky 8 Merge Up Slot Overview

Lucky 8 Merge Up is a casino slot from BGaming and a new edition containing the providers' Merge Up mechanic. Whenever a winning combination is formed, the symbols merge into more valuable ones, with the Scatter Symbol being the 9^th and the highest level. This game is a reskin of a previous release, Merge Up, providing the same excellent RTP of 97.25% and a max win of 5000X. The number “8” plays a big part in this game, a number that’s considered lucky in Asian cultures because it sounds like the word for generating wealth. Fun fact: a Hong Kong number plate with the number 8 was sold for $640,000. Besides the exciting Merge Up mechanic, this game offers a Bonus Game with multipliers that can grow up to 128X! Let’s find out what Lucky 8 Merge Up has to offer!

Lucky 8 Merge Up is a video slot from BGaming with 6 reels and 6 rows. Due to the cluster pays mechanic, this game has no regular pay lines; wins are created by landing 4 or more of the same symbol type in a cluster anywhere on the reels, activating the Merge Up feature. Players can choose between a Min.bet of 0.2 and a Max.bet of 50. This game has an above-average RTP of 97.25% and a hit frequency of 32.89%. Lucky 8 Merge Up has high volatility and a max win of 5000X the bet.

This vibrant slot game adventure has some fun features to help you pursue and land the big wins. The features of Lucky 8 Merge Up are Merge Up, Free Spins, Chance X2, and Feature Buy.

Lucky 8 Merge Up Slot Information

The game’s design is based on a colorful theme with vibrant symbols and a blue background. On the left side of the reels, you’ll find the Chance X2 and Feature Buy buttons just below the game’s logo. All remaining buttons, including the Spin and Bet Size buttons, are positioned on the screen's lower edge. You can play Lucky 8 Merge Up on all mobile devices, desktops, and notepads. You create a winning combination by landing 4 or more of the same symbol types in a cluster on adjacent reels, activating the Merge Up feature.

The lower-paying symbols 0, 1, 2, and 3. Landing 12+ of the same symbol type in a cluster pays between 5X and 20X. The higher-paying symbols are 4, 5, 6, and 7. Landing 12+ of the same symbol type in a cluster pays between 25X and 50X. The Scatter Symbol is “8” and works as the 9^th symbol level of this game. This symbol type can land anywhere on the reels, and landing 4 or more Scatter Symbols will trigger the Free Spins. If symbols of the 8th level form a winning cluster, that clusters merges and forms 1 Scatter Symbol. Let’s find out what kind of features this game has to offer!

Lucky 8 Merge Up Slot Features

What is the max win in the slot of Lucky 8 Merge Up?

The max win is 5000X the bet.

What features are available in the slot of Lucky 8 Merge Up?

The features of this slot game are Merge Up, Free Spins, Chance X2, and Feature Buy.

Merge Up

This feature can be activated when a cluster win is created, and some of the winning symbols will be removed from the reels, and others will transform into symbols of the next level. New symbols will fall from above and allow winning combinations, which will continue as long as new winning combinations are created.

There are 9 levels in this game, and your winnings depend on the level of merging symbols and their number. The levels are the following:

0 – 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 – Scatter Symbol (8).

Free Spins

This feature can be triggered by landing 4 or more Scatter Symbols anywhere on the reels. Depending on whether you have landed on 4, 5, or 6 Scatter Symbols, award you 15, 18, and 20 Free Spins, respectively. This feature will retrigger if 4, 5, or 6 Scatter Symbols land on the reels, awarding 5, 8, or 10 additional Free Spins, respectively.

During the feature, all winning cluster positions are marked for the remainder of the feature. If these marked cluster positions are part of another winning cluster, the winning cell obtains a 2X Multiplier. This multiplier value is applied to the value of that specific symbol, and its value will increase by 2X with every new win the cell is part of, with a maximum value of 128X per cell.

A multiplier is applied to a winning combination it is part of, but a new multiplier will apply only to the subsequent winning combination it is part of. All multiplier values of each winning cell are added together before being paid out.

Chance X2

You trigger the Chance X2 at the extra cost of 25% of the current bet. When this feature has been activated, the chances of triggering the Free Spins feature increase.

Feature Buy

If you want to take advantage of the Free Spins feature immediately, you can use the bonus buy option.

100X = Activate the Free Spins feature and receive either 15, 18, or 20 Free Spins at the start. When triggered, this feature is played with an RTP of 97.25%.

Lucky 8 Merge Up Slot Conclusion

This game provides another experience featuring the Merge Up feature, where cluster-formed wins merge into more valuable symbols. We have seen this feature in the previous release, Merge Up, also from BGaming. Lucky 8 Merge Up is a reskin of this game with identical stats, such as RTP, hit frequency, and max win. The only difference between the games is the symbol design and the new focus on the number 8, which is this game’s Scatter Symbol.

Reviewing a reskin is always challenging because it is easy to get stuck in negative thoughts about the providers’ lack of ambition and innovation, especially when there’s hardly any real difference in terms of theme and vibe, which is the case regarding this game. So, what can we say about this game? Lucky 8 Merge Up offers a well-designed game with vibrant colors where the main focus is on the entertaining Merge Up feature, which can generate some sudden and lucrative wins, especially in combination with the Multipliers during the Free Spins. While testing this game, we got some massive wins in the later stages of the Free Spins, when several multipliers had solid numbers that could grow up to a maximum of 128X. 

We wish BGaming had at least applied this fun mechanic on a more exciting theme, as we have seen in previous releases such as Mummy’s Gold and Easter Heist. With that said, this game still offers a lucrative experience where the combination of the multipliers and Merge Up feature should attract players looking for a big payout.

Lucky 8 Merge Up is a slot with the Merge Up feature offering an exciting Bonus Game with multipliers that can grow up to 128X!