Tropicool 5: Here's What I Think

Here are Some Screenshots I Took of the Game

Tropicool 5 makes a splash as it takes you down under into the cold-water coral reefs. Now, the icebergs and tropical vibe seemed contradictory at first, but it strangely works with summer fruit symbols and ice cubes. How else am I supposed to cool down in the heat?​

I wasn’t alone on my vacation either, as Tropicool 5 includes some grand, animated characters. The characters include a puffin and a flamingo in full snorkelling gear, a sloth on a hoverboard with the coolest Hawaiian shirt I have ever seen, and a cool crocodile with more abs than a six-pack of Cola and a floatie that matches his undeniable charm.

It may be better down where it's wetter, but I did ponder that diving into classic fruit symbols was a yawn-fest. What would a pineapple and watermelon be doing in the depths of the Arctic Ocean? Swap the fruit with fish symbols and Tropicool 5 might just be the pearl of the ocean.

Let's Talk About the Bonus Games You'll Find

Now time for the main event: the bonus features! The bonuses aren’t just a ripple in the background, but contribute to a truly engaging experience. The strongest feature is the bonus game, though this is fairly hard to come by. There may be a lot to choose from, but after a quick read of the information section, I was like a duck to water. 

Bonus Game

The bonus game is the main free-drop feature, triggered when three or more bonus symbols appear. It plays quickly, with each drop changing the board through cascading wins and new features from the ‘Cool Reel’ mechanic. Extra Drops and Multiplier symbols can boost your wins, often leading to sudden bursts rather than steady payouts. In nearly two hundred spins, I only triggered this feature once, making this a hard-to-land feature. 

• Land 3 bonus symbols for 6 drops

• Land 4 bonus symbols for 9 drops

• Land 5 bonus symbols for 12 drops

• Land 6 bonus symbols for 15 drops

Cool Reel

The ‘Cool Reel’ sits above the main grid and constantly feeds special symbols into play to keep the gameplay moving. New symbols cascade down between wins instead of the board fully resetting. This was a personal favourite feature of mine, as it kept the experience feeling like a cold plunge on a summer's day: wonderfully refreshing.

Row Swap Feature

Unpredictability is what springs to mind with this feature, as it replaces entire rows with matching symbols or turns them into Wilds. It opens up new winning opportunities, especially when Wilds are involved. If multiple ‘Row Swaps’ land on the same row, it stacks and further improves the outcome. This was a feature that came up a handful of times for me, though I mostly received lower-paying symbols when it did.

Wild Egg

The ‘Wild Egg’ basically acts as a sticky wilds mechanic, expanding into bird symbols when activated and filling empty spaces in the column. It’s less focused on instant wins and instead hones in on building over the reels, potentially rewarding patient players. I found it to be one of the more satisfying features because it visibly expands and evolves, building anticipation on every spin.

Mystery Crocodile

As mentioned earlier, this ‘Mystery Crocodile’ feature is an absolute blast. It appears in the ‘Cool Reel’ and fills the grid below with Mystery symbols, which all reveal the same symbol/outcome. It builds suspense, since the value isn’t known until the grand, all-at-once reveal. It’s more than just a great feature with a charismatic croc and some funky music.

Elmo Sloth

The sloth I mentioned earlier? This is his time to shine. At first, you might think he looks a bit lost hovering above the grid, but he serves a very important role. The Elmo Sloth feature is triggered when no wins are left. It clears some of the upper rows and collects pearl symbols, helping to reset the grid. It can create new opportunities by allowing symbols from the ‘Cool Reel’ to drop down. It doesn’t usually pay directly, but it helps set up future wins.

Bonus Buy

The X-iter feature lets you buy into different game modes instead of waiting around for them to trigger naturally. This is a simple breakdown, so you know what to expect:

• Super Bonus (500x bet): Full bonus game with extra Locked Wilds

• Buy Bonus (100x bet): Direct entry into the bonus game

• Locked Wilds (25x bet): Start with three Locked Wild symbols

• Mega Hunt (10x bet): Higher chance to trigger bonus features

• Bonus Hunt (3x bet): Slightly increased bonus trigger chance

Golden Symbol

The Golden Symbol comes with a built in multiplier, adding an extra layer of excitement whenever it appears. The value it shows is not fixed though, as it depends on its position on the grid. This means where it lands makes a difference, turning an ordinary spin into something far more rewarding and keeping every drop of anticipation.

Locked Wilds

The Locked Wild is a Wild with a twist, arriving chained and charged with a set number of wins displayed on it. Each time it helps create a winning combination, one charge is used up. The whole time it stays in the same place on the grid, like a sticky symbol. This sticky behaviour means it can keep contributing to multiple wins in a row, building momentum and adding a nice sense of progression with each charge.

Some Technical Considerations About Tropicool 5

Every underwater flamingo has a good understanding of the more technical aspects, as they are usually what make the slot sink or swim. First and foremost, the Return to Player (RTP) percentage sits at 94%. At Irishluck, we recommend playing slots that have an RTP of at least 96%, so Tropicool 5 comes up a little short, though during my play I didn’t notice this difference.

Tropicool 5 has high volatility. Now, this may not suit everyone’s playing needs as it theoretically means bigger potential wins at a less frequent rate. Finally, the max win potential is fairly generous, sitting at 25,000x your bet.