Developer Pragmatic Play continues to soldier on with its Powernudge range, dropping the fifth release in the series. The title is Aztec Powernudge, and it marries the downward-moving action of Powernudge with a scatter-paying win mechanic. It also drops in multiplier symbols, strengthening ties to Gates of Olympus, which, bruh, really seems to get around the place. It's as if there is a cut-off point in the historical timeline divided between before GOO and after GOO, BG and AG, if you will. With that, let's have a look at the Powernudge link in the chain.
What we can see is a pleasant interpretation of the Aztec world, dripping, for whatever reason, in big crystals lying all over the ground. Hardly realistic, but gems are a way of adding a sense of value to a game, admittedly. For free spins, Aztec Powernudge heads indoors where a fire spits sparks upwards in an Aztec-y carved structure. The audiovisuals get the job done; it's not a massively demanding or high-achieving job, and there's not much else to say about them other than they are quite nice.
Aztec Powernudge is played on a 6x6 sized gaming panel, which does not have paylines, ways, or cluster mechanics. Instead, when 8 or more identical symbols land anywhere on the gaming grid, a winning combination is created. It is medium-high volatile (rated 4/5) and has a default RTP of 96.46%. When getting to the bet range, 20 c is the minimum, maxing out at $/€240 per spin.
More crystals can be found on the paytable, paying the part of Aztec Powernudge's 5 high pay symbols, while J, Q, K, and A are the low pays. Hitting 8-9 matching symbols anywhere on the reels pays 0.25 to 2 times the bet, while at the upper limit, a 12+ sized scatter win puts 1 to 15 times the stake in your pocket. Wilds are not used around here in the base or bonus game.
On the features side of things, the game has multiplier symbols, the Powernudge, free spins, and a bonus buy option.
Multiplier symbols land in the base game and in free spins possessing random multiplier values. In the base game, these values can be x5 to x100. Moreover, when a winning combination hits, the win is collected in a meter, and the reels containing at least one winning symbol nudge down one position, revealing new symbols at the top, and the win is collected again for any winning combinations on the screen. The nudge feature ends when there are no more winning combinations on the screen. All multipliers from any multiplier symbols are collected, and when there are no more nudges, the total win is multiplied by the total multiplier accrued.
Scatter symbols are collected during nudges. Collecting 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 scatter symbols in the same nudge sequence awards 15, 20, 25, 30, or 35 free spins. During free spins, multiplier symbols can land with a wider range of multipliers of x5 to x1,000. The round has a minimum win guarantee of 15x the bet. If, after the last free spin, the minimum win is not revealed, more free spins are awarded one by one until the amount is reached or surpassed. Collecting 3 or more scatter symbols in the same nudge sequence during the round awards +5 extra free spins.
The free spins round can be triggered by buying it for 100 times the bet. When buying the feature 4, 5, or 6, scatters may hit randomly on the triggering spin, and the RTP is 96.49%.
There was something fated about the mix of Powernudge and scatter-pays as if the mashup was bound to happen sooner or later. Not only because scatter-paying slots are propagating like elephant grass after favourable weather but also because Powernudge slots have brought in gaming elements familiar from other Pragmatic Play releases in the past. Examples include Sweet Powernudge, with its connection to Aztec Gems, and Sugar Supreme Powernudge, with its Sugar Rush connotations. Aztec Powernudge has, as already blathered about above, a ring of Gates of Olympus to it. Whoever it was on the Pragmatic Play team who came up with that Ancient Greek mega hit must have been the employee of the month since it has gone on to influence so much that has come after it.
Aztec Powernudge included, and the Powernudge feature does work quite well as a scatter-pays slot. When the reels nudge downwards, there is no need for new symbols coming into the grid to connect to them in lines or clusters. Just hit matching symbols in any position to keep the ball rolling. This method did not appear to have a huge effect on the hit rate though, when thinking back over past Powernudge slots and the free spins win guarantee is hardly reassuring. It hasn't had a huge effect on winning possibilities as the 5,000x the bet win cap puts it on par with the upper potential Powernudge slots - the two candy-themed ones.
As a result, the Powernudge series trundles along, leaving behind it a wake of good-ish games. None have been especially attention-grabbing releases, as the lineup, on the whole, has sort of hovered around the mid to upper mid part of the spectrum, and Aztec Powernudge is one which finds a comfy sport amidst mediocrity to snuggle into.
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