Illuminous Slot Demo

How We Rate Slots

I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing video slots for JohnSlots for more than 10 years now. One of the things I appreciate is the formal process that they have set out for their reviewers to follow. This makes the reviewer’s job easier, and makes it super user-friendly for people looking for a quick and objective comparison of slots.

JohnSlots has a 10-step approach to online slot reviews. By sticking to this system, I aim to make sure that people looking for a great slot experience get all the essentials covered. In addition to the game mechanics and special features, we’ll include factual betting information such as minimum and maximum bets, as well as statistics to do with RTP and volatility. Then there is the all-important winning potential and jackpots.

I also like to reflect on the overall experience – the theme, the sound, the graphics – and how original the gameplay is. Finally, I like to offer safety-conscious players reassurance that they are playing a trustworthy slot at a genuine casino.

Pro Tips

The first thing I like to do before playing any slot is adjust the betting range to suit my budget. I also like to take a look at the paytable to see what symbol combinations I should be looking out for, which winlines pay, etc. On Illuminous there are twenty paylines as standard and this is not adjustable. There are payouts in the base play that keep you ticking over. The likelihood of hitting these is increased by Wilds which can be read as any symbol.

I typically set the autoplay to 50 spins and watch the reels spin, but if you prefer more involved play you can operate each spin individually (and there is an option on desktop to control this using the spacebar). The larger payouts arrive when you spin in the Bonus Wild Scatt

Illuminous Slot Bonus Features and Free Spins

I didn’t find Illuminous to be packed with features compared with some slots I’ve played. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. I prefer a couple of features nicely executed (as here) to a confusing experience where I feel I am spending money just to understand what is going on!

The first thing I noticed when spinning through the base play was the intriguing appearance of Wilds and Bonus Wilds.

Wilds

The Wild symbol is a yellow crystal W on a purple background. It appears relatively infrequently in the base play, but once the hot reels functionality is triggered (see Scatter Symbol section below) then the reels are packed with Wild symbols. The Wild symbol can stand in for any other symbol, making it much more likely that you will win on one of the 20 paylines.

Scatter Symbol

The Scatter symbol is also delineated by a yellow crystal W. This W is presented on the upper half of a purple globe, above a sash bearing the legend ‘BONUS’. You definitely won’t get the two confused! I was pleased to note that this Bonus Wild Scatter symbol has the functionality of a standard Wild (standing in for other symbols to generate wins). However, it really comes into its own when two or more land on different reels, as this triggers the bonus play feature of respins and free spins.

Free Spins/ Respins

Two Bonus Wild Scatter symbols appearing in the base game triggers a Hot Reel free respin of all reels. I was delighted to see that the two reels that had the Bonus Wilds on them were now absolutely packed with Wilds – making wins much more likely.

The appearance of three or more Bonus Wild Scatter symbols triggers Free Spins, but this time all the reels are Hot Reels. Remember with Hot Reels there are loads more Wilds. It was in this Free Spin feature that I started to clock up wins of many times my stake.

There is no way to buy your way into the bonus Hot Reels feature, you have to grind through the base play and hope your luck is in!

Illuminous Slot Design and Visuals

My first impression of the slot’s visuals was that this was a workmanlike effort on a classic five reel slot. The designers haven’t gone for anything quirky or unusual. The reel animations liven up an unoriginal theme. Higher paying symbols denoted by jewels (purple diamond, orange opal, green emerald and blue sapphire). Lower paying symbols are letters and numbers from the high value playing cards (A, K, Q, J, 10 and 9). I didn’t love the design, but it certainly did everything that I expected of it with no scope for confusion.

How to Play Illuminous Slot

Although the minimum bet is quite high, I think Illuminous could potentially make a good starting point for people who are new to slots. The base play and design is simple and there aren’t really any wrong choices you could make. With that in mind, here’s a step by step approach to playing the game:

1. Read the instructions. The ribbon at the bottom of the playscreen beneath the reels contains all the controllable elements. Start by clicking the three line ‘hamburger’ menu to the left of your balance. This brings up options to read regarding the gameplay and the ability to view the paytable. Leave the paytable open for the next step
2. Adjust your bet size. You can choose the stake you are comfortable with betting for each spin by clicking the up and down arrows in the TOTAL BET column. Minimum bet is £0.40 per spin. Maximum bet is £100 per spin. You can see the wins in the paytable change relative to the stake, so you can get an idea of how much you’ll win for certain combinations at each bet amount.
3. (Optional) Set Autoplay. If you desire, you can set the autoplay feature to spin the reels automatically. There is the option to choose the number of times this will happen. Select between 10, 50, 100, 500 or 1000 spins. You can come out of autoplay at any time.
4. Spin the reels! Click the big orange spin button with the single curved white arrow on the bottom right to get started. (Or, if you have set autoplay, the smaller double arrow spin button just to the left of the main spin button).

Illuminous Slot Mobile Compatibility

I played Illuminous on mobile as well as desktop as part of my research. The game worked well on the smaller screen size and I would be happy to play this on the move! The table below lists some casino apps that you can download which have Illuminous amongst their slot offerings.

Conclusion

On those occasions when I am looking for an uncomplicated slot game, Illuminous would be one among many that could fit the bill. After all, the game has been around since 2015, so, while I doubt it is anybody’s absolute favourite slot, it clearly still finds players that enjoy a classic experience. Fun animations and incentivising musical cues might even keep me playing a little longer than some older games. I also believe Illuminous to be a good slot for people new to playing slots and would happily recommend it to a beginner.