Sneak Preview: OnlyCoins Slot by Gamzix Coming to US Sweeps Casinos April 23

A new slot called OnlyCoins is coming to a sweeps casino near you next week, and it’s one that you’ll want to check out if you’re a hardcore fan of hold-and-spin bonus features. That’s because this title from Gamzix strips away all the basic features of most slots and leaves only the hold-and-spin bonus. As the name suggests, there are only coins on this game’s reels.

The new game drops on April 23, and Gamzix gave us a sneak peek at how it’ll work. It’s got a Las Vegas-style backdrop, smooth elevator music as the soundtrack, and a very straightforward, easy-to-understand presentation.

We can’t say for sure which sweepstakes casinos will offer the game at this point, but other Gamzix games are available at these sites:

• Fortune Coins
• Pulsz
• Sportzino
• Zula Casino
• Chip ‘n’ Win

Fortune Coins and Pulsz are our favorites of those. You’ll have to check next week to see who’s got the new game, but there are plenty of other slots on offer in the meantime.

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Bonus round or bust with OnlyCoins

OnlyCoins “does what it says on the tin,” as my British friends would say. It’s got a 3×3 grid layout and the only symbols that can appear on the reels are blanks or Coins of various denominations.

Most coins are of the “cash on reels” variety, meaning they display an amount in Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins corresponding to what you’ll get if they pay out. There are also Jackpot Coins and Mystery Coins, whose value is hidden until you win them. The Mystery Coins lock in place when they land, and will stay on the reels until you trigger the bonus. Jackpot Coins don’t lock in place, but will award a bigger prize if you do trigger the bonus.

There are no paylines and no way to win a prize except by triggering the bonus. So, how do you trigger the bonus, anyway?

The important part of the grid is the three squares in the center. The normal way to trigger the bonus is by filling the middle row. As long as you get at least one coin in the middle row, there’s also a random chance to trigger the Heap of Coins feature, which fills the remaining spaces and grants the bonus. Losing spins show coins being added to the heap, suggesting increased chances of triggering that feature, but that’s an illusion—your chances remain the same on each spin.

If you’re impatient, you can also pay 30x the bet for a spin that’s guaranteed to trigger the bonus.

The bonus round will be familiar if you’ve played any hold-and-spin slots before. Any coins you have lock in place and you get at least three spins to add more. Every time you add a coin to the reels, the spin counter resets. When your spins run out, you collect the value of all the coins in the grid. Fill all nine spaces and you’ll win the Grand Jackpot, which is 500x your bet.

There is one exciting gimmick here, though, which is the Walking Multiplier Frame. This randomly selects one of the nine grid spaces each spin. After the spin, if there’s a coin in that space (new or not), its value gets doubled. If you trigger enough respins, you could potentially multiply the same coin several times. This is can also create a powerful combo with the Collect coins, which take on the combined value of all coins already on the reels.

What’s the verdict on OnlyCoins?

I have to be honest and say this slot isn’t for me, but that’s a personal preference. We all know that the bonus feature is where most of the fun happens for most slots. But I don’t enjoy a slot unless the base game also provides some entertainment while I’m waiting. So the minimalist approach here leaves me a bit bored.

I tried buying the feature, but that’s a very low-volatility experience. Most of the time, you’ll be paying 30x the bet to win around 20x. It’s hard to get a lot more than that except by winning the Grand Jackpot. But since that’s just 500x the bet and buying the feature costs 30x, your upside this way is capped at just 16.7x what you’re risking. That’s more like a casino table game than a slot.

That said, I’m also not a huge fan of hold-and-spin to begin with, and I know I’m in the minority there. It’s a hugely popular mechanic and if it’s your jam, your impression of OnlyCoins might be very different from mine.

The one thing I really did like is the Walking Multiplier Frame. That adds an additional thrill whenever you reset your spin counter. Each reset doesn’t just mean three more chances to add some coins—it also means three more chances to double the prizes already on the reels.

Other points in this game’s favor are that it’s easy to pick up and that it offers a targeted experience for a particular type of player. It’s probably not for everyone, but if the only slots experience that gets you going is hold-and-spin, this is a product designed just for you.