Do you know that you can make a pretty convincing gemstone at home? Just dissolve potassium alum in some boiling water until no more will dissolve, add your preferred food coloring and let the solution sit somewhere that it won’t get bumped for the crystals to grow. It’s that simple.

Are you ready to hunt for digital gemstones? And no, I’m not selling an NFT. Grab a pickaxe, put on your hard hat, and let’s go digging for wins in Gemz Grow slot from Mascot.

Are you not entertained?

Like many gem-themed slots, there isn’t a whole lot to the graphics of Gemz Grow slot. The background does offer a little interest with a beautiful mountain setting with a foreground of glowing gemstones. The reels themselves, however, are incredibly bland. I can’t help but think that a gemstone border around the reels would have made all the difference.

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The symbols that inhabit the reels are equally as dull, with the scatter and wild symbols seeming to have little in common with the rest of the slot. I get that a four-leaf clover and a Chinese Feng Shui coin are symbols of luck, but why not make these symbols elaborate gemstones to fit into the theme?

All in all, I’m a little disappointed in Mascot. With titles like Riot and The Myth in their repertoire, they are clearly capable of better. I’m not sure what happened with Gemz Grow slot.

Dig your way to wins

Things started to look a little more like pay dirt while playing Gemz Grow slot when I started to unlock the bonus features.

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The free spins feature is incredibly dynamic. Instead of only triggering when three or more scatter symbols appear, the feature is triggered regardless of home many scatter symbols you manage to grab. The more scatter symbols that appear, the larger the reels will grow and the more free spins you will unlock.

• Tier 0 (unlocked with one scatter symbol) – 1 free spin
• Tier 1 (unlocked with two scatter symbols) – 2 free spins and adds an extra reel to the second, third, and fourth reels and bumps up the ways to win to 576. Plus, wins are 2x paytable values
• Tier 2 (unlocked with three scatter symbols) – 3 free spins and adds an extra reel to the second and fourth reels, two extra reels to the third reel, and bumps up the ways to win to 720. Plus, wins are 3x paytable values
• Tier 3 (unlocked with four scatter symbols) – 4 free spins and adds two extra reels to the second, third, and fourth reels, one extra reel to the first and second reels, and bumps up the ways to win to 2,000. Plus, wins are 4x paytable values.
• Tier 4 (unlocked with five scatter symbols) – 5 free spins and adds two extra reels to all the reels, and bumps up the ways to win to 3,125. Plus, wins are 5x paytable values.
• In addition to the extensive free spins feature, the slot also has a wild symbol that will substitute for all other symbols except the scatter.

Is Gemz Grow a precious treasure or fool’s gold?

Gemz Grow slot is a bit of a contradiction. The slot’s graphics are really nothing exciting, but the free spins bonus feature is really interesting. I really do feel like Mascot missed out on having a hit on their hands by not spending a few more days on the graphics of the slot.

Looking at the numbers, a similar picture emerges. With medium volatility and a 96.7% RTP rating, the slot offers a nice balance between winning consistently and winning big. But there’s just no heft behind it. The max multiplier is just 300x your bet for a max payout of €15,000. Not exactly what you would call inspiring.

If you’re looking for a few other shiny rocks, I recommend giving Goblins & Gemstones or Gem Rocks a try.