Book of Shadows Overview
Book of Shadows marks Nolimit City's first entry into the crowded 'Book of' genre, and the design choices here are deliberately unorthodox. Released in August 2020, this 5-reel slot swaps the usual Egyptian tombs for a dark, gothic horror setting complete with pentagrams, spell-bound animals, and eerie woodland visuals. Players can toggle between 3, 4 or 5 rows using the Shadow Rows mechanic, adjusting paylines from 10 to 20 and altering the bet cost accordingly.
Rated extreme volatility (10/10) by the provider, the game pairs a 33.18% hit frequency with a staggering 30,338x max win. RTP shifts slightly depending on row configuration: 96.01% at 3 rows, 96.07% at 4, and 96.19% at the full 5-row layout. Compared to the studio's previous work, this slot leans heavily into player agency, giving you more control over risk than most Book-style games on the market.
Theme, Symbols and Paytable
Visually, Book of Shadows commits fully to its horror concept. Leafless trees, fireflies, howling wolves and an unsettling quasi-Arabic soundtrack create an atmosphere that feels closer to Sleepy Hollow than the Valley of the Kings. Every symbol reinforces the theme; there are no generic fruits or gems here.
Five low-value royals (10 through A) require three of a kind on a payline. Premium symbols, an eyeball in a flask, a moth, a ram skull, a purple cat and a witch, pay from just two matching. Premium five-of-a-kind values run from 50x (eyeball) up to 500x (witch), which is notably generous for a Book slot. The Book of Shadows symbol doubles as both wild and scatter, substituting for everything and paying 500x for five.
I found the paytable structure satisfying because the premiums hit often enough at two-of-a-kind to keep the base game from dragging too badly. Still, the real money sits in free spins, and the base game can feel slow if the expanding golden symbol never triggers.
Symbol Payouts
Witch (Goth Girl)
Highest paying regular symbol, awards up to 500x bet for 5 of a kind.
Purple Cat
Second highest premium symbol, pays from 2 or more on a payline.
Ram Skull
Mid-tier premium symbol paying from 2 of a kind.
Moth
Premium symbol requiring 2 or more for a win.
Eyeball
Lowest premium symbol, still pays from 2 of a kind.
A
Highest paying royal symbol, requires 3 or more to win.
K
Royal symbol requiring 3 or more to form a win.
J
Low-value royal symbol.
10
Lowest paying royal symbol.
Bonus Features and Free Spins
Landing 3 or more Book scatters triggers 10 Free Spins at whatever row height you had active. Before the round begins, a golden symbol is randomly chosen; you can reshuffle once, but the replacement might downgrade. During free spins, this golden symbol expands to fill entire reels after standard wins are evaluated. Expanded symbols pay from any position and do not need to be adjacent. Five reels of the witch on a 5-row grid produces a 10,000x hit. Retriggers are unlimited.
Outside of free spins, Lucky Locks lets you freeze up to 4 reels after any base game spin and respin the rest for an adjusted cost. Locking two scatters and hunting for a third is tempting but expensive; spin costs can balloon past 40x the base stake. A 50/50 card gamble (red or black, up to 5 times) and the Wheel of Bonus, which lets you gamble a win under 60x into 10 free spins, round out the feature set. The Nolimit Bonus buy costs 60x, 90x or 120x for 3, 4 or 5 rows respectively. UK players cannot access the bonus buy or Wheel of Bonus.
Bonus Buy Options
Land 3 or more Book of Shadows scatters to trigger 10 free spins. A golden symbol is randomly chosen and expands to fill entire reels when it lands. Retriggers are unlimited.
After any base game spin, lock up to 4 reels in place and respin the rest for an additional cost based on symbol values.
Feature Cost: Variable
After any win, pick red or black card to double or lose your winnings. Up to 5 consecutive gambles allowed.
Gamble a win for a chance to trigger 10 free spins via a spinning wheel. Available when winnings do not exceed 60x bet.
Nolimit Bonus (Bonus Buy)
Purchase 10 free spins directly. Cost depends on row configuration: 60x bet for 3 rows, 90x for 4 rows, 120x for 5 rows. Not available in UK.
Feature Cost: 60x / 90x / 120x
Volatility, RTP and Max Win
Extreme volatility is the defining characteristic here. With a 10/10 rating from Nolimit City, expect prolonged dry spells between meaningful payouts. A 33.18% hit frequency means roughly one in three spins returns something, but most of those wins will be small. The free spins round triggers roughly every 154 spins on average, and wins of 100x or higher land about once every 843 spins.
RTP ranges are worth watching. The headline 96.01% to 96.19% figures apply to the default configuration, but a lower RTP version (94.09% to 94.42%) exists and may be active at certain operators. I would recommend verifying the active RTP in-game before committing real funds. Max win potential is 30,338x; not everyone will see numbers anywhere near that, but it dwarfs the typical 5,000x ceiling found in most competing Book slots.
