Book of Shadows Slot Review
Free demo, RTP, volatility and max win
8.4Value score · Very good · how it works
Book of Shadows review: Nolimit City's paylines slot where you pay to resize the grid and lock reels, 96.01% RTP and a 30,338x max win.
- #308by value of 3,708 slots
- #56by value of 141 Nolimit City slots
Play Book of Shadows free: demo, no sign-up
Free play money from Nolimit City's official demo. 18+. No deposit and no account; a demo does not predict real results.
Basic information
| Software | Nolimit City |
|---|---|
| Release year | Not published |
| Theme | Book slots |
| RTP | 96.01% |
| Volatility | High |
| Max win | x30,338 |
| Hit frequency | 33.33% of spins |
| Reels and rows | 5 × 3 |
| Win system | Paylines |
| Features | Bonus buy, Free spins, Respins, Ante bet, Paylines |
| Named in the rules | Shadow Rows, Lucky Locks, Gamble, Nolimit Bonus (Feature Buy) |
| Game type | Slot |
| Data verified | 2026-09-28 |
Source: Nolimit City game page; RTP database by toolsgambling.com (CC BY 4.0); image: Nolimit City promotional image from the official game page. How we collect data · Report a mistake
Book of Shadows review
Most slots hand you a board and a bet. Book of Shadows asks you to set the board yourself. Nolimit City's occult-themed release lets you pay for extra rows, freeze reels between spins and decide how a bonus round is shaped before it starts. That control is the whole point of the design, and it comes with a price tag attached to nearly every choice, so the numbers behind it are worth reading first.
The base setup
The standard layout is five reels by three rows with wins paying along paylines from the leftmost reel. The studio's sheet does not print a payline count for each row height, only that additional rows add win lines.
The book symbol does two jobs. It is a scatter, and it also substitutes as a wild. Three or more books start ten free spins, and the same symbols can be held in place between spins, which ties the base game directly to the bonus.
Paying for control
Three optional tools sit around each spin. None has a fixed price in the material we hold: the studio's sheet says each one adjusts the stake without printing a multiplier.
Shadow Rows
An opt-in upgrade that raises the grid from 5 by 3 to 5 by 4 or 5 by 5 for an extra cost. More rows mean more win lines, so wins should come more often and can be larger. The option works in the main game and in free spins.
Lucky Locks
After a main-game spin you may choose which reels to lock and which to respin, at an adjusted bet. Scatters can be held this way to improve the chance of reaching the free spins. It turns a near miss into a priced second attempt.
Gamble
Offered after a win, it is a 50/50 double-or-nothing on the amount just won. The studio also describes a route that gambles a win straight into the free spins. Both put an existing win at risk, so they raise the variance of a session.
Nolimit Bonus
A feature buy that goes straight to the free spins. The price is not stated on the public sheet, and the studio notes that the option may be removed in some regulated markets.
Free spins and the Golden symbol
A round starts with ten spins as the base figure. Before it begins, the game awards a Golden expand symbol. You can redraw that first draw once if you dislike it. During the spins, a Golden symbol expands to cover its whole reel whenever that creates extra wins.
Shadow Rows can be chosen for the round too. Picking more or fewer rows changes the number of spins awarded, but the exact totals and any retrigger rules are not printed on the sheet, so we cannot state them.
Where the return comes from
The headline RTP is 96.01%, a house edge of 3.99%, or about $39.90 lost per $1,000 wagered. The official sheet also lists two lower versions, 94.09% (DX1) and 90.15% (DX3), so the setting an operator uses matters. Of the 96.01%, the sheet attributes 58.70% to the main game and 37.31% to the bonus, which means over a third of the return depends on reaching the free spins.
The sheet puts the bonus round at roughly one in 154 spins and a win of 100x or more at one in 843. Hit frequency is quoted as 33.18% on the sheet, while our catalogue shows 33.33%. We follow the studio's figure. Volatility is High in the catalogue and Extreme (10) on the studio's own scale, so both labels exist.
Money terms and comparison
At 100 spins, the average cost is $0.80 at a $0.20 bet, $3.99 at $1 and $19.95 at $5. These apply to the plain game; extra rows and locks raise the stake. The 30,338x max win equals $6,067.60 at $0.20, $30,338 at $1 and $151,690 at $5.
Close High-volatility neighbours include Tombstone Begins at 96.02% and 20,000x, Duck Hunters at 96.05% and 30,000x, and Gluttony at 96.09% and 32,000x. Bushido Ways xNudge shares the 96.01% RTP, with a 30,000x cap.
Pros
- Shadow Rows and Lucky Locks give unusual control over each spin
- The book symbol works as wild and scatter, and can be held between spins
- Free spins let you redraw the Golden symbol once
- 30,338x max win with a bonus about one spin in 154 on the studio's figures
Cons
- Almost every choice costs extra, and the multipliers are not published
- Lower RTP versions of 94.09% and 90.15% exist
- The Gamble option puts wins at 50/50 risk
- No free demo is listed for this game
Verdict
Book of Shadows suits players who like adjusting a game rather than just spinning it. The base RTP is 96.01% with a 3.99% house edge, volatility is High or Extreme depending on the source, and the ceiling is 30,338x. Every upgrade raises the stake, and the Gamble feature adds avoidable risk, so decide a budget first. A hundred spins at $1 cost about $3.99 before any extras.
Sources: Nolimit City official game page; RTP, volatility and max win from the open Slot RTP Database.
Slots like Book of Shadows
Book of Shadows RTP
The data lists one RTP for Book of Shadows. Versions are not tracked for Nolimit City games, so other versions may exist; check the game's info screen.
- 96.01% $39.90 lost per $1,000
Cost of 100 spins
| Bet | Wagered | Average cost at 96.01% |
|---|---|---|
| $0.20 | $20 | $0.80 |
| $1 | $100 | $3.99 |
| $5 | $500 | $19.95 |
Averages computed from the published RTP; real sessions vary widely around them. RTP calculator
Book of Shadows max win, volatility & stats
- Value score
- 8.4 / 10
- Lost per $1,000 (average)
- $39.90
- Max win at $1 bet
- $30,338
- Wins on average
- 1 in 3 spins
Percentiles compare this game with the 3,708 games in the catalogue. Max win: 30,338×.
