28Fishin' Frenzy
10Gates of Olympus
10Sweet Bonanza
6Sugar Rush
284Megaways
248Jackpot
27Bell Link
77Dice
428Animal
370Asian
270Egyptian
319Horror
206Christmas
154Fishing
167Gems & Diamonds
124Dragon
125Irish
118Gods & Mythology
214Magic
93Joker
76Wild West
128Pirate
54Book of
64Aztec
48Vegas
36Buffalo
24Viking
38Space
The Tome of Madness demo is the free, no-signup version of Play’n GO’s June 2019 Rich Wilde spin-off, and it is the studio’s cluster game rather than another line-and-reel release. The headline is 96.59% RTP on a 5×5 grid where wins cascade and charge a Portal Meter. The catch is at both ends: the meter resets to zero on any losing cascade, and the ceiling is only 2,000× — the second-lowest of the 14 Play’n GO games in our archive.
- Free Demo
- At a Glance
- How It Plays
- Paytable
- Features
- Compare
- RTP & Max Win
- Bets & Bankroll
- Tips
- Where to Play
- FAQ
- Verdict
Play the Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness demo free
The Tome of Madness demo runs the real game on play credits: the same 5×5 grid, the same Portal Meter, the same Other World Free Round. Nothing is simplified.
There is a specific reason to use it here rather than take the published number on trust. This game ships in five RTP builds, from 96.59% down to 84.50%, and the top build is the one the databases index while a lower one is what several real operators were observed running. The demo is also the only cheap way to learn what the Portal Meter actually feels like — it needs 42 cleared symbols in one unbroken chain to reach the free round, and a single losing cascade sends it back to zero.
This demo is part of our collection of free Play’n GO demos.
Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness slot at a glance
More on the figures above. The 5×5 grid, the 4-symbol cluster minimum, the Portal Meter thresholds (7 / 14 / 27 / 42), the Abyss and Void Portal Effects, the Other World Free Round, the 96.59% default RTP, the 10/10 volatility and the 2,000× ceiling are read from the game’s information panel as transcribed by Bigwinboard. The alternative RTP builds and the 94.52% operator observation come from SlotCatalog and Spinhunter. The 27 June 2019 release date is corroborated across several independent databases. Play’n GO itself publishes none of these figures.
How the game plays
It is a 5×5 grid with no paylines. Wins come from clusters of four or more matching symbols connected horizontally or vertically. Winning symbols are removed, the ones above drop in, and the chain continues for as long as each cascade keeps paying.
Every cleared symbol charges the Portal Meter down the side of the grid. This is the whole game, and it works on a knife edge: a losing cascade resets the meter to zero. Progress is not banked between spins, it is banked between cascades within one spin.
The meter has four thresholds. At 7 cleared symbols you get two Special Wilds added to the grid. At 14, two more, and a win formed with a Special Wild now triggers the Abyss Portal Effect, which wipes a full row or column out from that wild. At 27, two more again, and the Void Portal Effect unlocks — the Void picks one ordinary symbol at random and clears every instance of it on the grid at once. At 42, the Other World Free Round triggers.
Three wilds carry the paytable. The Book is the ordinary wild. Rich Wilde himself is a wild carrying a 2× multiplier. The Cthulhu Mega Wild appears only in the bonus round, arriving once every Eye Mark is opened and then walking down the grid one step per cascade.
The story behind the game
Play’n GO released Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness on 27 June 2019, a date several independent databases agree on. Play’n GO’s own page for the game carries no release date, no RTP and no volatility rating.
It matters that this is a Rich Wilde game that is not a Book game. The series made its name on Book of Dead and its descendants — five reels, ten lines, one expanding symbol chosen at random before a free-spins round. Tome of Madness throws all of that out and rebuilds the character around a cascading cluster grid with a charge meter, a structure that has far more in common with the studio’s Reactoonz than with anything else wearing the Rich Wilde name.
Two later games muddy the search results and are worth separating now. Alice Cooper and the Tome of Madness (October 2021) is a different game with a different licence attached. Tome of Madness Bingo is a late-2025 bingo conversion. Both are in our catalogue as separate titles. Figures quoted for one do not carry to the others.
Symbols and paytable
Everything the studio and the independent databases publish about the game, in one place.
| Studio | Play’n GO |
|---|---|
| Released | 27 June 2019 |
| Layout | 5 × 5 |
| Paylines | None — cluster pays |
| Cluster minimum | 4 connected, horizontally or vertically |
| Default RTP | 96.59% |
| Other RTP builds | 94.52% · 91.59% · 87.52% · 84.50% |
| Volatility | High, 10/10 (Bigwinboard) · Medium (Sigma) |
| Maximum win | 2,000× total bet |
| Jackpot | None |
| Bet range | 0.10 to 100 per spin |
| Wilds | Book · Rich Wilde (2×) · Cthulhu Mega Wild (bonus only) |
| Portal Meter steps | 7 · 14 · 27 · 42 cleared symbols |
| Meter reset | Any losing cascade returns it to zero |
| Abyss Portal Effect | Unlocked at 14 — clears a row or column |
| Void Portal Effect | Unlocked at 27 — clears every copy of one symbol |
| Bonus round | Other World Free Round, at 42 |
| Bonus contents | 1 round, 3 Portal Effects, up to 7 |
| Series | Rich Wilde — 6 titles in our catalogue |
Two numbers define this game and they pull against each other. The cluster minimum is four, which is generous and keeps small wins landing. The meter needs 42 cleared symbols without a single losing cascade, which is not generous at all. The result is a game that pays often and reaches its bonus rarely — and when it does reach it, the ceiling above is only 2,000×.
Bonus features and free spins
Cluster pays, four or more
Wins are clusters of four or more matching symbols connected horizontally or vertically. There are no paylines at all, so only the shape of the cluster matters. Four is a low minimum by cluster-game standards, and it is the main reason the base game keeps paying while you wait for the meter to climb.
Cascading reels
Every winning symbol is removed and replaced by the symbols dropping in from above. The chain continues for as long as each new cascade keeps paying, so a single spin can resolve into a long run of consecutive wins — or stop dead on the first one.
The Portal Meter
Each cleared symbol charges the meter beside the grid. Four thresholds sit at 7, 14, 27 and 42. The catch is that a losing cascade resets it to zero — the meter measures one unbroken run inside a spin, not accumulated progress across a session. This single rule is what makes the bonus far rarer than the thresholds make it look.
Abyss and Void Portal Effects
Two genuinely different effects rather than one at two strengths. Abyss, unlocked at 14, clears a full row or column outward from a winning Special Wild. Void, unlocked at 27, picks one ordinary symbol at random and clears every copy of it on the grid at once. Void is much the stronger of the two and arrives much later.
Other World Free Round
Triggered at 42 cleared symbols. It awards one round carrying three random Portal Effects, plus one extra effect for every three winning symbols collected, to a maximum of seven. The Cthulhu Mega Wild appears here and nowhere else, arriving once every Eye Mark is opened and then stepping down the grid with each cascade.
- A four-symbol cluster minimum, which is low and keeps the base game paying
- The Portal Meter gives a spin a visible arc rather than a single pass or fail
- Two genuinely different Portal Effects, not one effect at two strengths
- A 2× multiplier wild that sits in the base game rather than only in the bonus
- 96.59% on the default build is above the 96.2% that most of our Play’n GO archive sits on
- Bet range starts at 0.10, so the demo maps onto a realistic small stake
- 2,000× ceiling — second-lowest of the 14 Play’n GO games we have reviewed
- Five RTP builds down to 84.50%, and the low ones are genuinely in circulation
- The meter resetting on any losing cascade makes the bonus much rarer than the thresholds suggest
- Play’n GO publishes no RTP, volatility or max win for the game at all
- Volatility is rated 10/10 by one source and medium by another — the disagreement is unresolved
- Three similarly-named games now exist, and figures get mixed between them constantly
How Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness compares
How it sits against the other Play’n GO games in our archive that pay by grid rather than by line.
| Game | Grid | Default RTP | Max win | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tome of Madness | 5 × 5 cluster | 96.59% | 2,000× | this review |
| Reactoonz | 7 × 7 cluster | 96.51% | 4,570× | reviewed |
| Reactoonz 2 | 7 × 7 cluster | 96.20% | 5,083× | reviewed |
| Gemix | 7 × 7 cluster | not published | 6,025× | reviewed |
| Reactoonz Blitzways | 5 reels, 2–7 rows | 96.20% | 10,000× | reviewed |
| Fire Joker | 3 × 3 | 94.23% | 800× | reviewed |
Read down the max-win column and the pattern is hard to miss. Among the Play’n GO games in our archive that pay by grid, Tome of Madness has both the smallest cluster grid and the lowest ceiling. Only Fire Joker pays less at the top, and Fire Joker is a 3×3 classic fruit machine that is not trying to do the same job.
That is the honest trade here. The default RTP is higher than four of the five games above it — 96.59% against the 96.2% that most of our Play’n GO archive clusters on — but the money is returned in small, frequent cluster wins rather than held back for a large top end. A 2,000× ceiling on a high-volatility game is an unusual combination, and it is the single most important thing to understand before playing it.
Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness RTP, volatility and max win
Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness is published at more than one RTP. Five builds, a 12.09-point spread from top to bottom. The 96.59% figure is what gets indexed; it is not what every casino runs. One review that checked four UK operator pages found 94.52% on all four. Read the game’s own information panel before you play it for money.
| 96.59% | the default build, and the figure almost every database indexes |
|---|---|
| 94.52% | a second build, and the one several UK operators were observed running |
| 91.59% | a third build |
| 87.52% | a fourth build |
| 84.50% | the floor build |
The default build returns 96.59%. That is a good number for this studio: of the 14 Play’n GO games in our archive, only Lion Saga Odyssey (96.58%) and Reactoonz (96.51%) come close, and most of the rest sit on 96.2%.
Underneath it is a five-rung ladder: 96.59%, 94.52%, 91.59%, 87.52% and 84.50%. A 12.09-point spread between the build you read about and the build you might be playing.
This is not unique to this game — it is a Play’n GO house pattern, and our own archive now documents it across seven titles. Fate’s Fortune, Legion Gold and Reactoonz Blitzways all run 96.2 / 94.2 / 91.2 / 87.2 / 84.2. Gnaw’n Gold runs the same shape from 96.24, Triple Launch Fortune Wild from 96.24, Lion Saga Odyssey from 96.58. Every one of them lands its floor build between 84.2% and 84.6%. Tome of Madness at 84.50% falls squarely inside that band. The studio is not choosing these numbers per game; it is shipping one ladder and sliding it.
The practical half matters more than the pattern. One review that checked four UK operator pages for this game found 94.52% on all four, not the 96.59% that every database indexes. We have not independently verified those four pages, and we are reporting the claim rather than endorsing it — but the direction of travel is clear enough that the only safe habit is to open the game’s own information panel at the casino you are actually using and read the number there. It is two clicks and it is the only figure that applies to you.
Bets, bankroll and session planning
Stakes run from 0.10 to 100 per spin. Because this is a cluster game with no paylines, there is nothing to switch on or off — the stake is the only lever, and every spin uses the whole grid.
That makes the bet-sizing question simpler than on a line game but no less important. The Portal Meter rewards long sessions rather than big ones: it needs 42 cleared symbols in one unbroken chain, which is a function of how many spins you see, not how much each one costs.
Playing on mobile
The 5×5 grid is close to square, which makes this one of the better Play’n GO games to play on a phone — there is no wide five-reel layout to shrink and no long payline overlay to read.
The Portal Meter sits down the side of the grid on desktop and relocates on narrow screens. It is the one piece of interface worth finding before you start, because it is the only place the game tells you how close the bonus is.
Five things to know before you spin
- Open the information panel and read the RTP before you play for money — this game ships in five builds and the low ones are in circulation.
- Watch the Portal Meter, not the balance. It is the only thing on screen that predicts the bonus.
- Remember the meter resets on a losing cascade. A spin showing 26 is not 26 banked, it is 26 in one unbroken chain.
- Do not read a 2,000× ceiling as low volatility. It is rated 10/10 by one source; the ceiling is low and the variance is not.
- Use the demo to see a full Other World Free Round at least once before deciding the game is for you.
- Check which Tome you are looking at — the Alice Cooper game and the bingo conversion carry different numbers.
Where to play Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness for real money
Every demo on this page is free and needs no account. If you move to real money, the RTP build is set by the casino and not by the game, so check the information panel there first.
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Who this slot is for
This suits a player who wants a cascading grid game with a visible objective and who is not chasing a huge multiplier. The Portal Meter gives each spin a shape, the four-symbol cluster minimum keeps small wins arriving, and 96.59% on the default build is genuinely good for the studio.
It does not suit anyone playing for a life-changing top end. A 2,000× ceiling is modest, and on a game rated high-volatility that combination means the swings arrive without a large prize waiting at the end of them.
Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness demo and slot FAQ
What is the RTP of Tome of Madness?
What is the maximum win?
How many symbols do I need for a win?
How does the Portal Meter work?
What is the difference between the Abyss and Void Portal Effects?
Is this the same game as Alice Cooper and the Tome of Madness?
Is there a jackpot?
Can I play the Tome of Madness demo free?
Our verdict on Rich Wilde and the Tome of Madness
A clever meter and a genuinely good RTP, held back by a 2,000× ceiling
Tome of Madness is the most interesting thing the Rich Wilde series has done, and it is also the one with the smallest prize at the end. Both of those are worth saying plainly.
The Portal Meter is a real design idea rather than a reskinned free-spins trigger. Because it charges on cleared symbols and resets on a losing cascade, every spin has a visible arc — you can watch a run build through 7, 14 and 27 and know exactly what is at stake when the next cascade has to pay. The two Portal Effects are properly distinct, and the four-symbol cluster minimum is low enough that the base game keeps moving while the meter climbs.
The default 96.59% is a good figure for this studio. Of the 14 Play’n GO games in our archive, only Lion Saga Odyssey edges it, and most of the rest sit on 96.2%. But that number carries two warnings. It is the top of a five-rung ladder that reaches down to 84.50%, and at least one review found a lower build running on four real UK operator pages. The pattern is not a one-off — our archive now documents the same five-rung shape across seven Play’n GO titles, every one of them with a floor build between 84.2% and 84.6%.
The ceiling is where it loses marks. 2,000× is the second-lowest of any Play’n GO game we have reviewed, and it sits on a game rated 10/10 for volatility by the source that transcribes its information panel. High variance with a low ceiling is a genuinely awkward combination: the swings are real, and the reward for riding them is capped well below what the same studio offers elsewhere. Reactoonz returns slightly less and pays more than twice as much at the top.
Play it for the meter, and play it in the demo first — both because the mechanic needs a few spins to make sense, and because the number on the tin is not reliably the number you will be served.
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