Apparat Gaming · Released 2023
Released
Nov 23
Volatility
n/a
Reel
5x4
Paylines
n/a
RTP
96.24
Min bet
0.1
Max bet
20
Max win
11,000
Free play demo
Demo play with virtual credits only. No deposit, no real money, no prizes.
Total Eclipse XXL by Apparat Gaming is a free demo for adults. Nothing you play here uses real money.
Confirmation lasts for this visit only.
Total Eclipse XXL from Apparat Gaming takes a classic fruit machine and launches the whole thing into space. Released in November 2023 as the follow up to the original Total Eclipse, it uses a 5x4 grid with 40 fixed paylines, high volatility and maximum win potential of 11,000x the stake. Apparat lists its highest RTP configuration at 96.24%, although versions as low as 84.16% exist, so the individual casino configuration matters considerably here.
The regular reels are deliberately old school. Sevens, bells, fruit and a Star Wild make up most of the action, only this time they're floating around against a cosmic backdrop. It's an odd combination on paper, almost as though somebody accidentally fired a fruit machine into orbit, but visually it works surprisingly well.
The real reason for the XXL name is the Eclipse Spins feature. Land four Eclipse symbols and the game moves into a Hold and Spin style bonus where the playing area can grow from its normal 5x4 configuration to a huge 5x8 grid containing 40 positions. Eclipse symbols lock in place, additional symbols keep the Respins alive and filling the entire grid awards the 10,000x Grand Prize.
That's quite a transformation for a slot that initially looks so traditional. The base game isn't especially adventurous, but once Eclipse Spins begins, watching the playing area expand gives the bonus a genuine sense of progression. The bigger the eclipse becomes, the more obvious it is that you're getting closer to the game's biggest prizes.
It's basically a traditional fruit machine that's been told there isn't enough room on Earth.
The Star Wild substitutes for regular paying symbols across the game's 40 paylines, helping complete winning combinations during normal play. The Eclipse Bonus symbol is excluded from substitution. There's nothing particularly exciting about the Wild itself, but that's fairly representative of Total Eclipse XXL's base game. Apparat has kept the regular reels uncomplicated and reserved almost all of the additional machinery for Eclipse Spins.
Special Eclipse Symbols are the key to triggering and developing the game's main feature. Landing at least four activates Eclipse Spins, which is a noticeably more accessible starting requirement than filling half the screen with Bonus symbols before anything happens. Eclipse symbols become considerably more important once the bonus begins because additional symbols remain locked and contribute towards expanding the feature. It's one of those games where seeing four little planets suddenly matters considerably more than whatever combination of watermelons you were watching a second earlier.
Landing four or more Eclipse symbols triggers Eclipse Spins, Apparat's version of a Hold and Spin feature. The bonus begins with three Respins. Eclipse symbols remain locked in position, while each additional Eclipse resets the Respin counter back to three. The underlying mechanism is very familiar. What makes Total Eclipse XXL more interesting is what happens to the playing area while you're collecting them. Instead of simply filling the same small grid until you run out of Respins, you're effectively trying to unlock a much larger one.
The Expanding Grid is the feature that gives Total Eclipse XXL its strongest identity. Eclipse Spins can ultimately expand to 5 reels and 8 rows, creating 40 individual positions. Additional sections become available as more Eclipse symbols are collected, providing increasingly more space for the feature to continue developing. This works particularly well visually because progress is immediately obvious. You're not simply watching a meter quietly increase somewhere above the reels. The actual game gets physically bigger. That also makes later stages of Eclipse Spins feel substantially different from the beginning. By the time most of the 5x8 grid is open, the modest little fruit machine you started with has almost disappeared.
Eclipse symbols can carry Cash Prize values that are awarded as part of the feature. Detailed game documentation lists regular Eclipse values alongside higher value Bronze, Silver and Gold prizes, adding larger individual targets as the grid develops. This is fundamentally familiar Hold and Spin territory, but the expanding grid gives those prizes somewhere to accumulate. The important thing is that expansion isn't purely cosmetic. More available positions mean more opportunities to add valuable Eclipse symbols before the Respins expire.
Completely filling all 40 positions with Eclipse symbols awards the Grand Prize of 10,000x the stake. Apparat confirms this directly in both its official game page and launch announcement. I'd classify this as a Fixed Jackpot rather than a progressive jackpot. There's no network prize pool increasing in the background as with Dream Drop or Mega Moolah. It's also a good example of a jackpot style prize that actually feels connected to gameplay. You can physically see the 40 positions you're trying to fill and understand exactly what completing the screen represents. No random wheel suddenly appearing from another galaxy required.
Where permitted, Buy Feature provides direct access to Eclipse Spins for 74x the stake. Apparat's official information also indicates that the RTP can differ when using this mode. As with our other reviews, the Bonus Buy doesn't receive additional rating credit simply for being available. It changes how you reach Eclipse Spins rather than improving the quality of the feature itself.
There's a considerable difference between the two sides of Total Eclipse XXL. The base game is extremely traditional. Forty paylines, fruit, Sevens, bells and a standard Wild aren't going to keep anyone awake wondering how Apparat managed to invent them. Eclipse Spins changes the picture considerably. Starting with a relatively compact grid and gradually opening additional positions gives the Hold and Spin format a proper sense of development. There's a visible objective beyond simply landing more Cash symbols, and every newly unlocked section makes the feature feel as though it's progressing towards something. The main game keeps this from reaching an 8, but the bonus does enough heavy lifting to make the overall gameplay comfortably above average.
Total Eclipse XXL doesn't have an enormous feature list, but Eclipse Spins is a very good central feature. The familiar Hold and Spin structure is improved considerably by the expanding grid. Starting with 20 active positions and potentially reaching 40 creates a much stronger sense of progression than simply locking Coins onto an unchanged grid. There's also a proper end goal. Completely filling the 5x8 grid awards 10,000x, so the biggest fixed prize is directly connected to completing the game's central mechanic. I'm keeping this at 8.0 rather than pushing towards 9 because most of the feature package ultimately revolves around one idea. It's a very good idea, but there isn't the variety we've seen in something like 5K Gold Mine Dream Drop or Dungeons & Dragons Power Combo.
Space and traditional fruit machines shouldn't necessarily be natural companions, but Total Eclipse XXL somehow makes the combination work. The dark cosmic background gives the brightly coloured fruit and classic symbols plenty of contrast, while Eclipse Spins is where the presentation becomes much more impressive. Watching the playing area physically grow towards a huge 5x8 grid makes the feature look increasingly substantial as it develops. It's not cinematic and there isn't much in the way of character or storytelling, but everything is exceptionally clear. The expanding grid is the visual star. Once all eight rows are visible, the game genuinely earns the XXL sitting in its name.
This needs a little balance. Hold and Spin isn't original. Cash Prize symbols aren't original. Fruit machines certainly aren't original. The expanding 5x8 structure is where Apparat earns the points. Instead of treating Hold and Spin as a completely static bonus, Eclipse Spins gradually increases the amount of available playing space. That gives the feature a recognisable identity and creates a visual representation of progression at the same time. Apparat itself made the larger 5x8 feature grid the central selling point of XXL compared with the original Total Eclipse. So the ingredients are familiar, but Apparat has done something worthwhile with their arrangement.
Overall Rating
7.7/10
Total Eclipse XXL starts life as a fairly ordinary fruit machine, but once the planets align, things get considerably bigger and considerably better. The base game isn't the reason to seek this one out. It's straightforward 40 payline gameplay with familiar symbols and relatively little happening between feature triggers. Eclipse Spins is a different story. Locking Cash Prizes is familiar territory, but gradually expanding the playing area towards a huge 5x8 grid gives the bonus a genuine sense of progression. Filling all 40 positions for the 10,000x Grand provides a very clear ultimate target.
There aren't enough different mechanics here to trouble the very highest rated slots we've reviewed, but the central feature is clever, easy to understand and visually satisfying.
Apparat hasn't reinvented Hold and Spin. It has simply given it a lot more space.
