Black Diamond slot review
Everi’s Black Diamond brings a retro slot to the online casino scene. It’s a slot with an RTP of 95.95%, medium volatility, and nine paylines to win in this classic three-by-three game.
If you’re looking for features, Black Diamond has two progressive jackpots, a Wild, and multipliers. Plus, a maximum win of 7,500x. My Black Diamond slot review breaks it all down for you.
Highlights
| RTP | 95.95% |
| Stakes range | 135 |
| Volatility | Medium |
| Max win | 7,500x |
| Jackpots | 1 |
| Number of reels | 3 |
| Number of rows | 3 |
| Number of paylines | 9 |
| Software provider | Everi |
| Slot type | Video slots |
| Slot theme | Retro |
| Launch date | 06/11/2017 |
General ratings
Expert verdict
The Black Diamond slot by Everi brings those nostalgic retro casino vibes to your online casino. What I find frustrating, however, is this online slot machine doesn’t quite meet modern online slot expectations.
The payouts and stakes are the strongest aspects of this slot, but they’re not without their issues. The symbols have strong payout potential, with the highest-paying symbol awarding a payout of 5,000x. With only nine paylines though, the slot ends up feeling more like a high volatility slot, than a medium one.
Black Diamond has a wide bet range of $0.25–$135, which will please high rollers. Beware though, the bet per spin is multiplied by the number of paylines, which means you could be betting more than you intended.
As for bonus features, there’s not a lot going on. There are two progressive jackpots, which are a big pull for this slot, however, they’re only active when you’re playing on max bet. The other two features are the Wild and multipliers, which are good additions. The Wilds lands frequently and there’s the potential for a 30x multiplier, both of which help maximize your wins.
- Two progressive jackpots
- 30x max multiplier
- Bet range of $0.25–$135
- Jackpots only active on max bet
- Only nine paylines
- Limited bonus features
Black Diamond casinos
Thinking about giving the old reels a spin? There are a number of top casinos where you can find Black Diamond, but here are some of my recommendations, including Borgata – one of our highest-rated casinos with loyalty rewards and bonuses.
| Casino Logo | Rating | Bonus | Go-to-casino button | Show more | T&C |
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89/100 Expert rating by Paul P. 87% Playscore based on |
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89/100 Expert rating by Paul P. 79% Playscore based on |
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89/100 Expert rating by Paul P. 81% Playscore based on |
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88/100 Expert rating by Paul P. 90% Playscore based on |
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10
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88/100 Expert rating by Paul P. 96% Playscore based on |
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Play now players accepted |
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RTP and volatility
Everi’s Black Diamond slot has an RTP of 95.95% with medium volatility. The slot has nine adjustable paylines and a max win of 7,500x.
There are nine classic retro symbols typical of the old fruit machines. These include single bars, double bars, red sevens, yellow double sevens, blue triple sevens, and the Black Diamond logo.
Players can adjust how many paylines they want to bet on for each spin, however, this option isn’t available in the demo version. In the demo, all nine paylines are active.
Payout facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| RTP | 95.95% |
| Maximum win | 7,500x |
| Highest-paying symbol | Black Diamond logo |
| Volatility | Medium |
Landing a combination of any three bars awards a payout of three credits while landing three single bars awards 10. The same payout is awarded for landing a combination of any three of the sevens together. Landing sets of red sevens, however, awards a payout of 50 credits, and landing three triple blue sevens awards 100 credits.
The highest-paying symbol in the game is the Black Diamond logo, which also serves as the Wild and substitutes for any other paying symbol to complete a winning combination. The Black Diamond symbol also triggers the Minor and Major jackpots.
The jackpots can only be triggered when the bet is set to the maximum. When it’s not set to max bet, landing three Black Diamond symbols awards 300 credits on paylines 1–8 and 5,000 credits on payline 9.
Despite its three rows and three reels, the grid never holds nine symbols at a time. The symbols always land stepped, and never more than one or two symbols per reel. This also impacts the frequency of your wins.
Payouts rating
- Decent payout potential
- 7,500x max win
- Below average 95.95% RTP
- 9 paylines
The payouts are a mixed bag. The payout values are actually pretty good, with the highest-paying symbol paying out 5,000x and the lowest paying out 3x. The maximum win of 7,500x is also good, although with the highest symbol coming in at a potential 5,000x, I expected a higher max win.
There are a few factors, however, that lower the payouts rating for me. The biggest issue for me is the nine paylines and the way the slot is structured. Nine paylines is not a lot and accounts for the relatively low hit rate.Â
The hit rate is also impacted by the way the symbols fall on the reels. Not only is the grid small with just three reels, but it can’t even hold nine symbols at the same time. The reels are stepped, meaning the symbols often land unevenly. They also only allow for up to two symbols at a time, making it harder to land a winning combination on a payline.
To compare, Red Tiger’s 777 Super Strike is also a classic-themed slot but with 243 ways to win. The slot has lower payout values, paying out just 77x for the highest-paying symbol, but it’s a much stronger performing slot. It has a 5×3 grid, allowing for 15 symbols to land on the reels at once, and that much higher hit rate makes up for the lower payouts.
Stakes
Black Diamond has a bet range of $0.25–$135, which is adjusted by setting how many coins you want to bet per payline (bet multiplier), and how many paylines you want to bet on. The coin value ranges from $0.25–$5.
The minimum bet value when playing with one active payline is $0.25. To get to the maximum bet of $135, needed for jackpots, you need to have all nine paylines active, with the coin denom set to $5 and the bet multiplier set to three. You can adjust your bet value in the bet settings.
Stake facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Minimum bet | $0.25 |
| Maximum bet | $135 |
| Adjustable paylines | Available |
| Bet per line | $0.25 |
| Buy feature | N/A |
In the demo version, adjusting the coin denom and the paylines is not possible. Some demos have the denom set to the lowest $0.25, whereas others have it set to $1. With all nine paylines active, this means the starting bet across the demos ranges from $2.25 to $9.
I also found that different demos gave different bet ranges. On Everi’s site, the bet range is $2.25 to just $6.75.
The payout value is calculated as the bet denom multiplied by the payout, but be warned that it won’t always balance out the bet. For example, a stake of $2.25 with a single payline win of three bars will award only $0.75. This is due to the fact that the win is multiplied 3x by the denom for one payline, $0.25, not the overall stake of $2.25.
Stake limits rating
- Bet range of $0.25–$135
- Freedom to adjust bet
- Bet multiplied by number of paylines
- Betting limited in demo versions
The stakes are the best-rated section of this slot, which is only due to the wide bet range. Starting out at $0.25 is good, although not the lowest, but it’s the slot’s maximum of $135 that earns it points. A bet range like that is good for high-rollers.
Like the payouts, though, there are a few points I take issue with. When placing your bet, make sure you’re aware that the value is multiplied by the number of paylines you have active. If you’ve set your bet to the minimum of $0.25, but have nine active paylines, remember you’re not betting $0.25 per spin, but $2.25.
Despite the bets being calculated against all active paylines, that same value isn’t reflected in what’s actually paid out since its bet denom multiplied by payout.
That makes the slot pretty inaccessible to players with a lower budget. With the low hit rate, you risk burning through your bankroll a bit too quickly. For high-rollers, you’d need to play your bets a lot more intentionally to make sure it’s a sustainable game.
You do have a lot of room with the way you adjust your bet, through selecting the number of paylines, the coin value per line, and the denom per line. Unfortunately, this feature is limited in the demo version.
The demo versions for this slot were pretty frustrating, as none of them gave a true picture of the slot.Â
Bonus features
The Black Diamond slot has three classic features: the Wild, progressive jackpots, and multipliers.
The Black Diamond symbol has quite a few roles. When it lands in combination with other paying symbols, it functions as a Wild and substitutes for all symbols except the multipliers. When the bet isn’t set to max bet, if three of the Black Diamond symbol land on any of the paylines, the symbol awards its payout values.
Feature facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Wilds | Yes |
| Scatters | N/A |
| Other special symbols | N/A |
| Gamble feature | N/A |
| Reel features | N/A |
| Free spins | N/A |
| Respins | N/A |
| Multipliers | Yes |
| Other bonus features | 2 progressive jackpots |
To activate the progressive jackpots, the game needs to be played on max bet. The jackpots will be triggered by the Black Diamond symbol. If three symbols land on paylines 1–8, this triggers the Minor jackpot. If they land on payline 9 then the Major jackpot is triggered.
The progressive jackpots grow throughout the game, funded by a percentage of all bets placed. The exact percentage isn’t disclosed by the game.
The multipliers land on the reels attached to other paying symbols. There can be multipliers of 2, 3, and 5x. The 2x multiplier lands on the red seven, double yellow sevens, triple blue sevens, and the single and double bars. The 3x multiplier only lands on the red seven and single bar symbols, whereas the 5x multiplier lands on the double yellow sevens, triple blue sevens, and the double bars.
If more than one multiplier lands on a payline, these are multiplied together and then multiply the winning combination. There can be a maximum multiplier of 30x.
Bonus features rating
- Two progressive jackpots
- 30x max multiplier
- No free spins or bonus round
- Jackpots on max bet only
The bonus features on this slot were disappointing because they’re just not very engaging. Wilds and multipliers are great features, but they’re also very common and there isn’t anything innovative about how they’re used in this slot.
That being said, the 30x max multiplier is a strong point here. I never managed 30x, but I did land a 10x multiplier on one spin when my bet was set to $6.75. As I landed three double sevens with a 2x and 5x multiplier, my final payout was $375 on one spin.
Unfortunately, that’s as good as it gets. The Black Diamond symbol does land often and quite frequently serves its purpose as a Wild to increase your wins, but the chances of hitting the progressive jackpots are low.
There was room to be a little more creative with the features available. For instance, Wilds could have been expanding or Sticky Wilds. There could also have been reel features like tumbling reels. There’s just a lack of bonus rounds.
Black Diamond also doesn’t offer free spins. While these are a pretty common feature, they’re also a very popular feature that many players look for. Free spins add something extra to a game.Â
The Immortal Romance series is an example of what you can really do with bonus features. For starters, it has four dynamic free spins rounds, each with their own special features. The games also have bonus rounds, Sticky Wilds, and four jackpots.
Audiovisuals
The slot has retro visuals, keeping that old-school casino vibe, with the grid’s border resembling a physical casino machine.
Black Diamond has a very monotone color scheme of mostly blue and black. The only pops of color come from the sevens symbols. The symbols are the game’s visual focus, as the remaining elements don’t have much detail.
The active paylines are always visible on the reels and gently brighten when they form part of a winning combination.
Audiovisual facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Theme | Retro |
| Graphics | Retro with a limited color scheme |
| Animations | Basic |
| Sound quality | Good |
| Mobile compatibility | Excellent |
The slot has basic and limited animations. The Black Diamond symbol has the most animation, using a pulse and shimmer effect. Other symbols also shimmer when they form part of a winning line.
There isn’t any ambient music in this game, but the game sounds are like what you’d hear in a traditional casino.
Audiovisuals rating
- Retro slot design
- Good game sounds
- Lacks fine details
- Basic animations
The issue with the audiovisuals is that they’re not the most engaging. They’re clean and retro, but they’re also a bit dull as the color scheme is so monotone. Some players might prefer that so they can focus on the game at hand, although this isn’t my personal preference as I find the visuals to be a bit lackluster.
The animations are quite smooth, even if they’re limited and pretty basic. They don’t offer much to the game, but they’re not glitchy. For comparison, Starburst is another classic slot that’s known for its visuals, and it’s got plenty of small but interesting animations that bring the slot to life, with vibrant colors too.
I appreciated the grid’s border resembling a physical casino machine. I think it’s a nice touch that ties into the slot’s roots. The graphics, however, aren’t the best and could be refined, but the symbols look good even if they’re not that vibrant compared to most slots.
In terms of music, there’s no ambient sound so when the reels aren’t spinning the game is silent. There are cute game sounds when the reels spin and when there is a win, which may be one of the more entertaining parts of this game.
Game layout
Everi’s Black Diamond slot has a classic 3×3 layout with nine adjustable paylines. The reels allow up to two symbols to fall on the paylines.
Press the spin button to get the reels spinning, and if you want to shave a few seconds off your spins you can select ‘Quick Spin’ from the settings.
Game-layout facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Reel layout | 3×3 |
| Autoplay | Yes |
| Turbo mode | Quick spin is available |
| Ease of use | Very easy |
| Game history | Yes |
To set up autospin, press the arrow next to the spin button and select how many autospins you’d like. You can have as few as 10 or as many as 100. There are no additional autospin settings.
Press the menu button on the bottom left to find Quick Spin, autospin, the bet settings, the paytable, and the recall button to view your game history. The paytable has some basic information about the slot, however, important details such as the RTP were missing.
The slot has a strong mobile version, which works perfectly in landscape and portrait mode. The grid is nice and big in both versions, and the buttons are comfortably accessible. The slot runs smoothly, making it a pleasant mobile experience.
Game layout rating
- Smooth mobile version
- Autoplay and Qucik Spin
- Limited instructions and details
- Limited autospins
The strongest point in this section is the way this slot adapts to mobile. Typically when I review a slot, I’m disappointed by the landscape version of the slot in mobile but that’s not the case with Black Diamond. Everi prioritized a big grid and accessible buttons for this slot’s portrait and landscape modes, and it’s great.
There are some other decent features in terms of the game layout, but there’s room to improve. The slot layout is decent, as the buttons are clearly labeled, and getting around is fine.
The paytable is a let down as the instructions on the slot are quite limited. There’s a lack of detail on the paylines and the RTP isn’t mentioned at all. These are really critical elements for any slot and would have made getting started in the game much easier.
The autospin could also be improved as there are no additional settings here, such as a loss or win limits. The maximum of 100 autospins is decent, but other slots, such as Dead or Alive 1 which allows up to 1,000 autospins. The quick spin feature was also a bit disappointing as there wasn’t a lot of difference between a regular spin and a quick spin, which was a bit frustrating as the game moves quite slowly in general.
