Most slot families share a theme. Kingdoms Rise shares an entire economy. Playtech launched this fantasy suite in October 2019 with three games at once, connected by an in-game map, a shared token currency and a Features Shop where you spend what you earn — a mechanic the studio’s own casino director called “an industry-first concept.” Eleven games later, and if you’re comparing slots like Kingdoms Rise, this guide reviews the whole kingdom, and explains the strangest RTP quirk we’ve found on this site: one game whose published return jumps nearly four points depending on whether you actually use the token system.
Where to Play Kingdoms Rise Slots
All Eleven Kingdoms Rise Games at a Glance
Eleven games, one shared Playtech economy underneath all of them. Figures checked 5 July 2026:
| Game | Year | RTP | Standout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians of the Abyss | 2019 | 96.09% | One of the three launch-day founders |
| Sands of Fury | 2019 | 96.23% | The desert-set launch sibling |
| Forbidden Forest | 2019 | ~96.2% | The third founder, elven woodland setting |
| Shadow Queen | 2019 | 96.37–96.49% | The suite’s best-reviewed early expansion |
| Chasm of Fear | 2020 | 97.06% | The family’s best published RTP |
| Legend of Elvenstone | 2020 | 92.85% / 96.84%* | The token system's RTP gap laid bare |
| Battle Beast | 2021 | 96.22% | The 11th and final game in the original run |
*Legend of Elvenstone publishes 92.85% without engaging the token system, versus 96.84% including jackpot contribution and tokens — nearly four points apart on the same game.
Every Kingdoms Rise game, reviewed
1. Kingdoms Rise: Guardians of the Abyss
One of three games that launched the entire suite on 24 October 2019, Guardians of the Abyss sends players underwater across a 5-reel, 25-line board. Published at 96.09%, it introduced the mechanic every Kingdoms Rise game shares: earn Game Tokens (GTs) and Pending Game Tokens (PGTs) through play — 50 of each on your very first spin in the suite — then spend them in the Features Shop to unlock bonus rounds on demand, across any game in the series.
2. Kingdoms Rise: Sands of Fury
The desert-set launch sibling runs a 20-line board and publishes 96.23% including jackpot contribution and token value — the strongest of the three founding games on paper.
3. Kingdoms Rise: Forbidden Forest
The third launch-day game sends the same warrior trio into an elven woodland, publishing around 96.2% RTP. Its title card — three armoured heroines standing before a glowing forest — became one of the suite’s most recognisable pieces of key art.
4. Kingdoms Rise: Shadow Queen
An early expansion to the suite running 25 lines, publishing 96.37–96.49% depending on the operator build — among the strongest and most consistently well-reviewed entries in the whole family.
5. Kingdoms Rise: Chasm of Fear
July 2020’s entry publishes 97.06% — the single best RTP figure anywhere in the Kingdoms Rise family, and a genuinely strong number by any UK slot’s standards.
6. Kingdoms Rise: Legend of Elvenstone
2020’s entry carries the family’s most interesting maths story: published RTP is 92.85% if you play without touching the token system or jackpot contribution, rising to 96.84% once both are factored in. That’s not an operator picking a cheaper build — it’s the token economy itself changing the number, a structurally different kind of RTP gap from anything else covered on this site.
7. Kingdoms Rise: Battle Beast
February 2021’s Battle Beast was the eleventh and, so far, final game released under the original Kingdoms Rise banner, published at 96.22%. A fitting closer for a suite that grew from three launch titles to eleven interconnected games in under eighteen months.
Also in the kingdom
Beyond the seven reviewed above, the suite also includes Reign of Ice (96.26%/96.07% with tokens), Legion Uprising (2024, 25 lines, 96.02%) and Captain’s Treasure, all sharing the same token economy and jackpot network. Within Playtech’s own catalogue, the Fire Blaze dynasty runs the studio’s other prolific reskin factory, though with none of Kingdoms Rise’s connected-universe ambition.
The complete family tree
| Game | In one line |
|---|---|
| Guardians of the Abyss (Oct 2019) | Launch trio, underwater setting, 96.09% |
| Sands of Fury (Oct 2019) | Launch trio, desert setting, 96.23% |
| Forbidden Forest (Oct 2019) | Launch trio, elven woodland, ~96.2% |
| Shadow Queen (2019) | Early expansion, 96.37–96.49% |
| Chasm of Fear (Jul 2020) | The family's best RTP, 97.06% |
| Legend of Elvenstone (2020) | 92.85% without tokens, 96.84% with |
| Reign of Ice | 96.26% / 96.07% with tokens |
| Legion Uprising (2024) | 25 lines, 96.02% |
| Captain's Treasure | Pirate-themed entry in the connected suite |
| Battle Beast (Feb 2021) | The eleventh and final original-run game |
Checked 5 July 2026. Playtech has not announced a twelfth entry since Battle Beast, though the shared token infrastructure remains live across all eleven games.
The launch trio: quick facts
| Provider | Playtech |
|---|---|
| First released | 24 October 2019 (three games at once) |
| Layout | 5 reels, up to 25 paylines depending on the game |
| RTP | Ranges 92.85%–97.06% across the eleven-game suite |
| Volatility | Medium-high across most entries |
| Signature feature | Game Tokens earned through play, spent in a shared Features Shop across any Kingdoms Rise title |
✓ Facts checked 5 July 2026
The maths: when the RTP gap is the mechanic itself
Every other RTP split on this site comes from operators choosing a cheaper build. Legend of Elvenstone’s split comes from the game’s own token economy — the number genuinely changes based on how you play. Here’s the family spread, and what a hundred £1 spins costs at the extremes:
| Game / build | House edge | £1 × 100 spins |
|---|---|---|
| Chasm of Fear (97.06%) | 2.94% | £2.94 |
| Elvenstone, with tokens (96.84%) | 3.16% | £3.16 |
| Shadow Queen (96.37–96.49%) | ~3.6% | ~£3.60 |
| Battle Beast (96.22%) | 3.78% | £3.78 |
| Elvenstone, without tokens (92.85%) | 7.15% | £7.15 |
✓ Calculated from the published RTPs — checked 5 July 2026
The lesson here is different from every other family we’ve reviewed: it’s not just about which operator or which build you land on — it’s about whether you actually engage with the mechanic the game was built around. Ignore the token shop on Legend of Elvenstone specifically, and you’re leaving nearly four RTP points on the table. Session tools on our Responsible Gambling page.
History and legacy
Kingdoms Rise launched in October 2019 as one of Playtech’s most ambitious slot projects — not a single game or even a simple reskin series, but a connected fantasy universe with its own in-game map, shared currency and cross-title progression. Casino director James Frendo called the token and Features Shop system “an industry-first concept,” and the suite backed up the claim by growing from three launch titles to eleven interconnected games in under eighteen months, each contributing to and drawing from the same three-tier Daily, Capped and Progressive jackpot network. Battle Beast, released February 2021, closed out the original run — though the shared economy that made the suite distinctive is still live across every game in it.
Why this family still matters
Kingdoms Rise is the closest thing on this site to a slot franchise built like a live-service video game rather than a sequence of standalone releases. Most families share a theme and a studio; this one shares an actual economy — tokens earned in one game genuinely affect what you can unlock in another. Whether or not that experiment gets a twelfth chapter, it remains one of the more structurally interesting things a major studio has tried with slot design.
Beyond the reels
The in-game map that ties the suite together was designed to tease upcoming releases before they launched, turning what could have been a simple release calendar into something closer to a game-world roadmap. Playtech has used the suite as a flagship showcase of its gamification ambitions at industry trade shows, positioning Kingdoms Rise as proof that slot mechanics could borrow structurally from live-service video games rather than just visually from fantasy fiction.
What players say
The token and Features Shop system draws genuinely mixed reaction — some players enjoy the sense of agency it offers, choosing exactly which bonus to trigger rather than waiting on random scatters; others find the extra layer of currency management gets in the way of a simple spin-and-play session. Shadow Queen and Chasm of Fear are the most consistently praised entries on maths alone, while Legend of Elvenstone’s token-dependent RTP catches out players who don’t realise engaging with the shop actually changes their long-run return.
The biggest Kingdoms Rise wins
The shared three-tier jackpot network is the family’s real ceiling — Daily, Capped and Progressive pots that build across every connected game rather than resetting per-title. Feature-buy sessions, where UK-availability rules permit, are a common source of the biggest recorded wins in the suite. Here’s a recorded session showing the Features Shop in action:
Recorded session for flavour — the kingdom pays out on its own schedule.
Which Kingdoms Rise Game Should You Actually Play
| If you want… | Play | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The single best published RTP | Chasm of Fear | 97.06%, the family's ceiling |
| The strongest all-round expansion | Shadow Queen | 96.37–96.49%, consistently well-reviewed |
| To understand the founding trio | Guardians of the Abyss, Sands of Fury, Forbidden Forest | The three games that launched the suite together |
| To avoid a costly mistake | Not Elvenstone without using tokens | 92.85% is the family's steepest toll if you skip the shop |
Slots Like Kingdoms Rise, Elsewhere on This Site
Diamond Mine uses TNT mystery symbols, Reel King a classic fruit feature, and Squid Game a set of show bonuses. Kingdoms Rise is the progression-led option, carrying earned Game Tokens across play rather than resolving everything in one bonus.
| Series | Choose them if… | Choose Kingdoms Rise if… |
|---|---|---|
| Diamond Mine (Blueprint Gaming, under licence from Big Time Gaming) | A medium-volatility session built around TNT mystery symbol appeals more | Playtech's Game Tokens earned through play is closer to what you're after |
| Reel King (Novomatic, from Astra’s pub-cabinet original) | You want medium volatility and Novomatic's take on The Reel King feature | A medium-high-volatility session centred on Game Tokens earned through play suits you better |
| Squid Game (Light & Wonder, under official Netflix licence) | Light & Wonder's Show-game bonuses sounds more like your kind of session | You'd rather have medium-high volatility, built around Game Tokens earned through play |
The alternatives reset around their named features; Kingdoms Rise earns its place through persistent token progression and medium-high volatility.
Our verdict on Kingdoms Rise: Chasm of Fear
Sister Slots score: 7/10 — we’re scoring Chasm of Fear, the entry with the family's cleanest maths.
| Features | 7/10 — the token economy is a genuine structural innovation, if a fiddly one |
|---|---|
| Win potential | 7/10 — the three-tier networked jackpot gives every session a lottery ticket underneath it |
| Design | 7/10 — consistent, well-produced fantasy art across the whole suite |
| Playability | 8/10 — 97.06% published, the best figure in the family |
Enter the kingdom if you want a slot series with genuine structural ambition and don’t mind learning its systems. Stay out if you just want to spin and go — the token shop rewards attention that not every session has room for.
Kingdoms Rise FAQs
Who makes Kingdoms Rise?
Playtech, one of the largest gaming technology suppliers in the industry.
How many Kingdoms Rise games are there?
Eleven in the original suite launched between October 2019 and February 2021: Guardians of the Abyss, Sands of Fury, Forbidden Forest, Shadow Queen, Chasm of Fear, Legend of Elvenstone, Reign of Ice, Legion Uprising, Captain's Treasure, Battle Beast and one further title.
What are Game Tokens?
A shared in-game currency earned through play across any Kingdoms Rise title, spendable in the Features Shop to unlock bonus rounds on demand rather than waiting for random triggers.
What is the RTP of Kingdoms Rise games?
It varies significantly by title, from 92.85% (Legend of Elvenstone without tokens) to 97.06% (Chasm of Fear) — and in Elvenstone's case, the RTP itself changes depending on whether you engage with the token system.
Which Kingdoms Rise game has the best RTP?
Chasm of Fear, published at 97.06% — the strongest figure across the entire suite.
What is the Kingdoms Rise jackpot?
A three-tier networked jackpot — Daily, Capped and Progressive — shared across every game in the suite rather than reset per title.
Is Kingdoms Rise still being expanded?
No new entries have been announced since Battle Beast in February 2021, though the shared token and jackpot infrastructure remains active across all eleven existing games.
Are Kingdoms Rise slots fair?
Yes — Playtech is UK Gambling Commission licensed with independently tested RNGs across the suite; the token system affects disclosed RTP, not fairness.
Sources & Verification
Primary sources checked 9 July 2026: Playtech’s own corporate site; and the UK Gambling Commission’s public register (Playtech Plc, account 38516).
Paul edits Sister Slots’ UK slot-family guides. He researches provider histories, mechanics and published game data, checking material claims against provider sources and relevant public records. Unless a page states a dated hands-on method, it reflects documented editorial research rather than real-money play. More about Paul →