Candy Stars Slot Review

Candy Stars Slot Overview

Candy Stars from Pragmatic Play drops me into a bright, starry backdrop with a heap of sugary symbols, but the core is pure maths rather than fluff. The layout uses 5 reels in a 3-4-4-4-3 pattern with 576 ways to win, tumble wins and a sliding top reel. It feels like a trimmed down Megaways style game without the licence, focused on sticky wild multipliers.

From the first session I could tell Candy Stars sits on the volatile side, yet the gameplay rarely feels dead thanks to those constant tumbles and the extra horizontal reel. Most spins tease small chains, then occasionally a wild lands up top and the whole thing ramps up quickly. It looks simple at first glance, yet the wild mechanics give it a sharper edge than many candy slots.

Candy Stars Base Game and Features

In the Candy Stars base game I work with 576 ways, so any three or more matching symbols from the left across adjacent reels can connect. Every win triggers the tumble feature, removing winning symbols while fresh ones drop in and new icons slide across the top reel. That chain effect is where the slot breathes, as a single paid spin can stretch into several paid outcomes in a row.

When a star wild lands on the sliding reel in Candy Stars it stays put for the entire tumble sequence from that spin. It starts with a x1 multiplier in the base game and climbs by one step after each successful tumble where it helps a win, capped at x128. Because wilds are not removed by tumbles, they can keep stacking value while symbols fall around them.

In practice the mix of ways, tumbles and sticky wilds makes Candy Stars feel like a downsized Megaways slot. I usually play between 0.20 and 1.00 a spin, and the game can swing hard either way, with dry patches broken by sudden chains when a wild sits in the sweet spot. Most of the time you are hunting that one good tumble string that pushes the balance back.

Candy Stars Symbols and Paytable

The paytable in Candy Stars keeps things clear. Low pays are J, Q, K and A, paying up to 1.5x for five of a kind. High pays are the coloured sweets, with the purple sweet at the top paying 7.5x for five, then red, green and blue candies stepping down through 3x, 2.5x and 2x. Even mid hits can feel decent once multipliers get involved.

Star wilds in Candy Stars do not carry their own payout, yet they do the heavy lifting by substituting for regular symbols and carrying that scaling multiplier. Diamond scatters act separately, do not pay line wins, and only appear on reels one, three and five. Three diamonds at once are enough to drop you into free spins, even if they land during a tumble chain rather than straight away.

Symbols and Paytable

Symbol	Quantity	Payout
	5	x7.5
	4	x3
	3	x1
	5	x3
	4	x1.25
	3	x0.5
	5	x2.5
	4	x1
	3	x0.5
	5	x2
	4	x1
	3	x0.25
	5	x1.5
	4	x0.75
	3	x0.25
	5	x1.5
	4	x0.5
	3	x0.25
	5	x1.25
	4	x0.4
	3	x0.15
	5	x1
	4	x0.3
	3	x0.15
	Scatter
	Wild

RTP, Volatility & Max Win in Candy Stars

For Candy Stars the default RTP sits at 96.47%, though operators can flick it down to 95.02% or 94.31%, so I always check the info panel first. Volatility is rated high, and stats from long test runs put the hit rate around one in 3.3 spins with the bonus averaging about one trigger in 217. The win cap is 5,000x, reachable mainly through heavy multipliers.

Free Spins and Bonus Buy in Candy Stars

In Candy Stars free spins land when three diamond scatters show on reels one, three and five, paying you eight spins to start. Every free spin drops at least one wild on the sliding reel, and this time it begins at x2. Each time that wild helps a win its multiplier value doubles rather than stepping by one, racing up towards the x128 ceiling much faster than in the base game.

Three scatters during a single tumble sequence, or on one free spin, grant five extra spins, so you can build longer bonus rounds if diamonds play along. Outside the UK there is also a bonus buy option priced at 80x stake, dropping you straight into the feature with an RTP around 96.26%. From my sessions, most free spins rounds cluster in the 20x to 200x range unless multipliers really connect.

Candy Stars Slot Verdict

For me Candy Stars is one of those slots that looks ordinary yet keeps dragging me back because of the way wild multipliers behave. The theme is simple candy and stars, but the mix of tumbles, sticky wilds and that doubling action in free spins gives it real punch. You do need a bankroll that can ride out high-volatility swings, but the 5,000x ceiling feels realistic enough to chase.

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