Playing Diamonds Up - First Impressions
Diamonds Up from Red Tiger Gaming is a retro fruit slot that looks like it could have been made ten years ago. Blue and purple background, classic symbols on the reels, cheerful but forgettable music. Honestly, I nearly scrolled past it. But that upgrade ladder sitting to the right of the reels caught my eye, and I am glad I stuck around. The 5-reel, 3-row setup runs across 25 paylines with stakes from 10p up to just 4 quid a spin. Default RTP sits at 95.69%, volatility is medium-high, and the hit frequency of 47.85% meant I was landing something almost every other spin during my session.
Diamonds Up Symbols and Paytable
The symbol set is pure old-school. Lower payers are cherries, plums, oranges, grapes, and watermelons, all worth 2x your bet for a five-of-a-kind line. Higher up you have got bars at 4x, horseshoes, bells, and sevens topping out at 40x for five across a payline.
Diamond Wilds only appear on reels 2, 3, and 4, substituting for everything except the scatter. They do double duty as progression symbols for the upgrade ladder, which is really the heart of the whole game. Scatters pay 5x, 20x, or 100x when you land 3, 4, or 5 respectively, on top of triggering the free spins round.
Symbol Payouts
| Symbol | Payout |
|---|---|
 | 5 → x40 |
| 4 → x4 | |
| 3 → x1.2 | |
 | 5 → x20 |
| 4 → x3 | |
| 3 → x0.8 | |
 | 5 → x8 |
| 4 → x2 | |
| 3 → x0.6 | |
 | 5 → x4 |
| 4 → x1.2 | |
| 3 → x0.4 | |
 | 5 → x2 |
| 4 → x0.8 | |
| 3 → x0.2 | |
 | 5 → x2 |
| 4 → x0.8 | |
| 3 → x0.2 | |
 | 5 → x2 |
| 4 → x0.8 | |
| 3 → x0.2 | |
 | 5 → x2 |
| 4 → x0.8 | |
| 3 → x0.2 | |
 | 5 → x2 |
| 4 → x0.8 | |
| 3 → x0.2 | |
 | Scatter |
 | Wild |
How the Symbol Upgrade Ladder Works in Diamonds Up
This is what makes Diamonds Up worth a look. Every spin you play is part of a 30-spin cycle, tracked by a counter above the reels. Each time a Diamond Wild lands, it fills a step on the upgrade ladder to the right. Every level has three steps, and once a level is completed, the lowest-paying symbol on the reels gets permanently replaced by the next one up.
During my testing, I managed to clear the first two levels within about 15 spins on a good cycle, which meant cherries and plums were gone entirely. The reels suddenly felt much more generous when every symbol hitting was at least an orange. I had a couple of cycles where I barely saw any wilds early on and the ladder went nowhere, so there is genuine variance in how useful this mechanic ends up being.
Progress and upgrades are applied before wins are calculated, which matters. At the end of 30 spins everything resets and you start fresh. It keeps things moving but can feel a bit gutting when you have built up a nice ladder and it all vanishes.
Diamonds Up Free Spins and Feature Buy
Landing 3, 4, or 5 scatters triggers 9, 12, or 20 free spins. The key detail here is that all your symbol upgrades carry over into the bonus round, and any Diamond Wilds you land during free spins keep pushing the ladder further. Retriggering works the same way. I triggered the round twice in about 200 spins, both times off three scatters, and the second time I had already cleared two levels on the ladder before entering, which made a noticeable difference to the payouts.
There is also a Feature Buy with four tiers. You can pay 20x to start with the second level filled, 120x for the third, 200x for the fourth, or a hefty 800x for the fifth. After the bonus finishes, your base game state is restored to where you left off. The 800x option is steep but you are essentially starting with only the top symbols on the reels.
Diamonds Up - Max Win and Volatility
The max win is 20,000x your stake, which genuinely surprised me for a game that looks this basic. A full screen of sevens alone would deliver 1,000x, so you can see how stacking upgrades during free spins with retrigs could push things much higher. Volatility is listed as medium-high, and that felt about right during my session. Long dry patches on the ladder followed by cycles where everything clicked into place.
Final Thoughts on Diamonds Up
Diamonds Up is not going to win any awards for its visuals or soundtrack. It looks generic and the retro theme has been done to death. But the 30-spin cycle mechanic with the upgrade ladder gave me something to actually watch and plan around, which is more than most fruit slots offer. Playing with a fully upgraded reel set and hitting near-full screens of high-value symbols felt genuinely satisfying.
If you are after flashy animations and complex features, this is not the one. But if you like the idea of a fruit slot with a proper progression system and a 20,000x ceiling, Diamonds Up from Red Tiger Gaming is worth a few cycles of your time.
In-Game Screenshots
Diamonds Up FAQ
Diamonds Up — Comparison
| Game | RTP | Volatility | Max Win | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 95.69% | High | x24473 | 5.5 | |
| 95.68% | High | x35841 | 7.5 | |
| 95.71% | High | x43200 | 7 | |
| 96% | High | x25539 | 8.5 | |
| 95.95% | High | x5000 | ||
| 95.89% | High | x5000 | ||
| 96.02% | High | x20000 | ||
| 95.01% | High | x2000 | ||
| 96.07% | High | x10918 | 6 | |
| 95.99% | Average | x10000 | ||
| 96.07% | High | x12000 | 9 | |
| 96.05% | High | x15000 | 8 | |
| 96.01% | 94.71% | 92.52% | 90.85% | High | x10000 | 7.5 | |
| 95% | High | x20752 | 5 | |
| 95.72% | High | x30538 | 6 | |
| 96% | High | x10000 | 6 | |
| 95.73% | High | x7661 | 7 | |
| 96% | Average | x2000 | 7 | |
| 95.71% | Average | x1164 | 7 | |
| 95.72% | Average | x784 | 6 | |
| 95.76% | Above average | x3580 | 6.5 | |
| 95.72% | Average | x2176 | 7 | |
| 95.72% | High | x10000 | 6 | |
| 96% | High | x10462 | 6 | |
| 95.69% | High | x20000 | ||
| 96% | High | x5000 | ||
| 96.24% | Average | x2250 | ||
| 96.12% | High | x1000 | 6 | |
| 96.03% | High | 6.3 |
