Coin UP: Lightning in South Africa: a 3x3 Hold and Win With Three Bonus Games
Coin UP: Lightning is a 3x3 slot that 3 Oaks Gaming released in July 2024 as part of its Coin UP series. The reels carry no regular symbols: coins and special symbols land in the main game, and three in a row on an active line start the bonus game. There, boosters in a row above the reels raise coin values or multipliers. The rules set four jackpots from 10x to 500x the base bet and price three bought bonus games.
Figures from open sources, September 2026. Check the ranking and the game's own rules before you bet.
On this page
What Coin UP: Lightning looks like
Images: 3 Oaks Gaming, official game page (3oaks.com); Our screenshot of 3 Oaks Gaming's official free demo (3oaks.com), October 2026.
How Coin UP: Lightning works
The grid is three reels by three rows, and the rules open with an unusual line: "The main game does not contain any regular symbols." Everything that lands is a coin, a jackpot coin or one of the special symbols, and "All symbols pay only in Bonus Game."
The main game is there to start the bonus: "3 symbols in a row at any active line trigger Bonus Game."
One, two or three lines, and what the base bet means
The demo opens with a LINES selector at 1. The rules let you play "2 active lines for X2 Base Bet multiplier" and three for X3, and say additional lines "increase probability for Bonus Game activation".
Coin values, jackpots and bonus prices are all set in base bets, and the rules say a bet change from the number of lines does not affect "the value of Bonus symbols or the Bonus Game bet". So a R2 base bet on three lines costs R6 a spin, and the Grand stays at R1,000, by our arithmetic.
Sticky Coins and sticky Mystery symbols in the main game
A Sticky Coin can appear at random in the main game and stays on the reels until the bonus game starts; the rules value it at 5 times the base bet. Sticky Mystery and Sticky Mystery Jackpot symbols are, in the rules' words, "dropped only into main game".
The game page says these symbols are held until the bonus triggers, "helping activate the bonus when they land on an active line". The rules text adds that their landing on the active line "does not increase the chances to trigger Bonus Game".
A spin at another base bet or line count clears them, and a bought bonus game does not use them.
The bonus game: nine cells and three respins 🎁
Every bonus symbol sticks once it lands, and the round opens with three respins. Each new bonus symbol resets the count to three, except the UP boosters, which land in their own row and reset nothing. The round ends when the respins run out or all nine cells hold a symbol.
The rules' coin page gives coins 1 to 4 times the base bet, and the Common Rules list bonus symbol values of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 times the base bet. Mini, Minor and Major coins pay their jackpots. At the end all values are added up and paid as the Bonus Win.
Coin UP, Multi UP and their Super versions
The extra row above the reels takes four boosters during the bonus game. From the rules text:
- Coin UP. Raises the value of the Coin symbols on the reel below it. It also turns a 4x Coin into a 5x Sticky Coin, and a Sticky Coin into a Mystery Jackpot symbol.
- Super Coin UP. Does the same on all three reels at once.
- Multi UP. Raises the multiplier on the symbols of the reel below it; multipliers are applied when the bonus game ends.
- Super Multi UP. Raises the multiplier on all three reels.
Coin Collect and the Mystery symbols
A Coin Collect symbol "gathers all the Coin and Jackpot prizes from reels immediately", multipliers applied first, and then stays on the reels to the end of the round.
A Mystery symbol can turn into any other symbol except a Sticky Coin; a Mystery Jackpot symbol turns only into a Mini, Minor or Major. Both open one by one when the round is over.
The four jackpots in base bets and in rand
Multiples from the Common Rules; the rules add that the Grand comes from all nine symbols collected and is added to the round's other wins. The rand columns are examples at a base bet of R1 and R5, our arithmetic; the line count does not change them.
| Jackpot | Multiple of the base bet | Base bet R1 | Base bet R5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mini | 10x | R10 | R50 |
| Minor | 20x | R20 | R100 |
| Major | 50x | R50 | R250 |
| Grand | 500x | R500 | R2,500 |
Three bonus games you can buy
Prices in base bets from the rules (the demo's BUY BONUS button read 30.00 at a bet of 1.00); the rand column is our arithmetic. The launch post adds that Thunder starts with Mystery and Mystery Jackpot symbols in place. No purchase beats the house edge.
| Round | Price | At a R2 base bet | What the rules say it starts with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bonus Game | 30x | R60 | The regular round |
| Ultra Bonus Game | 75x | R150 | More expensive symbols and more UP symbols |
| Thunder Bonus Game | 150x | R300 | More expensive symbols and more Super UP symbols |
Who makes Coin UP: Lightning, and the rest of the series
3 Oaks Gaming publishes the game, with a free demo, on 3oaks.com, and its launch post of 18 July 2024 calls it "the latest instalment from its Coin UP series". The demo's loading screen shows the 3 Oaks logo over "POWERED BY KENDOO Games"; the game page names no other studio.
Unlike 3 China Pots and 3 Hot Chillies, five-reel games with 25 lines, it has a 3x3 grid and lines you pay for.
The licence line rests on the studio's footer: its "Licensed by" link opens UK Gambling Commission account 63055, held by Green Rock Limited, a company the footer names among those managing 3oaks.com.
Paying for Coin UP: Lightning in rand
Coin UP: Lightning is in the lobby at 5 operators we list: all of them take Ozow, cash vouchers and cards; 4 take Capitec Pay.
The smallest first deposit for Coin UP: Lightning among them is R20, at Betway SA, Bravobet and ZARbet.
Coin UP: Lightning winnings are paid by EFT to an account in your own name, after FICA.
Get FICA done first · How to deposit in rand · Every payment method
Is Coin UP: Lightning legal in South Africa? 📜
Coin UP: Lightning is a slot. In South Africa you find it at licensed bookmakers, next to their sports markets.
All 5 operators we list for Coin UP: Lightning hold a South African provincial licence.
Before you play with real money ⚠️
Set your Coin UP: Lightning budget and a deposit limit before the first round, not after a losing one. If it stops being fun, the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation helpline is free on 0800 006 008.
Pros, cons and verdict ⚖️
- Three bonus rounds at three prices
- Boosters that raise values or multipliers on a whole reel or all three
- A Coin Collect symbol that banks coins mid-round
- Jackpots fixed at 10x to 500x the base bet
- The main game pays nothing by itself
- Sticky symbols vanish when you change the bet or the lines
- Prices and jackpots are in base bets, not in what a spin costs
- A Thunder purchase is 150 base bets at once
Everything happens in the bonus game, shaped by the booster row. Check the line count before reading a price, count a bought round as the stakes it costs, and remember that no staking pattern beats the house edge.
Coin UP: Lightning FAQ ❓
How does the bonus game start in Coin UP: Lightning?
By the rules, three symbols in a row on any active line start it. You can play one, two or three lines, at one, two or three times the base bet, and the rules say extra lines raise the chance of a trigger.
What are the Coin UP: Lightning jackpots worth?
The Common Rules set them in base bets: Mini 10x, Minor 20x, Major 50x and Grand 500x, the Grand for all nine cells filled. At a R2 base bet that is R20, R40, R100 and R1,000 by our arithmetic, whatever the line count.
What is the difference between Coin UP and Multi UP?
Both land in the row above the reels during the bonus. Coin UP raises the value of the coins on the reel below it, Multi UP raises their multiplier, settled at the end of the round. The Super versions act on all three reels.
Can you buy the bonus games?
The rules price the Bonus Game at 30, the Ultra Bonus Game at 75 and the Thunder Bonus Game at 150 times the base bet, R60, R150 and R300 at a R2 base bet by our arithmetic. No purchase beats the house edge.
What are the RTP, volatility and maximum win?
Neither 3 Oaks' game page nor the rules and Common Rules of its free demo state an RTP, a volatility or a maximum win, so none is given here; the 500x Grand is a fixed jackpot, not a stated maximum. Check the rules at your casino before you stake money.
Where to play Coin UP: Lightning in South Africa
Licensed South African operators we have found carrying Coin UP: Lightning, each with its licence and our score, and the date where we saw the game in the lobby ourselves. Ordered by that score. How we score Offers checked September 2026.
