Dragons Erupt

Dragons Erupt Review

If you’ve already played the previous installments in Alchemy Gaming’s Big Bounty series, Captain Bones Big Bounty and Bronco Big Bounty, you’ll probably appreciate that Dragons Erupt combines the best of both worlds. The 5x3 grid is placed in a mythical mountain landscape somewhere in Asia, with 2 distinct stone dragons guarding the secret that unlocks the bonus rounds. However, before we get to that, let’s cover the basics.

You start by choosing your preferred bet level between €0.2 and €45 per spin, catering to most types of players. You win by landing 3 to 5 matching symbols across up to 20 paylines, starting from the leftmost reel. The premium symbols, consisting of orbs, lanterns, and potions of different colors, award 2x to 5x your stake for 5 of a kind wins. The lower value royal symbols pay 0.8x to 1x your stake for the same. The dragon eye Wild substitutes for pay symbols, while also awarding 1x, 3.5x, and 10x your stake for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind, respectively.

Dragons Erupt Slot - Reels Screen

Power Orbs take center stage in Dragons Erupt slot, as these are collected by the dragon statue of the same color. Each orb collection can upgrade the bonus round feature represented by the dragons, or trigger its unique bonus round. The green dragon is all about accumulating Big Bounty wins for the next bonus round, guaranteeing up to 5 wins of at least 10x your stake before the feature is over. The purple dragon increases the Big Bounty threshold up to 30x, and both features can also combine forces with a dual collection trigger.

This requires the collection of green and purple orbs on the same base game spin, cracking open the golden egg between the dragon statues as these also crack open and come alive. In addition, you can look forward to a random Money Tree jackpot bonus, which guarantees 1 of the 6 jackpots. Dragons Erupt is a high volatility slot game, boasting a 5,000x Grand Jackpot, a max win of 5,331x your stake, and an RTP of 94 %. With a hit rate of 17.45 %, you can expect to win something on roughly 1 in every 6 spins, on average.

Dragons Erupt Features

There is plenty to cover in the feature department of Dragons Erupt Alchemy Gaming, so without further ado, let’s dive right in!

Extra Wilds & Multiplier Wilds

In the base game, between 3 and 15 Extra Wild symbols can appear randomly on the reels during any spin. In the bonus round, the feature begins with 3 Extra Wilds, and you can collect up to 15 Wilds in total. Up to 5 Extra Wilds can land on the same reel position, which activates a win multiplier. A position with 2, 3, 4, or 5 Extra Wilds awards an x2, x3, x4, or x5 multiplier, respectively, boosting any win they are part of accordingly. If a line win includes more than a single multiplier wild, the multipliers are added together before being applied.

Power Orbs

Green and purple Power Orbs can land on any reel during the base game, and these are then collected by their corresponding dragon statues (green or purple) above the reels. Collecting a Power Orb can either do nothing, crack the statue, increase its Big Bounty win or Big Bounty level, or smash the statue open to trigger the corresponding free spin bonus round. Power Orbs do not appear during free spins.

Green Dragon Free Spins

Collecting green Power Orbs in the base game can increase the number of Big Bounty wins for the next time you trigger the Green Dragon Bonus Round (by +1 each time). A Big Bounty win is defined as a win of at least 10x your stake, and you can accumulate up to 5 such wins for this free spins feature.

When the green statue is smashed, the Green Dragon free spins begin and continue indefinitely until you achieve the number of stored Big Bounty wins. The number of collected Big Bounty wins resets to the base value of 1 after the feature ends.

Purple Dragon Free Spins

Collecting purple Power Orbs in the base game can increase the Big Bounty level by +2 per orb for the Purple Dragon Bonus Round. The Big Bounty level is defined as the bet multiplier needed to qualify as a Big Bounty win, and the default level is 10x your stake.

However, unlike in the Green Dragon bonus, the Big Bounty win level can be increased up to 30x your stake before this feature starts. The Purple Dragon free spins continue until you land a payout equal to or larger than the Big Bounty level, which then resets to 10x when you return to the base game.

Combined Free Spins

If both the green and purple dragon statues are smashed on the same base game spin by collecting power orbs, you trigger the Combined Bonus Round. This feature continues until you achieve the number of Green Dragon Big Bounty wins at the Purple Dragon Big Bounty level. The Big Bounty win counter and level reset after the feature ends, as you return to the base game.

Dragons Erupt Slot - Free Spins

Money Tree Jackpot Bonus

Gold coins are collected by the Money Tree seen in the background. At random times, a collected gold coin may trigger the Money Tree Bonus. A gold coin can also randomly increase the value of the Mini, Minor, Maxi, or Major jackpots by a random amount between 0.5x and 4x your stake. Here’s an overview of the 6 jackpots:

• The Mini Jackpot starts at 5x and can grow to 25x your stake.
• The Minor Jackpot starts at 15x and can grow to 50x your stake.
• The Maxi Jackpot starts at 25x and can grow to 100x your stake.
• The Major Jackpot starts at 100x and can grow to 250x your stake.
• The Mega Jackpot is fixed at 500x your stake.
• The Grand Jackpot is fixed at 5000x your stake.

During the Money Tree Bonus, you will shake the tree to fill the jackpot bowls with gold coins. The first bowl you fill awards the corresponding jackpot, ending the bonus. If this bonus is triggered during free spins, it will begin after the free spins have finished. After winning an increased jackpot, it will reset to its default value.

Theme & Graphics

The Dragons Erupt game presents a mythical fantasy world with an Asian flair, set against a backdrop of majestic waterfalls cascading from the top of a mountain. The grid is framed by stone, with 2 intricately carved dragon statues guarding a golden egg perched at the top. The money tree shakes in the breeze on the left-hand side, dropping gold coins that tumble down into the clouds surrounding the tranquil scenery. The epic soundtrack adds to the atmosphere of serene power and adventure, and the reels are glowing with orbs, lanterns, and potions of different colors.

Pros and Cons of Dragons Erupt

Our Verdict

Most Alchemy Gaming slots are all about upgrading the bonus round in different ways, showcased in their prolific X Up series and what has now become a Big Bounty series. The two predecessors, Captain Bones Big Bounty and Bronco Big Bounty, each focused on only one bonus round upgrade, while Dragons Erupt combines both features for the first time. This will probably be exciting for raving fans, but to be frank, I’m not all that into these kinds of upgrade concepts myself.

I do like the in-game video that explains the core features, though, a hallmark of Alchemy games that offers a nice summary and a personal touch. While it’s understandable that they want to allow the well-crafted backdrop to shine, the game area is a bit small on larger screens. The odd placement of the grid also creates a sense of disharmony in the otherwise tranquil scenery, a decision that clearly was made to allow the money tree to shine on the left-hand side.

Anyway, the pace of the game is satisfying with the turbo switched on, as neither the coin nor orb collection animations take up too much time (and can be clicked away). Also, there is no lack of features in Dragons Erupt slot, with random wilds being added regularly that can even build multiplier wilds. Don’t expect all that much outside of the mid-sized top-up wins these random wilds tend to provide, though, and the base game gets repetitive with all the symbols looking so similar despite different hues.

The best thing about the bonus rounds is that they can go on for quite a while, allowing smaller wins to build as you eventually hit the Big Bounty limit. Still, it’s not all that exciting to wait for some mediocre win or wins to end the feature, but at least you’re guaranteed a decent haul each time. Getting the combo bonus is your most likely ticket to the 5,331x win cap, although the Money Tree feature can get you close. If this series concludes as a trilogy, Dragons Erupt is a worthy capstone, especially for those who appreciate upgradable bonus rounds.