Dragon Hatch review

Deep in a hidden cave, nestled in a mound of hoarded gold, three dragon eggs are waiting to hatch and to unlock all those rewarding bonus features – but beware Mama Dragon as she slumbers. Wake her and feel her wrath!

The basics

Software: PG Soft

Type: Video slots

Reels: 5

Paylines: Cluster pays

RTP: 96.83%

Bet range: 0.20 to 200.00

Bonus features: Wilds, low symbol elimination, low symbol substitution

Volatility: Medium

Mobile version: Yes

Hit or miss: Hit

The OCR review

Gameplay

Dragon Hatch is a wonder to watch and to play. It features some of the most stunning graphics we have seen in a long while – a beautifully rendered playing area with some really cute and gorgeous 3D animations on the little dragons themselves.

Apart from the absolutely enthralling artwork, Dragon Hatch also has some pretty tasty bonus features and a soundtrack that fits the theme perfectly.

Gameplay is quick and players won’t be left waiting for things to happen as PG Soft have brought in a cascading symbols and cluster pays mechanic to Dragon Hatch to ensure that your wins keep ticking over, and that you start filling that collection meter to unlock the bonus features.

If you’re a fan of the scaly creatures from myth and legend, or of online and mobile slots that offer great entertainment and lots of wins and features, then Dragon Hatch is a sure-fire winner for you!

Symbols

The symbols are basic and easy enough to follow during gameplay. Low paying royals abound, and the bigger wins come from the Green, Blue, and Red Baby Dragons, and the scary-looking eye of the Dragon Queen.

Symbols in order from low to high paying: Green Diamond, Blue Club, Red Heart, Yellow Spade, Green Earth Dragon, Blue Water Dragon, Red Fire Dragon, Dragon Queen Eye.

The Golden Dragon Egg is the Wild.

Graphics

As we have mentioned above, the graphics are absolutely superb. It’s like we’ve got a gambling game in the middle of a How to Train Your Dragon movie! Seriously – try it out if you think we’re talking dragon ballz.

The stone effect background on the reels themselves may look plain but it helps the symbols jump nicely. And it really becomes background when you see the slumbering Dragon Queen on her hoard of gold or hatch the eggs to reveal the super-cute little baby dragons and their animations.

Sound

There is a great and theme-appropriate soundtrack that calls to mind fantasy epics like Lord of the Rings, although it is a little jarring when it’s interrupted by the winning sounds. Saying that though, we are way more than willing to sit through the winning sounds and sacrifice the cool soundtrack when the cascades start falling and those wins start racking up.

Bonuses and extras

There are four features in Dragon Hatch, and they are triggered as you hit wins. A win requires a cluster of four or more of the same symbol and the number of symbols in your win is collected in a meter that builds to hatch the little dragons and trigger their bonus features.

Wilds

The Golden Dragon Egg is the Wild and substitutes for all symbols.

Earth Dragon Feature

Collect 10 or more symbols to hatch the Green Baby Dragon and trigger the Earth Dragon Feature where all low paying symbols are eliminated from the screen. New symbols will replace them as per the cascading symbol feature.

Water Dragon Feature

Collect 30 or more symbols to hatch the Blue Baby Dragon and trigger the Water Dragon Feature where 4x Wild symbols cascade onto the reels.

Fire Dragon Feature

Collect 50 or more symbols to hatch the Red Baby Dragon and trigger the Fire Dragon Feature where a randomly chosen symbol is added to the reels in a chequered pattern.

Dragon Queen Feature

Collect 70 symbols to awaken the Dragon Queen and trigger the Dragon Queen Feature where all low paying symbols are replaced with higher paying symbols or Wilds.

Pros and cons

Pros

Superb graphics

Exciting gameplay

Great on mobile

Lots of action

Cons

The win noises that interrupt the great music

The OCR verdict

If you’re a fan of Smaug from The Hobbit or the Eragon stories or even Game of Thrones (for the dragons not the violence) then PG Soft have created a hit for you! The absolute attention to detail really stands out, the 3D animations are top shelf, and the features ensure players will keep returning and spinning to get to the dragon’s golden hoard.

Absolutely highly recommended.