Play Dancing Drums for free from Scientific Games
Slot powerhouse Scientific Games have produced multiple Asian-themed games. Dancing Drums is among the most popular slot machine to date. The original version can be enjoyed in casinos around Canada. A new version with enhanced graphics was recently released, this is called Dancing Drums Explosion.
This slot features progressive jackpots, which are won via a picks game triggered at random. The main free spins bonus gives you a choice – you can go for bigger reel setups or more free spins. With an all-ways winning system in use, the size of the reels will make an outsized difference to your winning chances.
With a classic red and gold design, you will find many classic Asia-inspired symbols on the reels. They include dragons, gold coins with square holes, and traditional boats with sails. The drums are bonus symbols. They will spring to life when you trigger the main feature. If you are lucky enough to hit a huge win, you will see fireworks over the reels.
Dancing Drums slots: choose your free spins bonus
Triggering the free spins bonus is made easier by having the wild symbols substitute for the drum bonus symbols. You need three drums and/or wilds from the left to trigger the feature. There are added prizes for triggering with more than three – though this does not affect how many free spins you get.
Before the feature starts, you go to a screen giving you a choice of five options. This allows you to take between three and fifteen free spins, with the reels getting smaller as your free spins increase.
The fewest spins you can choose is just three. These play out on a reel setup with six rows of symbols. With all-ways wins in use, this creates a huge 7,776 ways to win for each spin. You can take five spins on a 5×5 grid, ten spins on a 4×5 grid or opt for fifteen spins on the same 3×5 grid used in the base game.
There is an additional option – you can take a mystery pick. This chooses one of the reel setups and one number of spins at random. Retriggers are possible during this feature, though you will not have to pick for a second time.
Pick Fu babies to win jackpots
The picks game on Dancing Drums slots includes a progressive jackpot. The jackpot can be triggered on any spin where you get a wild symbol. These will trigger an animation where a coin is added to an ornate pot above the reels. This is for cosmetic purposes only – and will close when you have triggered the picks game.
You now see a screen with fifteen circles. As you tap each one, it will reveal a cartoon baby in a traditional costume. There are four colours, each one relating to one of the progressive jackpots at the top of your screen.
In common with picks games on slots of all kinds, when you match three, that is the jackpot you are awarded.
Setup: how the Dancing Drums slots work
With a 5×3 reel setup and all-ways wins in use, you get 243 ways to win on every spin in the base game of Dancing Drums. The lucky number eight is used to calculate your bet amounts. The minimum spin is 88c, with $8.88c common in live casinos as the max bet.
With all-ways wins, you need to match symbols on consecutive reels from the left. Golden dragons have the biggest prizes. The other high-paying symbols are gold coins, boats, and flowers.
Dancing Drums slots: classic red and gold design
The pot above the reels plays an important role in the gameplay – and will certainly make Dancing Drums stand out. This ornately decorated pot has gold coins in it. As you play it will gradually fill until the coins are spilling over the edges.
There is a lot of detail in the symbols. The golden dragon statues stand out. When they appear stacked on the reels, the red and gold colouring of this game looks stunning. Animations of the symbols are limited. The drumsticks over the bonus symbols will beat when you trigger the feature. Small touches include the gold coins shooting from wild symbols into the pot above the reels, and the coin show, which involves the Asian-styled gold coins when you hit a big win.
Wrapping up: is Dancing Drums worth beating a path to?
Along with 88 Fortunes from IGT, Dancing Drums is the classic Asian-styled slot. Many more recent games from all the providers have used this exact setup as the basis – adding extra features or new designs on top. You will find Dancing Drums in all but the smallest Canadian casinos. Check it out next time you visit the Bear Claw Casino in Saskatchewan or Caesars Windsor in Ontario.
There is enough depth to the gameplay to make this slot worth taking for a spin. All-ways wins keep small prizes flowing while you wait for the main features. When you do hit the free spins, you get to choose the volatility level. You can opt for just three free spins over a large reel grid – or spread your spins and play on a small setup. Add to this a jackpot picks game that triggers at random, and the major progressive could be yours after any spin including a wild.
Dancing Drums slot machine deserves its position as an Asian-themed classic slot – check it out for yourself when you next visit a live casino!