With The Ingot Ox, DragonGaming takes on the familiar Chinese New Year theme, offering players 243 ways to win across 5 reels and 3 rows. This festive release takes spinners on an exciting trip to a traditional Chinese neighborhood, colorfully decorated with banners and lanterns. Lotus trees sit on both sides of the transparent reels, and right behind, you will see locals with sparkler candles preparing for the pending celebrations.
A huge animated ox holding an ingot will keep you company as you set the reels in motion. The design of the reels itself is unconventional. The software developers have styled them to resemble purple ropes that hang from a red beam. The festive traditional music playing in the background complements the spinning action.
| The Ingot Ox Slot Summary | |
|---|---|
| Software Provider | DragonGaming |
| Payline Number | 243 ways to win |
| RTP | 95.64% |
| Minimum Bet | $0.50 |
| Maximum Bet | $50 |
| Wild Symbols | Yes, the ox symbol |
| Scatter Symbols | Yes, the bonus symbol |
| Bonus Features | Free spins with up to 40x multipliers, Mystery Bonus |
| Jackpot | 1,500x the bet |
Symbols and Winning Combinations in The Ingot Ox
Players can create winning combinations with festive theme-related icons, including a Chinese lady with hair rollers, koi fish, lanterns shaped like pineapples, and Chinese symbols. The design is rather cartoonish but this hardly takes away from the game’s appeal. All regular symbols produce prizes from left to right on consecutive reels. The bonus symbol is scattered, and as such, can form winning combinations in both directions.
The base game gives you 243 ways to win on a single spin. The Chinese lady with hair rollers is the top-paying regular symbol here, allowing for maximum prizes of 1,500x the coins. Considering the ceiling on bets is $50, players can win a whopping $75,000 with five ladies. The baby awards 1,000x your credits for a five-of-a-kind and so does the icon with the koi fish. The nephrite ox pays up to 500x, while all three lantern icons offer maximum payouts of 200x.
The developers have used the Chinese symbols for luck and prosperity for the lowest-paying combinations, which we consider a nice touch. These can reward you with 100x, 20x, or 10x, depending on how many matches you get. Keep in mind you must score at least three regular symbols on consecutive reels to receive a payout. Payouts formed with bonus scatters are multiplied by your overall cash bet – this special symbol can earn you 2x, 5x, or 20x for three to five matches.
Bonus Features of The Ingot Ox
There are several lucrative special features in The Ingot Ox, starting with the wild multipliers represented by the ox itself. They help you align more combinations in the main game, applying random multipliers on the wins they are part of. Respectively, the wild ox can boost your winnings by 1x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 8x, 10x, 15x, 30x, or 40x. The sole downside of this special symbol is that it can only appear on the second, third, and fourth reels.
Additionally, there is a bonus icon that plays the role of a scatter, awarding payouts in any position on adjacent reels. Landing three or more bonus symbols sets off the free spins, but the multipliers we mentioned earlier are not applicable during the feature.
The round of spins at no cost unfolds on a special 3x4x4x4x3 reel grid, which increases the number of possible winning ways to 576. Moreover, players can choose from several distinctive free spins modes, each one offering a different number of free rounds and possible multipliers.
- 6 free spins with 15x, 30x, and 40x multipliers
- 9 free spins with 10x, 15x, and 30x multipliers
- 13 free spins with 8x, 10x, and 15x multipliers
- 15 free spins with 5x, 8x, and 10x multipliers
- 20 free spins with 3x, 5x, and 8x multipliers
- 25 free spins with 2x, 3x, and 5x multipliers
As you can see, the multiplier value is proportionate to the number of free spins players get. There is also a Mystery Bonus feature that awards random multipliers and free spins. The Pick Your Bonus feature starts if you land three or more bonus symbols during your free spins.
Verdict
The Ingot Ox is one of many slots themed after the Chinese New Year, so there is nothing new here in terms of concept. Nonetheless, the graphics and animations are very well rendered, which alone makes this DragonGaming release worthwhile. Beware of the game’s volatility, though. Wins occur infrequently and the bonus features are difficult to trigger.