Ready to get your hands dirty? Forget the hard hat and pick-axe; Ruby Play’s Mining Bonanza gets you digging for gemstones in a different way.
The game sets a great scene, dropping you into a dusty, sun-baked canyon town with the 5x3 game grid set in a rustic wooden frame. You can almost feel the heat shimmer.
It’s a familiar theme, but this Slot has also a few surprising tools in its shed that keep things interesting, moving beyond the standard base game.
It’s got a personality all its own.
This isn’t just a simple spin-and-watch affair. With two distinct free spin modes and a clever prize-picking feature, there’s more lurking beneath the surface than you might expect.
At its core, Mining Bonanza is a 5-reel, 3-row video Slot with 50 fixed paylines. Your goal is straightforward: land matching symbols from left to right on adjacent reels. If you’re familiar with online Slots, you’ll feel right at home with the controls.
The bet range is quite accommodating, starting from a modest 0.01 and going up to 30.00, so it’s easy to find a stake that suits your session style and budget. Remember to always select a bet level you are comfortable with for the duration of your play.
The game runs on a medium volatility engine, with an RTP of 96.33%. But what does that actually mean for your session?
Think of it as a good middle ground. Medium volatility strikes a nice balance, meaning the hit frequency doesn't feel too sparse.
You’re not typically waiting ages for a combination to land, which helps keep the gameplay experience smooth and consistent. The above-average RTP is a solid theoretical metric for the game's potential payout rate over the long term.
The feature you’ll likely be watching for is the main Free Spins round. To get there, you’ll need to keep an eye out for the Dynamite scatter symbols.
Land three or more of these anywhere on the reels, and you’re in. You’ll be awarded 8 free spins to start. If you trigger the round with four or five scatters, a multiplier is also applied, which is a nice touch.
During each of your free spins, one reel at random is chosen to become a stacked Wild, also containing a Prize symbol.
This mechanic can completely change the look of the game board on any given spin, connecting paylines you weren’t expecting. Just when a spin looks like a miss, a full reel of wilds can drop in to save the day.
It’s also possible to land more Dynamite scatters during the round to re-trigger the feature and keep the free spins going.
Beyond the standard free spins, Mining Bonanza has two other features that can appear.
The first is the Prize Pick Deluxe feature, which can be triggered at random whenever a game logo Wild symbol lands.
When this happens, you’re taken to a new screen with 12 symbols. Your job is to click them one by one, revealing prize levels. Match three identical prize symbols, and you win that corresponding prize value. It’s a classic pick-and-match game that serves as a fun and simple diversion from the main reels.
The second feature is the Explosion Free Games. This one’s a bit different. It activates when you land 6 or more Prize symbols during the base game (or 6+ Prize+Wild symbols during the free spins round).
You’re awarded 5 special spins where the goal is to land more Prize symbols.
When these symbols land next to each other, they combine into larger block shapes, which carry different prize values. It’s a bit like a chain reaction, adding another strategic layer to the gameplay.
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What are the different symbols in Mining Bonanza?
For a game with a mining theme, one might expecting to see more shovels, carts, and canaries on the reels. Instead, Ruby Play opted for a more traditional symbol set, which was a bit of a surprise. The low-value symbols are the familiar card royals: 10, J, Q, K, and A. They’re functional, but don’t do much to sell the theme.
The high-value symbols are a collection of brightly coloured, polished gems—the very treasures you’re supposed to be digging for. You'll see emeralds, rubies, and other precious stones that offer the better payouts in the base game.
The real stars of the show, however, are the special symbols. The Dynamite scatter is your ticket to the main bonus round, as we’ve covered.
Then there's the game logo, which acts as the Wild. As a wild, it’s your best friend for connecting those near-misses into winning paylines by substituting for any other regular symbol.
More than that, it’s also the key that can randomly unlock the Prize Pick Deluxe feature, so you’ll always be happy to see it land.
So, what's the final verdict on Mining Bonanza? It’s a solid and entertaining Slot that does a lot of things right. The combination of standard free spins with a random wild reel, plus the two additional prize features, gives the game a depth that many other Slots lack.
This is a great game for players who appreciate features and a bit of complexity. If you enjoy knowing there's more than one way to trigger a bonus, and like the feeling of a random event shaking up the reels, Mining Bonanza is definitely worth a look.
Always remember to play responsibly and within your means, and enjoy the experience for the entertainment it provides.