Dragon Hatch 2 Demo: Try PGSoft’s Slot Sequel With Cluster Pays
If you’re an avid slot player, the chances are you played some of the great titles PGSoft has released over the years. However, when it comes to sequels, PG Soft seems to excel in improving every aspect of what an original game brings to the table. Enter Dragon Hatch 2.
The Dragon Hatch 2 slot was released in January of 2024 and manages to preserve the charm that the original game had, but vastly improves upon it as an overall slot game. For one, PG Soft made a concerted effort to add even more special features to the Dragon Hatch 2 game. They also made sure to update the graphics, improve upon the RTP and really develop out the finer aspects of this game.
Dragon Hatch 2 Slot Features
So, what special features does the Dragon Hatch 2 slot bring to the table?
Cascading Wins
One reason many slot players have become so loyal to PG Soft entries is the cascading wins. It’s been a signature across all PG Soft games, and become one of their most anticipated features.
Well, Dragon Hatch 2 is no different. Every time you pick up a winning set of symbols in Dragon Hatch 2, those symbols will disappear off the board, and new symbols will cascade down to replace them.
This process can repeat and continue as long as you score wins, and each subsequent cascading win you get will multiply.
For example, the first cascading win awards you a 2x win, the next one awards you 4x, and so on and so forth. The multipliers will stack quite quickly in this game as well, so definitely make sure to play for this Dragon Hatch 2 bonus.
Permanent Sticky Wild
One unique feature that Dragon Hatch 2 brings to the table is a permanent wild, that sticks in the middle of the board. Found in reel 3, in the third row, this sticky wild will remain in place for as long as you play the game, and it will not move away from this position. It acts as a regular wild throughout the game, substituting for other symbols to help you get some winning combinations.
We’ve found that this permanent sticky wild is a real bonus any time you are in the middle of cascading wins. Oftentimes, it can be the factor that determines a win in the middle of the cascading feature. With it always in play, those cascade wins will stack up quickly, and the multipliers alongside them will mean you will walk away with some big wins when it is all said and done.
Winning Symbols Collection
As you spin winning symbols (special symbols), they will be ‘collected’ in the collection meter that is above the grid. Every symbol you get will eventually unlock you a modifier, but you need a certain amount of these symbols to unlock the separate modifiers. Some of the modifiers you can get with these special symbols include:
- Earth Dragon Feature (10 Specials): It will remove all low value symbols from the board, only leaving the high scoring symbols
- Water Dragon Feature (30 Specials): Reels 2 and 4 are stacked, meaning wins can really multiply if you get frequent matching symbols within these reels. These stacks can lead to significant payouts, as they increase the chances of forming large clusters.
- Fire Dragon Feature (55 Specials): It adds random wilds to any of the reels. The culmination of all these wilds, and the sticky wild in the centre, often leads to high cluster wins.
- Dragon Queen Feature (80 Specials): This places four sticky wilds on each corner of the board, and will also replace any lower scoring symbols with high scoring symbols for the remainder spin, which can lead to a high winning round.
We would recommend trying out the Dragon Hatch 2 demo, and try to collect those winning symbols for yourself. They all add up, you will see that for yourself!
Dragon Hatch 2 Free Spins and Bonuses
While Dragon Hatch 2 has plenty of special features and some unique bonuses, unfortunately a free spins feature is not one of these bonuses. It is very disappointing to us, and to many players, that a quality game like this is missing a free spins round. It’s unlike PG Soft as well, many of their best games often feature a solid free spins round that is full of multipliers. However, Dragon Hatch 2 is not one of these games, and it is a noticeable absence that you can’t overlook when you’re playing this game.
It is not a dealbreaker, but it’s a definite negative that you will notice the more you play. We feel if Dragon Hatch 2 had a free spins round, they would be in the conversation to be one of the best slot games PG Soft have produced. Unfortunately, they do not, and that glaring weakness has to be highlighted.
Dragon Hatch 2 Themes and Symbols
The original Dragon Hatch had a charm, with that unique animation and the deep atmosphere. That original aesthetic has been heavily upgraded, and when you boot up this game, you are taken deep into the Fulroya mountains. The backdrop of the mountains is immediately noticeable to the player, with the lighting, smoke and the graphics being truly outstanding.
The reels, and symbols themselves are updated, and all the classic symbols that were in the original game were definitely updated to look top class. Some of the symbols you can have are the Dragons Queen Eye (the special symbol), the separate Baby Dragons (Fire, Water and Earth), and all your classic card suits (Spade, Club, Diamond, Heart). The Wild symbol is represented by a simple ‘W’, and the sticky Wild symbol in the middle of the board is golden.
PG Soft has really created an impressive experience in completely overhauling the game visually, and making it a complete improvement on what it was only a handful of years earlier. If you play the Dragon Hatch 2 demo free play, you will see exactly what you mean for ourselves – it takes the popular Dragon themed slots and turns it into something unique.
Dragon Hatch 2 RTP and Volatility
Dragon Hatch 2 is full of the features we mentioned before, and all of those features will affect the overall volatility. Cascading wins, and a permanent wild in the middle of the board will effect the volatility, and how much a player consistently wins at this slot game. That, balanced with the high value of the wins, means that Dragon Hatch 2 is a medium volatility game.
Due to Dragon Hatch 2 being a medium volatility, you will pick up some frequent wins playing this game, and the wins will be of a decent value.
Along with a fair medium volatility, this game also has a very valuable RTP. The current Return to Player for Dragon Hatch 2 is 96.76%, which is significantly above the industry standard. That standard is around 96%, so PGSoft has once again delivered in developing a game that is well above the industry standard. This game is well worth investing your time in, because all of those stakes will statistically, eventually pay off.
How to Play Dragon Hatch 2
PGSoft’s games are usually tailored for mobile slot play. This means the controls are usually very simplified, and are easy for anyone to play. So, we have no doubt that you will pick up the controls of this game quickly. However, we would absolutely recommend you try out the Dragon Hatch 2 demo first, just to get a feel for how the game plays first.
It takes place across a 5×5 grid and wins are awarded via the Cluster Pays mechanics; this can look a little complicated compared to classic slot games, but in reality you will pick it up fast.
All the playable buttons you need are across the bottom banner. On the bottom left, you have the turbo button, which skips the spin animations and gets straight to the results. In the bottom centre, you have the spin button and a +/- button either side of the button. This allows you to adjust the amount of your stake per spin to between 0.20 and €200- a great range for low-stake and high roller players alike.
In the bottom right, you have the autoplay button, and a drop down menu. This menu allows you to adjust in game settings, such as volume, the size of the screen, the paytable and lets you look at some guides of what the symbols mean.
Above these buttons, you have all your figures. On the left, you have your balance, in the centre, you have the amount you are staking per spin, and on the right, you have the amount you have won per spin. You’ve also got the Winning Symbol Collection bar across the top of the screen, which allows you to track all the winning symbols you have collected. That’s it. It is a simple as that, and like all PGSoft games, it is perfectly tailored for mobile play on both Android or iPhone devices.
Slotsia’s Review of Dragon Hatch 2
Dragon Hatch 2 is almost the perfect slot game. It almost has everything a player would need for a fun, but still valuable slot game experience. Plenty of creative bonus features, a solid RTP, fair volatility and beautiful graphics to top it all off. However, a lack of a free spins round really stands out as a major flaw, and one that is hard to overlook.
Taking that aside, the game is still well worth playing. Whether you want to just try out the demo, or play the real money game, you should absolutely try out Dragon Hatch 2, and come to your own conclusions.
Plenty of special features
Great RTP of 96.76%
Stunning graphics
No free spins
