Boss Bear

Boss Bear: Slot Overview

So, what's a panda bear to do after a long day of foraging in the woods, munching bamboo, and generally being one of the cutest critters in the animal kingdom? Go back to the den, kiss their partner on the forehead, ask the kids how they were at panda school? Hell no, if they're anything like the protagonist of Boss Bear, from Push Gaming, they head to the big smoke to be the boss of a notorious syndicate. Boss Bear is a follow-up to the 2022 hit slot Big Bamboo and reveals a brand new side of cute 'n cuddly panda bears. Revealing remains a huge part of the features, and the studio has kept the core of Big Bamboo alive while adding new bits for players to uncover.

Say goodbye to Big Bamboo's zen-like serenity and step into the urban mystery of downtown, wherever we are. These mean streets are the domain of Mr Panda and his crew. Since panda bears are natives of China, no doubt we're walking the puddled back streets of one of its many towns or cities. Seeing as its most populous city, Shanghai has over 23 million people, there are plenty of business opportunities. Boss Bear never reveals what business the panda and his boys are in, but there are pistols, katanas, and ninja stars about the place, so it's unlikely to be exporting cheap t-shirts or sneakers. The cool thing is Push Gaming has designed a rich, open-game world for players to inhabit and maybe indulge some of their underworld fantasies in, alongside pandas.

Housed in a dainty Asian-inspired frame lies Boss Bear's gaming grid. It's got 5 reels, holding 6 symbols and utilizes 50 paylines for evaluating regular line wins. As they often are from Push Gaming, Boss Bear is a highly volatile slot, with a bunch of RTP possibilities depending on both the market and how gamblers choose to play the game. The default value when wagering 10 c to $/€100 per spin is 96.47%, or 96.53% when using the Push Bet. The Push Bet raises the stake by 20% while increasing the chance of triggering free spins. Other values are listed below in the buy feature section.

Nine pay symbols appear in Boss Bear, all awarding payouts for landing 3 to 5-of-a-kind, except the panda symbol, paying out for 2 or more of a kind. The lows are diamonds, clubs, hearts, then spades, the mids are a ninja star and a pistol, while the high pays are a wolf, monkey, and panda characters. Hitting a 5 OAK winning line of lows is worth 0.8x the bet, mids 2-4x the bet, or highs pay 10-100x the bet. Wilds also appear on all reels. They have the same payout value as the panda and can be used to substitute for any regular pay.

Boss Bear: Slot Features

Other crucial symbols in Boss Bear are the Reveal symbol, the Golden Reveal symbol, and those related to the Coin feature. As well as these, be on the lookout for free spins, a free spins gamble, plus bonus buys.

Reveal & Golden Reveal Symbols

In the base game and free spins, Reveal symbols may land in stacks anywhere on the reels. When they land, all Reveal symbols reveal the same type of symbol – wilds or pay symbols. When Reveal symbols land on 3 or more consecutive reels, regardless of their positions, they transform into Golden Reveal symbols. This triggers the Coin Feature.

Coin Feature

Each position holding a Golden Reveal symbol transforms into a Coin and spins through different prizes. During this feature, the following may land:

• Instant Prize Symbol – these are bet multipliers with values of 1x to 1,000x.
• Multiplier Symbol – values are x2, x3, x5, or x10. All Instant Prize symbols and Collector symbols on the reels are multiplied by the corresponding multiplier value. Once this happens, the Multiplier symbol is removed, and the empty position spins through all possible prizes.
• Collector Symbol – collects the values of all other Instant Prize symbols and Collector symbols. Instant Prize symbols are removed when collected and spin again through all possible prizes. The Collector symbol remains on the reels throughout the Coin Feature.
• Nudge Symbol – when this symbol lands, the stack of Golden Reveal symbols expands to cover the whole reel it landed on. The Nudge symbol is then removed. Newly added empty positions turn into Coins and spin through all possible prizes except the Nudge symbol.

Scatter Symbol

The scatter symbol may land on any real and is also available during the Coin feature:

• 3 scatters awards 7 free spins with no low-pay symbols converted to Reveal symbols.
• 4 scatters awards 8 free spins with 2 low-pay symbols converted to Reveal symbols.
• 5 scatters award 9 free spins with 4 low-pay symbols converted to Reveal symbols.

Gamble Feature

When landing 3 or 4 scatters, the Gamble feature is triggered. Players have the option of gambling the free spins they have won for upgraded free spin outcomes. Unsuccessful gambles lose all of the free spins.

Free Spins

Any scatters that land during free spins are collected on the Low Symbols Meter by the reels. When 4 scatters are collected toward a low symbol, the low symbol on the reels is converted to Reveal symbols. Scatters do not land when all low symbols are removed. Each low symbol removed awards additional free spins as well as multiplier upgrades. The 1st low symbol conversion awards +4 free spins with an x2 multiplier, the 2nd low symbol conversion awards +3 free spins with an x3 multiplier, the 3rd low symbol conversion awards +3 free spins with an x5 multiplier, and the 4th low symbol conversion awards +2 free spins with an x10 multiplier. The multiplier applies to Instant Prizes and Collector symbols landing in the Coin feature during free spins. When free spins are triggered by 4 or 5 scatter symbols, the Low Symbols Meter is correspondingly filled before the first free spin takes place, and the respective low pay symbols are converted to Reveal symbols.

Bonus Buy

From the bonus buy menu, players have access to these three options. For 300x the bet, you can get a full-screen Golden Reveal feature (RTP 96.71%), while 600x the bet buys free spins triggered by 5 scatter symbols (RTP 96.81%). The third option is a random free spins trigger for 100x the bet (RTP 96.4%).

Boss Bear: Slot Verdict

Suffice it to say, if you liked Big Bamboo, and it was a slot that received a honey-warm reception among certain gamblers, then Boss Bear should be on the upper portion of your to-try list of slots. Like Royal Potato 2, Boss Bear does not slam down a mind-melting transformative mechanical shift from part 1 to part 2, but rather, it gives players who liked Big Bamboo a chance to delve deeper into its world while experiencing a few new tricks along the way. Obviously, the game world is completely different this time around. Gone are the minimalist bamboo background, the placid plant munching panda and his forest friends. Say hello to a gritty urban environment and a syndicate of animals who mean business. Boss Bear the slot means business, as well, and it delivers a finely honed gambling machine possessing several ways to casually pop a thrill when it's firing.

So what besides the theme has changed? For one, the Reveal symbols have a new entertaining dimension when they are landing on the board reel by reel. Now, instead of just randomly transforming from Reveal to Golden Reveal symbols, as long as at least 3 reels contain Reveal symbols, they are guaranteed to become Golden Reveals, thereby triggering the Coin feature. The Coin feature both giveth and taketh away. The new Nudge symbol is a treat, helping open up more space on the board, yet Coin values top out at 1,000x compared to 5,000x before. Indeed, max win has been cut in half like a karate chop through wood, dropping from Big Bamboo's 50,000x down to Boss Bear's 25,000x the bet.

Still a substantial amount, and the methods for potentially reaching it are just as exciting as ever. Perhaps more so in some ways due to the tease factor induced by looking out for the third Reveal Symbol reel when they're hitting. The max win drop may rankle some, but all in all, Boss Bear is another excellently presented slot that gives fans a rerun of Big Bamboo with new looks, feels, and features.