Donny Dough

Donny Dough: Slot Overview

The word 'dough' as slang for 'money' is said to have stemmed from the word bread (which was also used to mean money) because bread and money are necessities for living. Or at least this was one of the explanations gleaned from an Internet search. The relevance is due to the title of Hacksaw Gaming's slot, Donny Dough, a classic example of the studio's hit it or, like, don't MO.

Donny's definitely into dough; no arguments there. The guy's got dollar signs for eyes, so it's fair to say he is a money-motivated individual. Donny is the leading man in a slot that's been done up like a game show or a stage show, as evidenced by the lighting, curtains, and audio effects. The end production came across as a slightly more serious version of Dork Unit, the background looking like it was projected on an old cathode-ray tube television.

Potential dough accumulation (or loss) occurs on a 5-reel, 4-row matrix, lining up winning combinations on 14 paylines. Rated 3 out of 5, Donny Dough's volatility is in the medium range, while its maximum RTP is 96.23%, though this figure decreases when playing on the three lower return configurations that are also available. To partake, players choose a bet of 10 c to $/€100 and may pick from four bonus buys should they so choose.

Objects of wealth and card suits comprise Donny Dough's regular pay symbols. Clubs, diamonds, spades, and hearts all award 2.5 times the stake for a line of 5 OAK landing on the reels. Next come coins, banknotes and coins, a bag of coins, a safe, and diamonds, paying 5 to 10 times the bet for a 5-of-a-kind combination. Interestingly, no wilds grace the game, but several further special symbols do.

Donny Dough: Slot Features

Donny Dough features the new Lootlines mechanic, as well as the Sticky Dough Bonus, the Strike Gold Bonus, and bonus buys.

Lootlines

Donny's head is the Multi-Dough symbol. There are four versions of Multi-Dough symbols, landing with one of these values:

• Adding Multi-Dough symbol - has values of 1x to 10x.
• Revealing Adding Multi-Dough symbol - has values of 15x to 500x.
• Multiplying Multi-Dough symbol - has values of x2 to x5.
• Revealing Multiplying Multi-Dough symbol - has values of x6 to x25.

Revealing versions have a question mark before revealing their value. When there is a winning payline of Multi-Dough symbols on the reels, the payout value is determined by the values on the Multi-Dough symbols included in the win. Values are applied from left to right. If the first value is a multiplying multiplier, it is treated as an adding value.

Sticky Dough Bonus

Players activate this bonus round and 10 free spins by landing 3 FS scatter symbols in the base game. In the Sticky Dough Bonus, Multi-Dough symbols are sticky until they are part of a winning payline. Winning Multi-Dough symbols are removed on the next spin. An extra +2 free spins are awarded when 2 FS symbols hit, or +4 free spins are awarded if 3 FS symbols hit.

Strike Gold Bonus

The Strike Gold Bonus and 10 free spins are activated by landing 4 FS scatter symbols in the base game. When there is a winning payline of Multi-Dough symbols, a light bulb above all the reels that were part of the win is lit. One light bulb is lit on each reel for each Multi-Dough symbol on the reel that was part of a win. A maximum of 4 lightbulbs can be lit on a reel at the same time. When a Donny's Hat symbol lands on the reels, it triggers a respin if any of the light bulbs are lit. For the respin, a number of Multi-Dough symbols equal to the number of lit light bulbs appear in random positions on the respective reels. A Donny's Hat symbol is guaranteed to land on the final spin. An extra +2 free spins are awarded when 2 FS symbols hit, or +4 free spins are awarded if 3 FS symbols hit.

Bonus Buy

These four choices are present in Donny Dough's bonus buy section:

• BonusHunt FeatureSpins - 3x the bet, each spin is 5 times more likely to trigger a bonus game.
• Ka-Ching FeatureSpins - 50x the bet, each spin guarantees at least 5 Multi-Dough symbols land.
• Sticky Dough Bonus - 90x the bet.
• Strike Gold Bonus - 200x the bet.

Donny Dough: Slot Verdict

If Donny Dough was someone's first exposure to a Hacksaw Gaming slot, they might be tempted to wonder what this silly billy dollar sign cartoon verging on childish game is all about. However, gamblers well acquainted with the studio's work will be aware that no matter how cutely Hacksaw tries to dress its games up, serious mathematics lurk beneath the surface, expressing themselves in fiendish ways on the reels. Donny Dough is no exception, possessing gameplay and features that can really shine or annoy, depending on the outcome.

Technically, it is possible to achieve Donny Dough's 10,000x max win in any game mode, but bonus rounds arguably offer the best chances for doing so. The two bonus rounds share common elements, but they're actually, on the whole, quite different. The 'lesser' 3 FS scatter triggered round, the Sticky Dough Bonus, is where you want to stack sticky Donny Dough symbols on the screen without winning too early on. Meaning, the game dumping Donny Dough symbols all over reels 2 to 5, then linking them later on with Donny Doughs on the first reel is the ideal scenario. Might happen. The Strike Gold Bonus was the more suspenseful feature. There is nothing quite like knowing something positive is going to occur in the not-too-distant future, and in the Strike Gold Bonus' case, this may occur when having a bunch of lit light bulbs on connected reels before the final spin guarantees a Donny's Hat symbol.

If memory serves, one of the highlights of the review was getting 4 lit light bulbs on the leftmost 4 reels and a couple of lit bulbs on the rightmost reel. That was alright. You might have to put in a bit of work or get lucky to find yourself in this sort of situation, though. Hacksaw Gaming slots don't just hand out cash to all, despite an abundance of dollar signs hanging about the place. In Donny Dough, the studio has once again shown why it is one of the masters of making suspenseful slots with cunning features and explosive gameplay.