Shippy D Pop

Shippy D Pop: Slot Overview

You might have heard of Blackbeard the Pirate or William Kidd, but thanks to games designer AvatarUX, you're about to meet Shippy D Pop, described as 'a young adventurer with power of the Magic Fruit!' Sounds a bit… weird? Yeah, thematically, Shippy D Pop is a little odd, but features-wise, players should be familiar with the extras found here since they've pretty much all been pulled over from the wacky-fest slot LooneyPop.

The world of Shippy D Pop is where pirates and corsairs scour the seven seas in search of an elusive treasure known as The Golden Piece. After playing the game, it's not overly clear exactly what The Golden Piece is, but it's got the word golden in there, so that's a good start. Shippy D Pop's location? Eh, spose it's a pretty good starting point for some piratical action as well, all sea, sand, and islands. However, Shippy D Pop felt almost as much Asian influenced as it is buccaneer spirited, so the skin was a bit of a puzzle. However, since Shippy D Pop is, for all intents and purposes, a clone, perhaps a regional target influenced its presentation.

In the base game, 15 symbols drop down on Shippy D Pop's 5-reel game grid, each reel holding 3 symbols, and there are 486 ways to win. As before, the RTP clocks in at 96.087%, while the volatility is medium. Three bonus buys can be found at the bonus buy menu, though base bets of 10 c to $/€40 must be selected however the game is played.

Shippy D Pop creates winning combinations left to right from the leftmost reel and right to left from the rightmost reel. It has 13 regular pay symbols, made up of 9-A card ranks, a rhino, a fish, a boat, and four character symbols. Hitting 5 of the same symbol pays 0.6x for the royals, 1x the bet for the mids, and 1.5x the bet for the highs. Five-of-a-kind wins only pay from one side, and wilds are not part of Shippy D Pop's arsenal.

Shippy D Pop: Slot Features

PopWins is up first. Each winning symbol is removed from the grid and replaced by two new symbols, increasing the size of the reel. PopWins repeats like this until there are no new wins, though the reels are capped at 6 positions high in the base game or 9 high in free spins. In the base game, at the end of a PopWins run, the reels return to their three-cell high height.

ZapReel

Above the main reels is a three-position bar known as the ZapReel. On each spin, the ZapReel displays a new set of Feature Rewards, which are applied to reels directly below them. In the base game, these may be:

• Multiplier – x2 and x3 multiplier values. Multipliers are multiplicative if more than one land. Multipliers are applied to winning combinations and all further wins that occur directly below the Multiplier Reward on the main reels.
• Split Symbol – creates up to 5 of the same symbols in the same position.
• Expand Winning Symbol – expands to cover the whole reel if the symbol below the Expanding Reward is part of a win.

Synced Reel – synchronises 2 adjacent reels in the base game with identical symbols. Sync Reels can either sync right or left.

Free Spins

In the main game, when all reels reach 6 positions high, a total of 6 free spins are awarded, but players may gamble for more on the Pirate Wheel. From the wheel, it is possible to win up to 18 free spins, but unsuccessful gambles lose everything.

In free spins, the grid starts at 6 symbols high, but on each free spin, the progress of unlocking reels does not reset between spins. Instead, it only resets to the shortest reel height, which can be greater than 6. Players are awarded +2 free spins if all reels hit 9 cells high. The ZapReel is always filled with 3 rewards on each free spin, where these rewards may be granted.

• Multiplier – x2, x3, x5, or x10 multiplier values. Multipliers are multiplicative if more than one is used. Multipliers are applied to a winning combination and all further wins that occur directly below the Multiplier Reward on the main reels.
• Split Symbol – creates up to 10 of the same symbols in the same position.
• Expand Winning Symbol – expands to cover the whole reel if the symbol below the Expanding Reward is part of a win.
• Synced Reel – synchronises 3 adjacent reels with identical symbols. Sync Reels can sync right, left, or both. Both is only available in Bonus Max mode or after winning in the Gamble Wheel. Synced Reels can combine rewards on the ZapReel.

Bonus Buy

Shippy D Pop has three bonus buys. One is the Shippy Bonus with 6 free spins for 125x the bet. The second is gambling on the Pirate Wheel for up to 18 free spins (or zero) for 125x the bet, while the last option is Bonus Max for 500x the bet, which awards 12 free spins. Maxed-out free spins have a higher chance of getting the x10 multipliers, up to 10 splits per symbol, and 3 synched reels.

Shippy D Pop: Slot Verdict

Row, row, row your clone, gently down the stream… Hey, AvatarUX isn't the only studio to regurgitate its own work, especially for exclusive releases, of which Shippy D Po appears to be one. The good news is, if you like the cut of Shippy D Pop's gib but can't access it, you can basically get the same experience from LooneyPop, a slot with a widespread release. Well, the gameplay is more or less bang on the same; the themes are totally different, and to be honest, Shippy D Pop feels like an acquired taste. Not saying it's bad, but it is peculiar, and definitely not your typical pirate slot, which could be a positive thing. Or not.

As for the gameplay, there isn't much to add that wasn't already written down on the LooneyPop review. Winning potential is enormous at 50,000x, and the features on hand feel like they've got enough grunt in them to produce white-knuckle results. ZapReel rewards cough-up effects such as full reel symbols, splits (up to 10 per position in free spins), multipliers, and synched reels, not to mention pay both ways on a sizable playing field; all good stuff.

One thought that occurred while reviewing Shippy D Pop was the need for more ZapReels slots. Okay, need is a strong word, but it's a decent feature and works hand-in-glove with PopWins' expanding reel characteristics. The studio is famous for reusing its PopWins mechanic many, many times, so it's a wonder AvatarUX hasn't made more ZapReels games. Then again, be careful what you wish for. Perhaps there's a deluge waiting on the horizon to smother the market. Time will tell.