The fictitious Chinese story The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl’s estranged main characters Niulang and his lover Zhinu inspired the oriental July 2020 video slot from developer Ainsworth.

Niulang and Zhinu is in the “Quad Shot” whose other 15+ games include: Island Princess (2018), Diamond Dreams (2016), Emerald Dream (May 2018), Golden Lion (2016), Gold Zone (2016), Mighty Panther (2016), Royal Swan (2020), Run with the Wolves (2018), Congo King (2020), Jade Emperor (2017), Soul Queen (2017), Big Thunder (2018), and Pearl River (2018).

Themes: luck, fairy, Asian architecture, personification, mischief, romance, deities, universe, and Chinese mythology. Niulang and Zhinu has: four non-progressive jackpots, eight total bets, 25 fixed lines, rightward combinations, stacked eggs, fourteen symbols, and free spins.

Regular games: twelve symbols (Alpha Cygni, Niulang, Zhinu, stork, pagoda, cherry, A, K, Q, J, 9, and 10) pay from X0.20 to X100 for three-of-a-kind, four-of-a-kind, or five-of-a-kind. Free spins: twelve symbols (Alpha Cygni, Niulang, Zhinu, stork, pagoda, cherry, A, K, Q, J, 9, and 10) pay from X0.20 to X20 for a three-of-a-kind or five-of-a-kind.

Niulang and Zhinu Game Characteristics

Cosmos and an unpermitted immortal-mortal marriage intertwine in The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, mainly featuring cosmic herdsman Niulang (the Altair star in Aquila constellation) and fairy girl Zhinu (the Vega star in Lyra constellation).

Niulang: a mistreated, orphaned, and mortal earthling. Zhinu: a cloud-weaving immortal royal, mothered by a heavenly goddess. The Niulang’s marriage proposal to the then naked Zhinu—while bathing alongside her sisters—resulted in the birth of their children Beta Aquilae (also, Alshain) and Gamma Aquilae (or, Tarazed) in the Aquila star system.

The disapproving mother goddess separated the couple using a vast sky that is conjoined yearly—for a moonlit romantic night—by magpie birds beside the Alpha Cygni star.

Niulang and Zhinu has a fancy, partitioned and golden-framed 5X3 grid, with Aegean blue reels. It is set among cherry blossoms in a mountainous lake, beside three pagodas.
The Niulang and Zhinu’s total bets: $1.00 (minimum), $2.00, $4.00, $6.00, $8.00, $12.00, $16.00, and $20.00 (maximum).

Niulang and Zhinu has three special and eleven ordinary symbols. Special: substituting golden-framed blue “wild” egg; a jackpot-enabling blue-and-orange “Quad Shot” frame; and a free games-triggering star-studded Alpha Cygni amid a silhouetted couple atop bridging magpies.

Ordinaries: typical indigo-dressed Chinese youth Niulang; beflowered blue-dressed Chinese girl Zhinu; oriental stork; colorful three-tiered pagoda; cherry blossom; purple A; orange K; golden Q; blue J; green 9; and red 10.

Niulang and Zhinu has these regular payouts.
The $1.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.20, $0.40, and $2.00; K/Q pay $0.20, $0.80, and $4.00; A pay $0.20, $1.60, and $4.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.20, $2.00, and $6.00; pagodas/storks pay $0.20, $3.00, and $8.00; Zhinu pays $0.20, $4.00, and $8.00; Niulang pays $0.20, $4.00, and $12.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $5.00, $20.00, and $100.00.

The $2.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.40, $0.80, and $4.00; K/Q pay $0.40, $1.60, and $8.00; A pay $0.40, $3.20, and $8.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.40, $4.00, and $12.00; pagodas/storks pay $0.40, $6.00, and $16.00; Zhinu pays $0.40, $8.00, and $16.00; Niulang pays $0.40, $8.00, and $24.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $10.00, $40.00, and $200.00.

The $4.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.80, $1.60, and $8.00; K/Q pay $0.80, $3.20, and $16.00; A pay $0.80, $6.40, and $16.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.80, $8.00, and $24.00; pagodas/storks pay $0.80, $12.00, and $32.00; Zhinu pays $0.80, $16.00, and $32.00; Niulang pays $0.80, $16.00, and $48.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $20.00, $80.00, and $400.00.

The $6.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.20, $2.40, and $12.00; K/Q pay $1.20, $4.80, and $24.00; A pay $1.20, $9.60, and $24.00; cherry blossoms pay $1.20, $12.00, and $36.00; pagodas/storks pay $1.20, $18.00, and $48.00; Zhinu pays $1.20, $24.00, and $48.00; Niulang pays $1.20, $24.00, and $72.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $30.00, $120.00, and $600.00.

The $8.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.60, $3.20, and $16.00; K/Q pay $1.60, $6.40, and $32.00; A pay $1.60, $12.80, and $32.00; cherry blossoms pay $1.60, $16.00, and $48.00; pagodas/storks pay $1.60, $24.00, and $64.00; Zhinu pays $1.60, $32.00, and $64.00; Niulang pays $1.60, $32.00, and $96.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $40.00, $160.00, and $800.00.

The $12.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $2.40, $4.80, and $24.00; K/Q pay $2.40, $9.60, and $48.00; A pay $2.40, $19.20, and $48.00; cherry blossoms pay $2.40, $24.00, and $72.00; pagodas/storks pay $2.40, $36.00, and $96.00; Zhinu pays $2.40, $48.00, and $96.00; Niulang pays $2.40, $48.00, and $144.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $60.00, $240.00, and $1200.00.

The $16.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $3.20, $6.40, and $32.00; K/Q pay $3.20, $12.80, and $64.00; A pay $3.20, $25.60, and $64.00; cherry blossoms pay $3.20, $32.00, and $96.00; pagodas/storks pay $3.20, $48.00, and $128.00; Zhinu pays $3.20, $64.00, and $128.00; Niulang pays $3.20, $64.00, and $192.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $80.00, $320.00, and $1600.00.

The $20.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $4.00, $8.00, and $40.00; K/Q pay $4.00, $16.00, and $80.00; A pay $4.00, $32.00, and $80.00; cherry blossoms pay $4.00, $40.00, and $120.00; pagodas/storks pay $4.00, $60.00, and $160.00; Zhinu pays $4.00, $80.00, and $160.00; Niulang pays $4.00, $80.00, and $240.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $100.00, $400.00, and $2000.00.

The free games’ odds are as follows.
The $1.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.20 and $2.00; A/K/Q pay $0.20 and $4.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.20 and $6.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $0.20 and $8.00; Niulang pay $0.20 and $12.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $5.00 and $20.00.

The $2.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.40 and $4.00; A/K/Q pay $0.40 and $8.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.40 and $12.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $0.40 and $16.00; Niulang pay $0.40 and $24.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $10.00 and $40.00.

The $4.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.80 and $8.00; A/K/Q pay $0.80 and $16.00; cherry blossoms pay $0.80 and $24.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $0.80 and $32.00; Niulang pay $0.80 and $48.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $20.00 and $80.00.

The $6.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.20 and $12.00; A/K/Q pay $1.20 and $24.00; cherry blossoms pay $1.20 and $36.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $1.20 and $48.00; Niulang pay $1.20 and $72.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $30.00 and $120.00.

The $8.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.60 and $16.00; A/K/Q pay $1.60 and $32.00; cherry blossoms pay $1.60 and $48.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $1.60 and $64.00; Niulang pay $1.60 and $96.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $40.00 and $160.00.

The $12.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $2.40 and $24.00; A/K/Q pay $2.40 and $48.00; cherry blossoms pay $2.40 and $72.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $2.40 and $96.00; Niulang pay $2.40 and $144.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $60.00 and $240.00.

The $16.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $3.20 and $32.00; A/K/Q pay $3.20 and $64.00; cherry blossoms pay $3.20 and $96.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $3.20 and $128.00; Niulang pay $3.20 and $192.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $80.00 and $320.00.

The $20.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $4.00 and $40.00; A/K/Q pay $4.00 and $80.00; cherry blossoms pay $4.00 and $120.00; pagodas/storks/Zhinu pay $4.00 and $160.00; Niulang pay $4.00 and $240.00; and Alpha Cygni pays $100.00 and $400.00.

3+ Alpha Cygni stars prompt the free spins, where: three offer ten free rounds; four stars offer 15 free rounds; five stars offer 25 free rounds; and 2+ re-landing stars offer +5 free rounds.

A simultaneously drawn “Quad Shot” framing and a five-of-a-kind of cherry blossoms/storks/pagodas/Zhinu/Niulang: unsubstituted combinations offer a $80000.00 major jackpot; and its substituted combinations offers a $160.00 minor jackpot.

A “Quad Shot Bonus” and a five-of-a-kind of A/K/Q/J/10/9: unsubstituted combinations give a $1000.00 maxi jackpot; and substituted combinations offer a $40.00 mini jackpot.

The Niulang and Zhinu software: HTML5 technology; mobile/desktop versions; bet history; max bet; 10/25/50/75/100 auto spins. Sound effects: retro, oriental, white noise, jingling, and squealing stork.

The animated 3D graphics: spinning cherry blossoms and leaves, glittering, falling petals, shaky Alpha Cygni, dolly zooming, gushing coins, luminous egg, wing-raising stork, sunburst, and rippling lake.

Luck in the Niulang and Zhinu

Niulang and Zhinu is a game of chance whose RTP rate is 96.32%, while the house edge is 3.68%.