The China’s river system called Pearl River—alternative name: Zhu Jiang—inspired the similarly titled February 2018 video slot Pearl River: Quad Shot; wherein its subtitle “Quad Shot” refers to its developer Ainsworth’s gaming line containing 15+ games, including: The 2016 games Diamond Dreams, Golden Lion, Gold Zone, Mighty Panther; Mega Choice, and Coral Dreams; the 2017 games Soul Queen and Jade Emperor; the 2018 games Big Thunder, Run with the Wolves, Emerald Dream, Island Princess; and the 2020 games Royal Swan and Congo King.

Thematizing geomorphology, Chinese knotting, mysticism, spiritual totems, Feng Shui ideology, ornamentation, and goddesses; Pearl River has: eight total bets, seventeen symbols, rightward wins, 25 fixed winning ways, four non-progressive jackpots, four substituting wilds, wins-multiplying goddesses, reel-populating multipliers, free bonus games, and one-off free games.

Regular games: twelve symbols (pearl, boat, lotus, seagull, shell, dragonfly, A, K, Q, J, 9, and 10) pay from X0.2 to X100 for a three to five-of-a-kind. Five symbols (dragonfly, shell, seagull, lotus, and boat) require three to five combinations, paying: from X0.04 and X8 in free games; and from X0.04 and X1.2 in multiplier spins.

Pearl River Characteristics

The illuminated gray waters of the Pearl River system—the 2400-kilometre-long river in Vietnam and China ends up in the South China Sea—forms the background of the Pearl River’s 5X3 grid. The frameless grid has floral, cobalt-lined, and dark blue standalone reels—with patterns of Chinese stellar knotting—beneath a golden piping containing its color-coded jackpots.

The following are the coins: $0.05, $0.10, $0.20, $0.30, $0.40, $0.60, $0.80, and $1.00. Eight total bets (X25 bet factor): $1.25 (minimum), $2.50, $5.00, $7.50, $10.00, $15.00, $20.00, and $25.00 (maximum).

Pearl River has six special symbols and eleven ordinary symbols. Special symbols: a free games-triggering pearl; a jackpot-facilitating blue-and-orange “Quad Shot Bonus” logo; and four substituting wilds namely orange-hued goddess, green-hued goddess, turquoise-hued goddess, and purple-hued goddess.

Ordinaries: Feng Shui coins in a purple bowl; sunlit boat; pink lotus; seagull; red-stringed seashell; purple dragonfly; purple A; orange K; golden Q; blue J; green 9; and red 10.

See the Pearl River’s regular payouts.
$1.25 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.25, $0.50, and $2.50; A/K/Q pay $0.25, $1.00, and $5.00; dragonflies pay $0.25, $2.50, and $7.50; seagulls/shells pay $0.25, $3.75, and $10.00; lotuses pay $0.25, $5.00, and $10.00; boats pay $0.25, $5.00, and $15.00; and pearls pay $6.25, $25.00, and $125.00.

$2.50 bet: 9/10/J pay $0.50, $1.00, and $5.00; A/K/Q pay $0.50, $2.00, and $10.00; dragonflies pay $0.50, $5.00, and $15.00; shells/seagulls pay $0.50, $7.50, and $20.00; lotuses pay $0.50, $10.00, and $20.00; boats pay $0.50, $10.00, and $30.00; and pearls pay $12.50, $50.00, and $250.00.

$5.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.00, $2.00, and $10.00; A/K/Q pay $1.00, $4.00, and $20.00; dragonflies pay $1.00, $10.00, and $30.00; shells/seagulls pay $1.00, $15.00, and $40.00; lotuses pay $1.00, $20.00, and $40.00; boats pay $1.00, $20.00, and $60.00; and pearls pay $25.00, $100.00, and $500.00.

$7.50 bet: 9/10/J pay $1.50, $3.00, and $15.00; A/K/Q pay $1.50, $6.00, and $30.00; dragonflies pay $1.50, $15.00, and $45.00; shells/seagulls pay $1.50, $22.50, and $60.00; lotuses pay $1.50, $30.00, and $60.00; boats pay $1.50, $30.00, and $90.00; and pearls pay $37.50, $150.00, and $750.00.

$10.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $2.00, $4.00, and $20.00; A/K/Q pay $2.00, $8.00, and $40.00; dragonflies pay $2.00, $20.00, and $60.00; shells/seagulls pay $2.00, $30.00, and $80.00; lotuses pay $2.00, $40.00, and $80.00; boats pay $2.00, $40.00, and $120.00; and pearls pay $50.00, $200.00, and $1000.00.

$15.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $3.00, $6.00, and $30.00; A/K/Q pay $3.00, $12.00, and $60.00; dragonflies pay $3.00, $30.00, and $90.00; shells/seagulls pay $3.00, $45.00, and $120.00; lotuses pay $3.00, $60.00, and $120.00; boats pay $3.00, $60.00, and $180.00; and pearls pay $75.00, $300.00, and $1500.00.

$20.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $4.00, $8.00, and $40.00; A/K/Q pay $4.00, $16.00, and $80.00; dragonflies pay $4.00, $40.00, and $120.00; shells/seagulls pay $4.00, $60.00, and $160.00; lotuses pay $4.00, $80.00, and $160.00; boats pay $4.00, $80.00, and $240.00; and pearls pay $100.00, $400.00, and $2000.00.

$25.00 bet: 9/10/J pay $5.00, $10.00, and $50.00; A/K/Q pay $5.00, $20.00, and $100.00; dragonflies pay $5.00, $50.00, and $150.00; shells/seagulls pay $5.00, $75.00, and $200.00; lotuses pay $5.00, $100.00, and $200.00; boats pay $5.00, $100.00, and $300.00; and pearls pay $125.00, $500.00, and $2500.00.

Free games: dragonflies pay X0.04, X0.12, and X1.2; shells/seagulls pay X0.04, X0.2, and X2; lotuses pay X0.08, X0.4, and X4; and boats pay X0.08, X0.4, and X8. Multiplier games: dragonflies pay X0.04, X0.12, and X8; shells/seagulls pay X0.04, X0.2, and X0.8; lotuses pay X0.04, X0.4, and X1.2; and boats pay X0.04, X0.4, and X1.2.

3+ pearls offer 10 free spins. Feng Shui coins in the middle or corner reels unlock three multiplier-guaranteeing bonus mode whose inner reels draw the plain goddesses on trigger, while its wins-multiplying goddesses repopulate the middle reels. Thereafter, the goddess-embedded multipliers are: wins-doubling in the first round, wins-tripling in the second round, and X5 wins-multiplying in the third round.

Drawing (the blue-and-celeste “A” feature at right) the “Quad Shot Bonus” and a five-of-a-kind of boats/lotuses/seagulls/shells/dragonflies in form of: unsubstituted combinations offer a $10000.00 major jackpot; or, substituted combinations yield a $200.00 minor jackpot.

A “Quad Shot Bonus” and a five-of-a-kind of A/K/Q/J/10/9 in form of: unsubstituted combinations prompt a $1250.00 maxi jackpot; or, substituted combinations offer a $50.00 mini jackpot.

The HTML5-based Pearl River has: mobile/desktop versions, and 10/25/50/75/100 auto spins, with $1.25 to $2500.00 loss limits and $62.50 to $25.1 million single win limits.

Sounds: oriental ambience; and twanging violin, retro, ringing, and clinking effects. The animated 3D graphics: glittering, luminosity, glowing, dolly zooming, and spinning hair bands.

Luck in Pearl River

A game of chance, the Pearl River’s RTP rate is 94.52%. House edge: 5.48%