Shaman’s Dream 2 Slot Review

About a month ago, we ventured into looking at Eyecon slots. They are an older provider, founded in 1997, with about one hundred and twenty spinners to their name. If you are new to Eyecon, know that they do not produce super-advanced slots that can compete with the industry’s best. However, their games do well because they primarily target the UK market, and British operators love tying them in with a vast array of bonuses. The first game that we reviewed from their arsenal was Shaman’s Dream, which came out in 2016. Well, now it is time to check out its sequel, Shaman’s Dream 2, which hit online casinos in October of 2020. It proved to be a hit in the UK, maintaining in the top 100 for most of its run, only momentarily exiting this prestigious society before instantly making a comeback.

Theme & Design

As it was in the first game, the theme here is also shamanism. We are not going to repeat the explanation of shamanism provided in our first review. Though, we will clarify a popular misconception. The practice of shamanism usually has no dogma or sacred writing and does not rely on faith. Its philosophy is holistic and natural. It is a tool for better understanding one’s mental, physical, and spiritual abilities.

Shamanism aside, we can say that this release is a vast visual improvement on the first game. For one, there is a greater sense of depth here. While in the original slot, the reel-grid was pushed too in your face, now it is pulled back, letting you enjoy a beautiful American landscape with mountains and scattered teepees. The graphics themselves look far better here as well, as the colors blend in nicely and the overall palette works. However, we do not like the logo on top of the reel grid. It is too distracting, as it continuously drew our eye. The grid itself is a wooden frame made up of sticks tied with some rope. Two spears flank it. Like in the original, there is no music in the base gameplay. Sound effects and animations play once you land a win. These are also far more advanced than in Shaman’s Dream.

The button configuration is a simple yet modern one. It features the usual icon design, so you will recognize what is what at first sight. You have the spin, auto-spin, and bet-adjuster buttons in the middle of your screen. There is a bottom info bar, and the settings option is on its far right.

Specs & Gameplay

Shaman’s Dream 2 is a medium variance title that uses a five-reel, three-row layout with twenty-five adjustable paylines. Its default RTP is below average, at 95.57%, and Eyecon has set the max exposure at x9,500. Note that this decent max win setting cannot provide a massive jackpot-like win. Why? Well, the most that you can wager on these reels is $12.5, and the lowest amount that you can gamble on them is a penny per line. Thus, this is more of a low-roller title than anything. Wins here form when you hit two to five matching symbols on a payline left to right. The highest line win always wins.

The symbols here divide into two groups, low-paying, and high-paying ones. However, there is a caveat in play. You need at least three identical symbols on a line from the first group to win a prize, but the latter only requires two. The first batch consists of a totem, a wardrobe accessory, two axes, a bear, a knife, and a teepee. The latter pack features a white buffalo, an eagle, three human characters, and a white wolf.

The Wolf is also the Wild here, and if he is part of a winning combo, those wins get doubled. Hitting five wolves on a line will win you the max prize of x9,500. A dreamcatcher is the Scatter of Shaman’s Dream 2, and five catchers on the grid on a spin will yield a reward of x200.

Bonus Features

In the base game, the instant prize feature is active. This means, when symbols with a golden frame appear on reels one and five, you get awarded a prize. When this happens, you will attain a reward of x2, x3, x4, x8, or x20 your bet. Note that any symbol that lands on these two reels can have a golden background, and you do not have to hit the same one on the first and fifth reel.

If three or more Scatters (dreamcatchers) show up on the grid on a single spin, you activate the Free Spins Round. There, you kick things off with fifteen complimentary reel rotations, and all wins formed in this mode get tripled. You can reactivate this round a maximum of fifteen times.

GOSU Verdict

Well, Shaman’s Dream 2 is for sure a step forward from the original game. It looks and feels far more refined than its predecessor, which, in all honesty, was rather crude. Everything is better this time around. The RTP could be slightly higher given the variance, and we would have liked to have seen a larger max bet. The one listed is too low for our taste. That said, if you liked the first game, then you should forget it in favor of this one. If you are into Native American culture, want to spin reels on a game that uses this theme, Shaman’s Dream 2 should do. We say this because there aren’t a whole lot of Native American-themed slots around.

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