Manufacturer: Konami Gaming
Platform: K2V; Podium
Format: Five-reel, five-line video slot
Denomination: .25, .50, 1.00, 2.00, 5.00
Max Bet: 250
Top Award: 50,000 credits
Hit Frequency: Approximately 35%
Theoretical Hold: 14.8%

This latest title in Konami Gaming's K2V video slot series and Podium cabinet is a five-reel, five-line game designed for high denominations. It is available to casinos in quarter, 50-cent, $1, $2 and $5 denominations.

There is a free-spin bonus event, with an extra twist. Three, four or five scattered coin symbols trigger seven, 10 or 20 free games, respectively. The normal reels are replaced by a special set of symbols for the free games.

During the free spins, each time a "nugget" symbol appears, it is recorded on a meter. When the dragon symbol lands, if five or more nuggets have been accumulated, the player is paid a bonus, beginning with five times the per-line wager for five nuggets, and rising by five-credit increments with every additional nugget-10 times the per-line bet for six nuggets, 15 times the bet for seven nuggets, etc.-until reaching 11 nuggets.

If the player has accumulated 11 or more nuggets, the bonus amounts accumulate more rapidly: 50 times the line bet for 11 nuggets; 100 times the bet for 12; 150 times the bet for 13; 500 times the bet for 14; and a top bonus of 1,000 times the line bet for a dragon symbol with 15 accumulated nuggets. The free-spin round can be re-triggered within the free spins.

By Frank Legato

Frank Legato is editor of Casino Connection and also editor of Global Gaming Business magazine. He has been writing on gaming topics since 1984, when he launched and served as editor of Casino Gaming magazine. Legato, a nationally recognized expert on slot machines, has served as editor and reporter for a variety of gaming publications, including Public Gaming, IGWB, Casino Journal, Casino Player, Strictly Slots and Atlantic City Insider. He has an B.A. in journalism and an M.A. in communications from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. He is the author of the recently published book on gaming, How To Win Millions Playing Slot Machines... Or Lose Trying.