Mist Dragon: dragon fire, pearls and jade coins, free

When the dragon breathes

Nothing unusual happens on most spins of Mist Dragon. Every so often, though, the dragon sweeps fire across the reels, and that blast can do one of four things: turn symbols into wild dragons, transform several symbols into the same premium one, set a whole reel alight, or ignite a pearl that carries a jackpot. You never know which until the flames clear, and that uncertainty is what keeps you watching.

The poster reads like an ink painting: a red and gold dragon coiling out of thick white mist, a glowing jade pearl in its claws, limestone peaks fading into the background and a red seal beside the brushstroke title. Nocturn Play keeps that look in the game, which in its own screens goes by its French name, Dragon des Brumes.

The base game

It is a 5-reel, 3-row line slot with 10, 20 or 30 lines. Wins pay from the left reel across neighbouring reels, only the best win per line counts, and the bet shown is the total stake. The symbols run from a red lacquer medallion, a mother-of-pearl lotus, a turquoise tile and a jade lozenge up through a red lantern, a golden fan, a golden koi, an ornamental sabre and a jade bowl of gold, to the tiger, the fire phoenix and the dragon warrior. The dragon wild substitutes for all but the pearls and jade coins, and five of them on a line pay the top prize.

Two bonus rounds

Dragon's Breath free spins

Three, four or five dragon pearls anywhere pay a prize and start 8, 12 or 16 free spins. With two pearls on screen, the dragon may light a third for you. In the bonus, the dragon breathes far more often and each blast raises the heat, which multiplies line wins up to ×5. Three more pearls add 4 spins, up to 40 in all.

The Pearl bonus

Six or more jade coins start a Hold & Win round. The coins lock, you get 3 respins, and each new coin resets the count to 3. Coins can carry the Mini, Minor or Major jackpot; the Grand is reserved for filling all 15 positions. Mini, Minor and Major can also come from a pearl set alight in the base game. The overall cap is 5,000× the bet.

A sensible way to play the free demo

Mist Dragon has no bonus buy, so the demo is the only risk-free way to see both bonuses.

• Play on 30 lines at a modest total, the equivalent of £0.30 or so, for 250 to 300 spins.
• Keep a rough tally of the four dragon effects. You will soon notice which ones actually lead to a win and which are mostly spectacle.
• Watch the two-pearl spins closely: that is when the dragon can light the third.
• Count the jade coins too. Four or five on screen is common; six is the Pearl bonus.

Autoplay can stop by itself at a bonus, which saves you from missing the start of a round while counting.

Free play, no account needed

Play Mist Dragon free in your browser with no download and no sign-up. Demo credits are virtual, so nothing can be withdrawn, and the jackpots won here are for show. If you want to play it for real stakes, the same game runs for real money at the casinos listed below.