A Day at the Derby

Epsom Derby or the Derby Stakes refers to English horse races and one of the most important sporting events of the season. Every year in June, horse racing aficionados and those who enjoy the commercial side of sports, gather to honor the skill and stamina of the finest horses in the Kingdom, just like in the 17th century, when the first Derby race was held. A curious fact is that the event was named after the 12th earl of Derby, who receive the honor as a result of flipping the coin.

Nowadays, Derby has turned into a proper festival, with music performances and other entertaining events. The formal dress code is maintained, and the race itself is often overshadowed by the extravagant hats worn by the female visitors and members of the Royal family, who seem to be competing in endorsing the most outrageous designs.

Rival Gaming’s A Day at the Derby slot is one of the rare online slots inspired by this event, which is quite surprising, considering its social impact. The slot was released back in 2012 and we can only hope that the developer will decide to revisit this medium volatility release and give it a much-needed makeover.

The Vanity Fair

A Day at the Derby is played on 5×3 grid and 20 paylines, producing the return to the payer percentage of 93.4%, which is well under the average. The players can manually adjust the coins size, the number of coins per line, and paylines. Depending on one’s preferences, the players will be able to submit wagers from a scale of $0.01 to $50.

Auto Play feature is available, but can only be activated when the game is launched in real money mode. Demo-play does not support this feature, but you will be able to use the Max Bet option while playing for free. Selecting this option will activate all 20 paylines and increase the number of coins to 10 per line, without changing the coin value.

For a payout to be generated, at least 3 matching icons will have to land on the consecutive positions from left to right. The payout value will, of course, depend on the symbol’s value level; the highest payout icons are the Roses and the Derby Cup. The Lady and the Gentleman are the medium value icons, while the Derby Race essentials, Horse Shoes, Cocktail, Binoculars, and the Betting Slip, are the symbols with the lowest payout value.

Free Spins and Bonus Rounds at the Finish Line!

Blue Jockey Bonus icons will trigger up to 20 Free Spins with x3 multipliers. The number of spins within the session will depend on the number of icons within the combination. The Green Jockey is the Jackpot symbol which will generate the payout of up to 2,500 coins for a combination of 5. A string of 3 or more White Horses unlocks the Mystery Bonus Round, while the Brown Horse is the Wild, replacing all other symbols when it lands on reels 1-3.

Players who are used to sophisticated designs and sharp visuals might be slightly put off by the crude appearance of the Day at the Derby, but the base game hit frequency is worth some sacrifice. The same cannot be said for the bonus features and you will have to endure quite a few dead spins before you trigger the Free Spins and the Mystery Bonus Round.