Big Bamboo: Review & Free Demo
Push Gaming’s Big Bamboo: Zen Imagery Meets Volatile Gameplay
Allow Push Gaming’s Big Bamboo to transport you to a zen-like realm complete with adorable pandas, birds, bamboo trees, and, something you might not expect, highly volatile gameplay! This Asian-themed slot features 5 reels, 6 rows, and 50 fixed paylines. Moreover, it’s bursting at the seams with fun features. Push Gaming is particularly known for including several features within its slots, and this game, released in March 2022, is no exception.
To describe the theme in detail, Push Gaming has combined the tranquil world of bamboo and pandas with a simple yet mystical game design. The backdrop featuring large bamboo chutes gives off an ethereal feel, and the minimalistic symbol designs match the theme fittingly. That said, the gameplay is where the zen aesthetic ends in true volatile game fashion, Big Bamboo offers huge prize potential.
Big Bamboo Symbols And Payouts
The symbol collection for Big Bamboo comprises various regular symbols with varying values and many special ones, the same as in Cleopatra free slots. The lowest-value symbols include your standard Diamond, Spade, Heart, and Club card suits. Landing three to five identical card suit symbols gets you 0.1x to 0.4x your bet.
The Blue Bird, Green Monkey, and Orange Warthog characters are the mid-value symbols, offering 12x, 16x and 20x your bet for landing five of a kind, respectively. The Panda functions as the highest-paying regular symbol, offering 0.5x, 2x, 10x, or 150x your bet for landing two, three, four, or five identical symbols on the reels, respectively.
The Gong Wild replaces all the regular symbols and, similarly to the Panda symbol, offers up to 150x your bet. The Yin Yang Bonus Scatter symbol activates the Free Spins round. Furthermore, the Mystery Bamboo symbol transforms to reveal paytable symbols, Wilds, or Golden Bamboo symbols. The Golden Bamboo, in turn, triggers the Golden Bamboo feature.
Symbols
Below are the game’s symbols in their entirety:
| Symbol | Payouts and Features |
|---|---|
 | 0.1x, 0.2x, or 0.4x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.1x, 0.2x, or 0.4x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.1x, 0.2x, or 0.4x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.1x, 0.2x, or 0.4x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.3x, 1.2x, or 12x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.4x, 1.6x, or 16x for 3, 4, 5 of a kind |
 | 0.5x, 2x, or 20x for 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | 0.5x, 3x, or 10x for 2, 3, 4, or 5 of a kind |
 | Replaces all the regular symbols and pays up to 150x the bet |
 | Activates the Mystery Bamboo feature |
 | Activates the Golden Bamboo feature |
 | 1 to 5,000x the bet |
 | Multiplies instant prizes ranging from 2x to 10x |
 | Offers free spins with Mystery Bamboo symbols |
 | Activates the free spins feature |
Paylines
Big Bamboo Slot RTP & Volatility
The following information provides details about the RTP and volatility level of Big Bamboo:
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RTP
The Big Bamboo slot has an RTP level of 96.13%, slightly higher than the industry average. It is, however, lower when compared to Push Gaming’s other slots. An RTP of 96.13% means the average payout over time for every 100 CAD bet on this game is 96.13 CAD.
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Volatility
Big Bamboo is a highly volatile slot, meaning the game has a higher risk and, as a result, a higher potential payout. What this means is while the slot game may not pay out frequently, once it does, the payouts are more likely to be substantial.
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Min/Max Bets
The minimum bet for Big Bamboo is 0.10, while the maximum amount you can bet is 100 coins per spin. You will find a Total Bet box below the reels, and clicking the upwards-pointing arrow will show you all the possible bet options.
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Maximum Win
Big Bamboo offers a top win of 50,000x your bet. That said, due to the slot being highly volatile, the max win probability is once in every 3.5 million spins. Note that you can raise your potential for big wins via the Golden Bamboo feature, which can provide multipliers and instant prizes up to 5,000x your bet.
Features and Bonus Games Galore
Below are the slot’s different features and bonus games in painstaking detail:
Mystery Bamboo Symbol
The Mystery Bamboo symbol is a “reveal” symbol that can land anywhere on all 5 reels in both the Base Game and the Free Games feature. It activates the Mystery Bamboo feature, which leads all the symbols to transform into a random paying symbol, including Golden Bamboo Symbols or Gong Wilds.
The Golden Bamboo Symbol and Feature
If you land the Mystery Bamboo symbol and it displays the Golden Bamboo symbol, that activates its corresponding feature. Every Golden Bamboo symbol then spins to reveal a different symbol:
| Instant Prize | The instant prize symbol is a bet multiplier, and its value can range from 1x to 5000x the bet. |
| Multiplier | The multiplier symbol multiplies the value of all Instant Prize and Collector symbols between 2x and 10x. |
| Collector | Collects the value of all the Instant Prize and Collector symbols. All instant prize symbols are removed from the reels when collected. |
| Scatter | Normal and Gamble Scatter symbols can land during this feature. |
Gamble Feature
Each time you land Scatters on reels 2 and 3, a Gamble Scatter may land on reel 4, with all the potential Free Spins Prizes spinning within the Gamble Scatter position. The available Free Spins Prizes include the following:
- 4 to 9 free spins
- 7 to 9 free spins with 2 dots (2 low-value symbols will be converted into the Mystery Bamboo symbol)
You can also gamble for more via a gamble wheel. That said, if you fail, you will lose all the free spins options. For instance, similar features collected in 9 masks of fire free play, so don’t hesitate to taste different slots to choose the best for you.
Free Spins Feature
You can activate the Free Spins feature by landing three Scatters where the Gamble Scatter displays a Free Spins prize. When you land Scatters during the Golden Bamboo feature or on reels 2, 3 and 4, they will be collected and added to a bamboo meter to the right, displaying low-value symbols. If you manage to collect the right amount, these symbols will be converted into Mystery Bamboo symbols, offering more free spins as a result. Every time you convert symbols, they add multiplier values to the total win multiplier, which will then be applied to the total win obtained via the Golden Bamboo feature.
| Symbols | Free Spins Awarded | Multiplier Increase |
|---|---|---|
| First Converted Symbol | 4 extra free spins | 2x |
| Second Converted Symbol | 3 extra free spins | 3x |
| Third Converted Symbol | 3 extra free spins | 5x |
| Fourth Converted Symbol | 2 extra free spins | 10x |
You can also get 1, 2, or 3 more free spins from landing the Gamble Scatter and spinning through extra free spins.
Bonus Buy
The Bonus Buy feature gives you four different options. Here, you can get free spins with up to four converted symbols, with the game’s RTP also changing.
| Cost | Free Spins Awarded | Converted Symbols | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 99x the bet | 7, 8, or 9 | 0 | 96.94% |
| 179x the bet | 7, 8, or 9 | 2 | 96.76% |
| 608x the bet | 8, 9, or 10 | 4 | 96.71% |
| 300x the bet | Between 7 and 10 | Up to 4 | 96.53% |
My Take on the Big Bamboo Slot Experience
I found that I needed to play the demo quite a few times to fully understand what was going on. The Free Spins feature was a bit disappointing because while playing with four converted symbols helps, the game’s high volatility makes sure you’re lucky if you win over 30x your bet in most cases. As I pointed out earlier, while the visuals are serene, the harsh reality here is that it’s not easy to land decent wins.
Graphics & Sound
Regarding the graphics, the game exudes an extremely peaceful vibe, with the reels set against a backdrop featuring a large, adequately animated bamboo forest. The animal symbols also display small animations when part of a winning combination, a subtle yet delightful addition.
A calming tune, complete with wind chimes and harp strings, plays on in the background as you spin the reels, which adds a nice, authentic touch. If silence is what you prefer, you can turn off the music and sounds in the bottom left corner below the reels or via the game menu.
Best Big Bamboo Alternatives
If you’ve had your fill with Big Bamboo or just prefer other types of slot games check the Assassin Moon slot review, or below are some fun alternatives you can also explore:
Immortal Romance
The Immortal Romance slots game is a vampire-themed machine with 5 reels and 243 ways to win. The slot’s Chamber of Spins feature is one of the most exciting in the game, allowing players to unlock different characters’ back stories with unique bonuses and Free Spin rounds. The slot also has a Wild Desire bonus feature that offers a chance for big potential wins.
Gates of Olympus
Pragmatic Play’s Gates of Olympus slots machine is an aesthetically appealing Greek mythology-themed game with 6 reels and 20 paylines. In terms of bonuses, the game’s highlights include the Tumble Win feature, Free Spins, and Progressive Multiplier feature for massive potential payouts.