Cheeky Emperor Slot Review
A scowling golden dragon guards the reel frame of Cheeky Emperor, wedged between red lacquered pillars and a floor of square-holed gold coins, while the boy-emperor of the title grins from the middle reels. For all that imperial pomp, this is a leaner machine than the artwork suggests: nearly everything of consequence routes through two features, and the base game between them is a quiet affair.
It’s a theme Pragmatic Play know well, and this one sits alongside 5 Lions, 888 Dragons and 8 Dragons in that lineage. The game runs on a 5×3 grid with 243 ways to win, a 96.50% RTP and mid-to-high volatility, with wins capped at 2,500x the bet. The cheek, as the name promises, is mostly in the presentation.
Base Game and Ways to Win
Cheeky Emperor pays left to right on adjacent reels from the leftmost reel, with winning combinations formed across 243 ways. On a five-reel, three-row grid that’s every possible adjacent-symbol position, so there’s no payline map to consult.
Any matching symbol on consecutive reels from the left counts, from anywhere on those reels. A symbol in the top row of reel one, the middle of reel two and the bottom of reel three is as valid a three-of-a-kind as three stacked in a row.
Only the highest win is paid per winning combination on each way, and wins landing across multiple ways are summed into the round’s total. Wins are multiplied by the base bet throughout. Free spins wins are added to the pay way win on top of anything the triggering spin already paid.
The presentation does more work than the maths. Red lacquered pillars with gold trim flank the grid, a swirling cloud-scroll pattern fills the dark red wall behind the reels, and a hanging gold tassel ornaments the dragon’s corner. It’s a lush, glossy build for what is, mechanically, a lean game.
The paytable is a modest one, with the firecracker the richest symbol and the royals clustered tightly at the bottom. Values are multiples of the total bet:
- Red Firecracker – 1.1364x for three, 2.2727x for four, 11.3636x for five
- Gold Pouch – 0.5682x, 1.1364x, 5.6818x
- Red Envelope – 0.4545x, 0.9091x, 4.5455x
- Scroll – 0.2841x, 0.5682x, 2.8409x
- Coin Knot – 0.1136x, 0.2273x, 1.1364x
- Royals (A, K, Q, J, 10, 9) – 0.0568x, 0.1136x, 0.5682x
- Dragon Scatter – 5x, 10x, 50x
Each symbol steps up steeply for five of a kind. The firecracker pays ten times more for five than for three, and that ratio holds down through the picture symbols.
The royals are an afterthought, worth 0.5682x at their best. Even a full line of the top symbol returns 11.3636x, which frames how modest the regular pays are next to the features.
The wild is the boy-emperor character himself, appearing on reels two, three and four, substituting for all symbols. Any wild landing in the base game can randomly trigger the Jackpot Bonus Game, which is the louder of the game’s two features.
It’s a simple setup, and the base game doesn’t dress itself up as anything else. Small wins come through the ways system, the wild does its substituting, and everything bigger routes through the two features below.
The gap between the top symbol’s 11.3636x and the 1,000x GRAND jackpot tells you where the real money lives. Between those two poles there’s very little else on the board.
Jackpot Bonus Game
Triggered at random whenever a wild appears on screen in the base game, the Jackpot Bonus Game is a pick-to-match round. There’s no scatter to chase and no meter to fill. The trigger rides entirely on the wild, which gives every wild landing on the middle reels a second job beyond substitution.
The round itself is quick. A grid of face-down symbols appears, you pick them one at a time to reveal jackpot icons, and the first icon you match three of ends the round and pays its prize.
Four jackpots are available, each fixed as a multiple of the total bet:
- GRAND – 1,000x total bet
- MINOR – 100x total bet
- MINI – 20x total bet
- MAJOR – 10x total bet
Note the odd naming: the MAJOR is the smallest of the four and the MINOR outpaces it tenfold, so read the ladder by its values rather than its labels. The gap between rungs is steep too, with each step up roughly doubling or more all the way to the GRAND.
The four values also display on meters above the reels during play, sized to your current stake, so the ladder is always in view. The GRAND at 1,000x is the only prize on the board that meaningfully moves the needle against the 2,500x win cap.
Free Spins Feature
Three or more dragon scatters from left to right on adjacent reels, starting from the leftmost reel, trigger the Free Spins Feature and award 10 free spins. The scatters pay for themselves too: 5x for three, 10x for four and 50x for five times the total bet, with the scatter win added on top of the trigger.
Special reels are in play during the round, with only certain symbols present. That’s the whole of the upgrade: a trimmed reel set, no multipliers, no accumulating mechanic. What the round offers instead is longevity, because the retrigger is generous.
Retriggers work the same way as the trigger. Land another three or more adjacent scatters from the left mid-round and 10 more free spins join the tally, with no ceiling on how far the round can stretch.
A lucky run of dragons can keep the feature alive indefinitely. All wins during the round are multiplied by the base bet, and free spins wins are added to the pay way win.
A round that reaches the 2,500x cap ends immediately, with the win awarded up to the cap and any remaining features forfeited. That forfeit clause matters most in a round that can, in principle, run forever.
Our Honest Verdict
Overall Rating: 7/10
Playing this is mostly watching the middle reels, because that’s where everything happens: a wild lands, substitutes, and might just open the jackpot door. That suspense is the one reason to pick it up, and the imperial dressing gives the waiting a nicer room to sit in than most.
The wild’s double duty is the best idea here, and it’s genuinely good: every wild on reels two to four carries a live shot at a 1,000x GRAND, which carries a paytable that tops out at 11.3636x for five firecrackers. The free spins round is where it goes thin. Special reels and unlimited retriggers are the whole upgrade, with no multipliers or modifiers to build towards, so a long round can still pay like a short one.
For players who like classic oriental styling and a jackpot to chase rather than layers of mechanics, it earns its place; anyone after a feature-rich bonus round will find the treasury emptier than the coins piled along the bottom suggest. The emperor keeps his cheek, if not his riches.
Cheeky Emperor FAQs
-
How does the Jackpot Bonus Game trigger?
The Jackpot Bonus Game triggers at random whenever a wild symbol appears on screen in the base game. There’s no scatter or meter involved, so any wild landing on reels two, three or four can set it off. -
How does the Jackpot Bonus Game work?
It’s a pick-to-match round. You pick symbols to reveal jackpot icons, and matching three of the same icon awards the corresponding jackpot: GRAND at 1,000x the total bet, MINOR at 100x, MINI at 20x and MAJOR at 10x. -
Can free spins be retriggered in Cheeky Emperor?
Yes. Landing another three or more adjacent scatters from the left during the round adds 10 more free spins, and there’s no cap on how many retriggers a single feature can stack up. -
How many free spins does the Dragon scatter award?
Three or more adjacent dragon scatters from the left award 10 free spins, and the scatter itself pays 5x for three, 10x for four and 50x for five times the total bet on top of the trigger. -
What is the RTP of Cheeky Emperor?
Cheeky Emperor runs at an RTP of 96.50%. -
How many paylines does Cheeky Emperor have?
The game offers 243 ways to win, paying left to right on adjacent reels from the leftmost reel. -
When is Cheeky Emperor released?
Cheeky Emperor’s release date is 30 August 2022. -
What is the maximum win on Cheeky Emperor?
The maximum win is capped at 2,500x the bet. If a round’s total win reaches that cap, the round ends immediately and the win is awarded up to the cap.
