Scruffy Duck

Scruffy Duck: Overview

We have no doubt all heard the classic tale of the ugly duckling from childhood. The poor guy mixed up at birth that turned out to be the misfit of the family and just couldn’t fit in. Rejected by his people, little did the wee chap know that in time he’d grow into a majestic swan to find love and acceptance.

It’s the kind of story that gets more disturbing the more you start analyzing it, which we have no plan to do at the moment. Instead, let’s enjoy Scruffy Duck, a Disney lookalike slot from NetEnt where it is virtually impossible to resist the cuteness overload.

An aquatic cast sets the action down by a lake where the transparent 5-reel, 3-row grid hovers over the water’s surface. Bordering the reels is a selection of lily pads, frogs, buzzing bees, and other miscellaneous life forms. A chilled tune meanders along in the background providing the icing on Scruffy Duck’s cartoonish presentation.

NetEnt has done a sweet job creating a super laid back feel, which makes it hard not to crack a smile or fall for the loveable on-screen characters. The game’s stats are also rather heart-warming such as a solid RTP rating of 96.38% coupled with a hit frequency of 22.77%. Both stats work in tandem with medium volatility to produce a range of rewards and thrills.

Like the reels, the menu bar is also transparent, providing players bet level options of 1-10 alongside coin values of 0.01 – 1. Altering these two meters produces total stakes that can be as low as 25 p/c or as high as $/€250 per spin. In Scruffy Duck, NetEnt has provided a range of stakes that should be more than enough to satisfy most bankroll requirements. Once the all-important bets are in place, it is time to get those ducks spinning.

At this lake, the golden rule is landing three or more consecutive matching symbols on a payline to receive a reward. Players get 25 paylines and 8 regular pay symbols with which to do so. On the low win side are J-A royals that are bursting out of eggshells like brand new ducklings. The medium win symbols are a duck family made up of a young-un, a teenager, a mummy, and a daddy.

Daddy duck offers the best value of the flock at 16 times the stake when playing at bet level 1. During the main game and free spins, the spectacled scruffy duck appears as the wild to substitute for any other symbol except the scatter. It may also become an expanded swan wild to cover a full reel if it results in a bet line win.

Scruffy Duck: Features

As well as expanding wilds, the other feature is a batch of Free Spins which are triggered when 3 scatters land in any position on reels 3, 4, and 5. When this occurs, players pick one of 5 ducks which surface to randomly award one of these features:

• Multiplier feature – 15 free spins where all wins are multiplied by x3.
• Symbol Removal feature – 12 free spins with no low pay symbols present on the reels.
• Colossal Wild feature – 10 free spins with colossal 2x2 or 3x3 wilds appearing on reels 2, 3, or 4 only. Colossal wilds may land fully or partially in view, and if they are part of winning combinations they split into 2-9 single wilds.
• Random Wild feature – 8 free spins with 2 to 5 wilds randomly added to the grid on each free spin. Random Wilds cannot expand, nor do they take the place of any active expanding wilds.
• Double feature – 6 free spins with 2 of the above features randomly activated.

Make the most of the free spins when they are awarded because it is not possible to win any more during the feature.

Scruffy Duck: Verdict

Scruffy Duck is one of those slots that are really easy to fall for. The game is as chilled as it gets thanks to the laid-back tunes and a full cast of adorable characters. On top of the enjoyable environment, NetEnt has balanced the slot nicely between a base game full of expanding wilds and a solid hit rate, with a bonus game that offers five fun-filled options. Which option is best? While each one has something different to offer, max payouts vary, and the overall winner is revealed below.

Does Scruffy Duck have the ability to turn bankrolls from ugly ducklings into graceful swans? Well, let’s put it this way, Scruffy Duck isn’t a game you play to strike immense fortunes. Max potential is in the region of 1,200 times the stake, so the returns aren’t exactly life-changing. To get the most out of Scruffy Duck you will need to hit the Multiplier Free Spins, or the Double Feature Free Spins for best results.

During the base game, max wins can get as high as 400 times the stake, which isn’t bad but will require plenty of wilds or daddy ducks to achieve. Scruffy Duck might not be a huge paying slot, but that’s not its main objective. The deal around here is kicking back with a bunch of sweet features in nature, alongside a bunch of boisterous ducks.

All of that might sound a little wacky, but that’s fine, in fact, that’s half the point. For some light-hearted gaming which can get pretty exciting during one of the many bonus games, Scruffy Duck is a proven entertainer.