Theme and Design
Chicken Run is a video slots game based on Aardman Animations’ 2000 stop-motion comedy film of the same name. The game’s theme revolves around farm animals, specifically chickens, trying to escape from their sinister farmer, Mr. Tweedy. Developed by Barcrest Chicken Run Games, a renowned gaming company known for its expertise in creating engaging and entertaining slots games.
As players launch the game, they are transported into a lively and colorful farming environment. The background of the reels is a serene farm setting with rolling hills, green pastures, and an old farmhouse in the distance. The symbols on the 5-reel by 20-payline grid are intricately designed to resemble various characters from the film.
Symbols
The paytable is dominated by high-paying and low-paying symbols representing various animals and items related to farm life. High-paying symbols include:
- Farmer
- Mrs. Tweedy (the farmer’s wife)
- Ginger (the clever chicken)
Low-paying symbols are represented by playing card suits, each containing different chickens: Ace of Spades/Chickens in Black Suits; King of Hearts/Red-Hatted Chickens.
Payouts
The payout structure is standard for most slots games. Each symbol has its corresponding payout value when 3-5 matching icons appear on adjacent reels from left to right, starting from reel one. The payouts increase with the number of consecutive wins and multipliers applied across different reels.
For instance:
- Landing three Farmer symbols results in a win of up to 100x stake
- Five Ginger or Mrs. Tweedy symbols trigger prizes ranging from 2-5 times total stake
Wilds
The Golden Egg is designated as the Wild symbol, replacing all other game icons except scatters during gameplay. It appears on reels two to five and participates in free spins. In regular spins, a wild egg may also appear in a random reel position.
When substituting for symbols to create winning combinations, it enhances payouts by multiplying wins from left to right across different reels according to the line combination pattern of winning icons (A-L).
Scatters
The Chicken Nests symbol acts as scatters. When two or more scatter nester icons appear anywhere on the five reels simultaneously in a single spin during the main game and Bonus Free Spins features, it triggers bonus rewards.
However, unlike other standard slots games where multiple Scatters usually activate free spins, only one scatter reward occurs per round with any win multiplied by that activation number. These are added to bonus points from line wins but don’t initiate an award multiplier beyond that initial 1 Scatter or higher combination value – unless another spin reaches the same pattern.
Bonus Features
While it may seem like a missed opportunity without dedicated Bonuses activated through other symbols, this does lead into:
The Chicken Run Bonus free spins feature when three+ Scatters appear (only applies during Main Game mode), awarding an instant multiplier plus all winnings counted as one total per round.