Dawn of Kings: Slot Overview

Being one of today’s ceremonial, largely powerless monarchs seems like a pretty cushy role, doesn’t it? Smile for the cameras, open a few buildings, live in luxury, and accept endless bows and curtsies. Still, who knows—maybe it’s not quite that simple. Either way, it certainly wasn’t always like this. In earlier times, a king might never have been sure who was loyal, who was plotting a coup, who wanted them dead—possibly even someone in their own family. Then along comes the modern idea of parliament, steadily draining authority away and handing it to the, well, common masses. Of all the systems humans have tried, monarchy—concentrating so much power in one person, elevating them to near-divine status, and having everyone else kneel—is a particularly strange one.

With that detour out of the way, here’s Hacksaw Gaming’s online slot, Dawn of Kings. If titles like Book of Dead and Book of Ra popped into your head, you’re thinking along the right lines: this is an Egyptian-themed slot where special symbols expand across reels and pay from any position. It also stars a young female adventurer in the familiar explorer mould—think Lara Croft, Play’n GO’s Cat Wilde, or Pragmatic Play’s Jane Hunter. You know the look: fedora, satchel, map, torch—an Indiana Jones-style heroine, just minus the whip. Her name is Amy Dawn, and the base game places her in a blue-lit Ancient Egyptian-style chamber. It can feel a touch sparse visually, but it’s also put together with a sleek, stylish finish.

In many ways, Dawn of Kings reads like a familiar “Book” setup, though Hacksaw has tweaked a few details. The standard 5×3 gaming grid runs on 13 paylines instead of the more typical 10. You might assume the symbol payouts were reduced to balance that, but not here—there’s actually a notably bigger top prize symbol. Volatility also isn’t extreme, with a 3 out of 5 rating placing it in the medium bracket, and the default RTP sits at 96.24%. That RTP applies when wagering 10 c to $/€100 per spin, though it changes when you use options from the feature buy menu.

The lower-paying symbols in Dawn of Kings are the 10-A card ranks, while the premiums include a scarab and what appear to be Bastet, Anubis, Horus, and Amy herself. A 5-of-a-kind line of royals returns 5 to 10 times the bet, while landing 5 OAK on a premium pays 75 to 1,000 times the bet. The Books act as wild symbols, substituting for any standard pay icon, and they are also the game’s scatter.

Dawn of Kings: Slot Features

This is where the expanding-symbol action comes in, alongside a Base Game Book Mechanic, Best of Bonuses, and a packed selection of feature buys.

Base Game Book Mechanic

In the base game, there’s a random chance to activate the Book mechanic. When it triggers, a random symbol is selected as the special symbol, and 3-5 instances of this symbol will land. After any standard wins are paid, the Special symbols expand to cover the reels where they landed. Once expanded, special symbols pay anywhere on all lines, even when other symbols sit between them.

Book of Dawn Bonus

Landing 3 Book scatters in the base game awards 10 free Book of Dawn Bonus spins. At the beginning of the feature, one pay symbol is randomly chosen as the special symbol. If the special symbol appears on at least three reels, it will expand to cover their reels after regular wins have been paid. Once expanded, it pays all lines from any position. Hitting 2 Book scatters awards +2 free spins, while 3 Book scatters get you +4 free spins. Landing 4 Book scatters upgrades the feature to Triple Book of Dawn bonus and awards 4 free spins.

Triple Book of Dawn Bonus

Hitting 4 or 5 Book scatters in the base game awards 12 free spins in the Triple Book of Dawn Bonus. When triggered by 5 Books, players get a payout of 1,000x on top. The rules mirror the Book of Dawn Bonus, except 3 pay symbols are randomly chosen as special expanding symbols. At least one of these will be a random high-pay symbol. If more than one special symbol lands on at least 3 reels, they expand and pay out wins one after another. Landing 2 Book scatters awards +2 free spins, while 3 Book scatters award +4 free spins.

Best of Book of Dawn Bonus

If 3 Book scatters land at the same time as the Best of Bonus symbol in the base game, the Best of Book of Dawn Bonus is activated. It grants 3 Book of Dawn Bonus features back-to-back, and once they’re complete, the bonus that delivered the best result is awarded.

Best of Triple Book of Dawn Bonus

If 4 or 5 Book scatters land at the same time as the Best of Triple Book of Dawn Bonus symbol in the base game, the Best of Book of Dawn Bonus is activated. When triggered by 5 Books, players get a payout of 1,000x on top. This feature runs 3 Triple Book of Dawn Bonus features consecutively, and at the end, the bonus that produced the best result is awarded.

Buy Bonus

Dawn of Kings’ feature buy menu is loaded with options, and every one of them is highly volatile.

• BonusHunt FeatureSpins – 3x the bet for a spin 5 times more likely to trigger a bonus game. RTP 96.38%.
• Silver FeatureSpins – 50x the bet for a spin guaranteed to land at least 3 instances of random symbol that will expand. RTP 96.28%.
• Golden FeatureSpins – 100x the bet for a spin guaranteed to land at least 3 instances of a random high pay symbol that will expand. RTP 96.38%.
• Book of Dawn Bonus – 100x the bet. RTP 96.25%.
• Triple Book of Dawn Bonus – 300x the bet. RTP 96.29%.
• Best of Book of Dawn Bonus – 200x the bet. RTP 96.35%.
• Best of Triple Book of Dawn Bonus – 600x the bet. RTP 96.32%.

Dawn of Kings: Slot Verdict

Hacksaw Gaming has visited Ancient Egypt before, but Dawn of Kings doesn’t resemble earlier titles like Temple of Torment and Hand of Anubis. Those leaned heavily into horror, whereas Dawn of Kings goes for a lighter, action-driven B-movie vibe. And it works—despite occasionally looking a bit bare, as noted, it’s still an attractive game overall. That said, it’s another trip to Ancient Egypt, a setting we’ve all encountered countless times. Even the female adventurer angle is becoming increasingly common; where Amy might once have felt fresh and trailblazing, this character archetype is now far more familiar.

If that sounds overly critical, it isn’t intended that way. Hacksaw Gaming knows what it’s doing, and this slot includes plenty of smart touches. One very noticeable adjustment is the boosted value of the top Amy symbol, pushing the usual 500x up to a hefty 1,000x for 5 OAK. As a result, Dawn of Kings also offers double the typical max potential, reaching 10,000x the bet. It’s a little surprising Hacksaw didn’t go all the way to 13,000x given there are 13 paylines—Dawn of Kings could have competed in an even higher weight class if they’d allowed it—but so be it. The rest of the package is solid too: not revolutionary, but the chance for expanding symbols in the base game, up to three expanders during free spins, and the Best of Bonus idea first seen in Chaos Crew 2 are all welcome.

Another likely draw for some players is the sheer number of bonus buy choices, ranging from three FeatureSpins options to 4 free spins rounds. As you’d expect from Hacksaw Gaming, they can swing wildly—sometimes delivering the financial equivalent of a kick in the teeth, other times turning into something genuinely big when they ignite. If nothing else, the feature buys are a convenient way to explore what the slot can do while staying in the comfort of demo mode. And what Dawn of Kings delivers is Egyptian-themed gameplay that may not push the absolute limits of what’s technically possible, but stands firm—like a limestone block—as a dependable ‘Book of’ style slot.