Dead Man’s Fingers: Slot Overview

Our previous encounter with indie studio G Games was the jungle-themed Fishin’ Frenzy-like slot Tiger Tiger. If that one left you as unimpressed as it did us, expect familiar territory again. Dead Man’s Fingers is a strangely named online slot that, in practice, mirrors Tiger Tiger with only a handful of side tweaks, most of them purely visual. Launched in collaboration with Yggdrasil, the title points to the skeletal hand of a pirate captain. Those bony fingers show up on a collect symbol, gathering instant cash symbols when they land together, either in the base game or during an upgraded free spins bonus.

With its pirate setting and similarly toned reels, Dead Man’s Fingers initially evoked Yggdrasil own slot Pirates 2: Mutiny as it loaded. Players are welcomed by an attractive scene: a pirate ship sits just offshore from a beach featuring a locked treasure chest, a skeleton in a cage, and palm trees, all under a brooding Caribbean sky. Visually, Dead Man’s Fingers is put together nicely; there are no real complaints on that front. Once the reels got going, though, it quickly became clear the gameplay is lifted straight from Tiger Tiger, which cooled our excitement.

Running on 5 reels and 4 rows, Dead Man’s Fingers uses 25 paylines for forming winning combinations across the grid. The game’s volatility is officially listed as medium-high, and the RTP is set at 95.2%. As with its predecessor, hit frequency is 17.69%, which is fairly low, so expect plenty of dead spins. If that still sounds acceptable, Dead Man’s Fingers can be played on any device, with stakes ranging from 25 p/c to $/€100.

The most exciting moments come when the fingers pull in Quickhit money symbols, but outside of that, wins are earned by landing matching symbols left to right across the reels. The premium pirate symbol pays from two of a kind, delivering 80x the bet for five of a kind, and it can appear as high as four positions. For the rest of the symbols, at least three are needed: there are four higher-value gems paying 12 to 32x the bet and five lower-value skull tokens worth 2.4 to 8x the stake for five on a payline. The last standard symbol is the octopus-themed wild, which lands on reels 2, 3, or 4 and substitutes for all symbols except Quickhit Money symbols and the Cash Collect symbol.

Dead Man’s Fingers: Slot Features

In both the base game and the bonus round, Quickhit Money symbols and Collect symbols can land on any spin as part of the Money Collect feature. Each Quickhit symbol shows either a cash value or one of the Mini, Minor, Major, or Grand prizes. Cash values run from 1x to 20x the bet, while the four bigger prizes pay 50x, 100x, 200x, or 1,000x the bet. When Quickhit Money symbols land on reels 1 to 4 at the same time as a Collect symbol on reel 5, players collect all prizes in view.

Compass scatters land on reels 2, 3, or 4, and hitting 3 of them triggers 10 free spins. In free spins, there are more Quickhit Money symbols and Collect symbols on the reels, which should increase the chance of landing instant cash payouts. Landing 3 scatters again extends the feature by another 10 free spins, with no cap on how many retriggers can be awarded.

Dead Man’s Fingers: Slot Verdict

There’s very little separating Dead Man’s Fingers from Tiger Tiger, and our reaction is much the same. The main differences are the higher volatility and the fresh theme, swapping the jungle for a seafaring backdrop. The visuals are arguably a step up, which makes Dead Man’s Fingers a touch more pleasant than its slightly older counterpart. Still, a lot of that positivity faded once it became obvious we’d essentially played this already in Tiger Tiger.

On the upside, Dead Man’s Fingers could be exactly what a cash symbol collector fan is looking for to have a good time. Even so, it struggles to stand out against other titles built around the same idea, such as Big Bass Bonanza or the Megaways versions, for instance – both of which add a tempting multiplier upgrade mechanic in free spins. The pirate angle is similar: there’s no shortage of swashbuckling slots out there, and many do the theme better than Dead Man’s Fingers.

If G Games had made the offer more compelling and broadened Dead Man’s Fingers’ win potential, it could have been more appealing. Interestingly, the in-game help text notes that a 100,000x win occurred during simulated spins, and a larger possible cash haul might have helped it rise above the middle of the pack. Instead, G Games has kept a 2,740x the bet win cap, and while that’s in line with other cash collection slots, it isn’t enough to swing things decisively in Dead Man’s Fingers’ favour.

Dead Man’s Fingers may look and play like an upgrade over Tiger Tiger, but after spending time with it, it ultimately feels like more of the same. In short, Dead Man’s Fingers is an average entry, up against similar games that often execute the concept more effectively. Whether you’re here for pirates or for collecting cash symbols, it’s easy to find larger, stronger, and more exciting options than what Dead Man’s Fingers delivers.