The Dog House – Royal Hunt™
The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ by Pragmatic Play takes the much-loved Dog House franchise to a whole new level—this time with a regal twist. This isn’t your average walk in the park. Royal Hunt brings a new bonus mechanic, fresh design elements, and of course, all the slobbery, tail-wagging charm the series is known for.
Whether you’re a fan of sticky wilds, raining wilds, or just love spinning alongside adorable animated pups, The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ is a game that delivers both fun and potential for some hefty wins. If you’re browsing online pokies in NZ and want a game that blends familiar mechanics with a new feature set, this one deserves your attention.
Let’s dig into everything this royal canine caper has to offer.
Theme and Graphics
The visual style of The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ keeps the bright and cheerful cartoonish vibe that fans of the original series love—but with a royal upgrade. Picture the classic Dog House setup, now nestled inside a castle courtyard with golden fountains, manicured gardens, and velvet-trimmed dog beds. The pups haven’t changed, but they’re clearly living a more luxurious life this time around.
The main characters—Rottweiler, Pug, Dachshund, and Shih Tzu—return in full force, dressed to impress with crowns, jewels, and royal flair. Symbols are crisp, colourful, and packed with personality. And the music? It’s a playful, upbeat tune with medieval undertones—think a royal court meets a dog show.
Everything about the game screams polished fun, with smooth animations and slick reel transitions that keep the gameplay engaging from start to finish.
Gameplay Mechanics
The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ runs on a classic 5x3 layout and includes 20 fixed paylines, keeping things simple but effective. It sticks to the bones of the original Dog House gameplay but introduces a Royal Respins mechanic that adds a refreshing twist to the mix.
Game Breakdown:
- Reels: 5
- Rows: 3
- Paylines: 20 fixed
- Min Bet: $0.20
- Max Bet: $100
- Wild Symbol: Yes (Sticky or Raining, depending on feature)
- Scatter Symbol: Yes (Dog Paw Bonus)
- Max Win: 6,000x your stake
The Wild symbol (the Dog House itself) can appear with 2x or 3x multipliers, just like in previous versions. When multiple wilds land in a winning combo, their multipliers multiply together, allowing for some surprisingly big hits—even during base game spins.
Paytable Highlights:
- Rottweiler – Top-paying symbol
- Pug, Dachshund, Shih Tzu – Mid-tier wins
- Collars, Bones, Letters – Lower-tier wins
Free Spins & Bonus Rounds
This is where The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ flexes its pedigree. There are two core bonus features: Sticky Wilds Free Spins and Raining Wilds Free Spins—both returning favourites from previous Dog House titles. But now, a brand-new Royal Hunt Respins feature adds a third layer of excitement.
How to Trigger the Bonus
Land 3 or more Bonus (Paw Print) symbols anywhere on the reels to enter the Bonus Feature Selection screen, where you choose your preferred Free Spins mode:
- Sticky Wilds Free Spins
- Raining Wilds Free Spins
Sticky Wilds Free Spins
Choose this for high volatility and massive potential. During these spins:
- Any wilds that land become sticky for the remainder of the feature
- Each wild can carry a 2x or 3x multiplier
- The number of free spins is determined randomly (typically 7 to 12)
This feature can lead to huge wins, especially if you land early wilds on the middle three reels.
Raining Wilds Free Spins
This option is more balanced and can be less volatile:
- Each spin randomly adds up to 6 wilds on the reels
- These wilds are not sticky
- Multipliers may still apply
- You usually receive 15 to 20 free spins
This feature gives you more opportunities to hit solid wins across multiple spins, especially when several wilds land on high-paying symbols.
Royal Hunt Respins – New Feature!
The Royal Hunt Respins feature triggers randomly in the base game when you land 2 Scatter symbols (instead of the usual 3 required to trigger Free Spins). Here’s how it works:
- Reels with the scatter symbols are held in place
- You get 3 respins to land the third scatter
- Any new scatter that lands resets the respins to 3
- Landing the third scatter triggers the full Bonus Feature (choose Sticky or Raining Wilds)
This feature doesn’t just soften the frustration of a near-miss—it actually builds anticipation and increases your chances of getting into the main bonus round.
RTP & Volatility
The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ comes with an RTP of 96.06%, sitting slightly above the average benchmark for online pokies. It’s a fair number that ensures solid value over time.
In terms of volatility, this game ranks as high. The big wins are found primarily in the bonus rounds—especially in Sticky Wilds Free Spins when you get the right reel setup. Base game wins are steady but modest, making it a game of patience that rewards timing and luck.
If you enjoy the adrenaline rush of high-volatility pokies, Royal Hunt delivers exactly that.
Does The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ Have a Jackpot?
No, there is no fixed or progressive jackpot in The Dog House – Royal Hunt™, but that doesn’t mean it lacks payout punch. The game’s maximum win is 6,000x your total bet, which is more than respectable.
If you’re playing at the max bet of $100, that’s a potential $600,000 win—not bad for a pokie filled with wagging tails and fluffy ears.
Related Games
If you’re a fan of this royal canine chaos, you’ll definitely want to check out other games in the Dog House series and beyond:
- The Dog House Megaways™: High volatility with more ways to win and sticky/raining wild bonuses.
- The Dog House: The original classic. Simpler, but still wildly fun.
- Big Bass Bonanza: If you like fun themes with explosive free spins features, this one's a great alternative.
These titles offer a similar blend of colourful graphics and bonus-heavy gameplay with varying volatility levels.
Conclusion
The Dog House – Royal Hunt™ is a fantastic evolution of one of Pragmatic Play’s most beloved pokie series. With its blend of familiar mechanics and new innovations like Royal Hunt Respins, it strikes a great balance between nostalgia and novelty.
The choice between Sticky and Raining Wilds gives you control over your bonus game experience, while the addition of respins helps reduce dead spins and adds more tension to near-misses. Combine that with 6,000x win potential and slick graphics, and you’ve got a game that’s both entertaining and rewarding.