Drone Wars is a 5-reel, 25-payline video slot from Microgaming, built around an intergalactic battle theme. It launched as part of Microgaming's catalogue of sci-fi slots and has maintained a steady following among players who enjoy space-themed games with interactive bonus rounds. The RTP sits at 95.99%, and volatility is on the lower end, meaning wins land relatively often and the game keeps a reasonable pace through longer sessions.
Theme and Design
The setting is deep space, where two factions of drones are locked in combat. The reels are set against a dark, star-scattered backdrop with a suitably tense synth soundtrack. High-value symbols include two rival pilots, a ray gun, a capsule, and a blue spacecraft. Lower-value positions are filled with card values styled to look like digital readouts from a cockpit display - a small touch that fits the aesthetic without feeling lazy.
The wild is represented by a pink-and-green drone, which substitutes for all symbols except the scatter. The scatter is a black hole, and landing three or more of these anywhere on the reels is what triggers the main bonus feature.
How to Play
Drone Wars plays across 25 paylines, all of which are fixed and active on every spin. Coin sizes range from 0.01 to 0.20, with between 1 and 20 coins available per line, which puts the betting range at £0.25 on the low end up to £100 per spin at maximum stake. There is an autoplay function that lets you set a defined number of spins to run without manual input.
Wins are formed by matching three or more identical symbols from left to right across a payline. The top payout in the base game is 1,000 coins for five wilds on a payline.
Battle Plan Bonus Feature
The stand-out part of Drone Wars is the Battle Plan feature, triggered by three or more black hole scatters. Rather than just awarding free spins automatically, the game asks you to choose between two distinct missions: Space Attack or Planetary Assault.
Space Attack
Space Attack awards five free spins. The distinctive twist is what happens before each spin - drones appear on the reels and are then destroyed by the player's ship. Each drone that gets blown up turns into a wild symbol, which remains in place for that spin. The number of drones that appear is random, so each free spin has a different layout of wilds before the reels even start moving. Landing three or more scatters during Space Attack re-triggers the feature for another five free spins.
Planetary Assault
Planetary Assault switches to a shoot-em-up mini-game. A wave of drones advances on your spacecraft, and you use a ray gun to pick them off one by one. Each drone you destroy awards a cash prize. The catch is that the drones shoot back - you can take three hits before it's game over and your winnings are collected. Destroying all 20 drones earns a 500x total bet prize, making this the higher-variance option of the two. If you prefer a shot at a larger lump sum over the extended wild action of Space Attack, Planetary Assault is the one to pick.
Base Game Wilds
Outside of the bonus round, the drone wild behaves as a standard substitute, filling gaps in paylines across all five reels. It appears most frequently on the middle reels, which helps it connect combinations rather than landing in isolation. It does not offer a multiplier in the base game, but its contribution to regular payouts keeps base game play consistent enough at lower stakes.
What to Expect as a Player
Drone Wars suits players who want a slot that does more than just spin reels - the choice between two genuinely different bonus modes gives it replay value that a straightforward free spins feature would not. The low volatility means your balance tends to hold through dry spells, which makes it a reasonable pick if you want extended play time. The Space Attack feature in particular offers something visually satisfying every time it triggers, since the wild placement changes on every spin.
The graphics are functional rather than cutting-edge - this is an older Microgaming title and it shows in the resolution and animations compared to more recent releases. The core gameplay loop more than compensates for that, and the bonus feature design has aged better than the visuals.
Verdict
Drone Wars delivers a well-structured slot with a standout bonus feature that puts a genuine decision in the player's hands. The RTP of 95.99% is competitive, the low volatility keeps things steady, and the choice between Space Attack and Planetary Assault adds a layer of engagement that most slots in this era did not bother with. Recommended for sci-fi fans and anyone who wants a bonus round that feels interactive rather than passive.
Where to Play Drone Wars
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