Introduction to Book of Sakura
Book of Sakura is a casino slot from Quickspin set in a beautiful cherry blossom forest. If you’re familiar with Quickspin, then you would know that they have a soft spot for Asian, or more specifically, Japanese-themed slot games, as seen with games like Tempura Princess. However, Book of Sakura is more than just that, as it’s actually part of the titular Sakura series, starting with Sakura Fortune, released in 2017, and then saw a handful of sequels in the form of Sakura Fortune 2 in 2022, and Sakura Fortune Epic Bloom in 2024. But we wouldn’t exactly call Book of Sakura a direct sequel, as the gameplay is a bit different, with the title being an indicator of this being a “Book of” type of game, which are known for their Expanding Symbols. This is also the case here, as Book of Sakura is centered around its Wild Book Symbols and these Expanding Symbols, which can be found in the Free Spins, Sakura Spin, and Golden Free Spins, which can help you hit wins until you reach the max win of 1,500X the bet.
Experience a pink forest of cherry blossoms, where the familiar setting has seen a few changes to its gameplay, now focused on Expanding Symbols to form consistent wins.
Theme, Gameplay, & Payouts
Book of Sakura is a video slot from Quickspin with 5 Reels, 3 Rows, and 10 Paylines. You can choose between making a Min.bet of 0.1 and a Max.bet of 500. Book of Sakura comes with an average RTP of 96.05%, high volatility, and a pretty low max win of 1,500X the bet.
Just like its predecessors, Book of Sakura is set in a pink sakura forest, filled with cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Here, we also meet the onnamusha, a female warrior who has appeared in all other Sakura games from Quickspin. You can play the game on most mobiles, desktops, and notepads.
The lower-paying symbols are various colored kanji for numbers, ranging from the one dash, two dashes, three dashes, and two vertical dashes. Creating a win with 5 of the same symbols will pay out 1.5X to 3X the bet. The higher-paying symbols are a koi fish, coins, a pink fan, and a dragon. Landing a win with 5 of the same symbols pays out 10X to 50X the bet. The Special Symbol is then the Wild Book Symbol, which acts as a Wild and Scatter Symbol, but more on that in the next section.
Special Features & Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Book of Sakura?
You can win up to 1,500X the bet.
What features are available in the slot Book of Sakura?
The features are Wild Book Symbols, Connecting Symbols, Free Spins, Sakura Spin, Golden Free Spins, Ante Bet (Booster Bet), and Feature Buy.
Wild Book Symbols
Wild Book Symbols help form winning combinations by substituting for all other symbols and also act as Scatter Symbols, triggering the Free Spins feature.
Connecting Symbols
During Free Spins, Sakura Spin, and Golden Free Spins, if the randomly selected Expanding Symbols land in the same row on two different reels, all reels in between will have that row filled with the same symbol, to guarantee a payline.
Free Spins
By landing 3, 4, or 5 Wild Book Symbols, you will be awarded the Free Spins feature with 7, 10, or 15 spins. At the start of the bonus game, a randomly selected symbol will become an Expanding Symbol, taking over a reel whenever it lands and can form a winning combination. Landing a Wild Symbol will award +1 spin.
Sakura Spin
At any time during the base game, you can trigger the Sakura Spin, awarding you 1 spin with a randomly selected Expanding Symbol.
Golden Free Spins
Can be randomly triggered instead of the Sakura Spin, awarding you 7 spins, just like the regular Free Spins feature. However, during this bonus game, all lower-paying symbols are removed.
Ante Bet (Booster Bet)
By turning on the Ante Bet, you have a higher chance of landing Wild Book Symbols, but at the cost of increasing your current bet by 2X.
Feature Buy
Through the Feature Buy option, you can instantly access the bonus game at a price based on the current bet.
75X = Triggers the Free Spins feature.
Final Thoughts on Book of Sakura
The Sakura games from Quickspin are a Japanese-themed series that started almost a decade ago, and has released some very beautiful, albeit very pink, games over the last few years. While it may have started out rather basic, Quickspin took the time to refine the series and has delivered some great slot experiences with interesting mechanics and high payouts. However, now we have Book of Sakura, which has stripped away most of what made the series so fun, leaving only the theme and setting intact, and now sporting a “Book of” formula.
Gameplay-wise, we want to start off by saying that we don’t dislike “Book of” games, but they have been around for decades, and we often don’t see much innovation or difference between games. Quickspin did try their hand at making something a bit more unique with Connecting Symbols and the Sakura Spin features, but it still fails to really make the game feel any different from your typical “Book of” release. Sadly, the stats aren’t even helping, being rather average across the board with a disappointing max win of 1,500X the bet. All in all, while we did enjoy a new release in the Sakura series, it left us disappointed and is, at best, an okay game centered on Expanding Symbols.
Book of Sakura is a slot following a decades-old formula, where randomly selected Expanding Symbols, with the help of Connecting Symbols, are used to hit wins, which is the main gameplay loop.
