Bandits Thunder Link – Slot Demo & Review

Bandits Thunder Link: Slot Review

Stakelogic’s Wild Western-themed game, Bandits Thunder Link, seems to embody the saying “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.” The game combines elements from two Western genre powerhouses, NetEnt’s Dead or Alive 2 and Relax Gaming’s Money Train 2. Instead of focusing on one source of inspiration, Stakelogic takes a bold approach by merging the best of both worlds. While attempting to cover all bases can be a risky endeavor, let’s see if Bandits Thunder Link manages to avoid spreading itself too thin.

The game kicks off with a promising start. Set in a dusty frontier town, the 5×3, 10-payline game grid is accompanied by a smoking train on a nearby platform. Though we couldn’t help but notice that the tracks appear perilously close to the town’s buildings—safety first, after all. However, it’s evident that Stakelogic prioritized creating the right atmosphere over realism, and a surprisingly groovy Western soundtrack adds the final touch to the overall experience.

Featuring 10 paylines, wins occur when 3 or more identical symbols land adjacent to each other from the leftmost reel. The gold bars symbol is an exception, paying out even for 2 of a kind. The premium symbols include sheriff badges, pistols, hats, and horseshoes, offering 50 to 150 times your stake for 5 of a kind. The remaining symbols are the 10 to A card royals, which represent the low-paying symbols. Finally, we have the wilds, appearing on all reels to substitute for regular symbols. These wilds pay out 0.5, 5, 50, or 250x the bet for 2, 3, 4, or 5 on a line.

RTP & Volatility

The game’s Return of Player percentage is impressive, with a Bandits Thunder Link RTP of 95.60%. Additionally, this slot exhibits high volatility, adding to the excitement and potential rewards for players.

Theme, Graphics And Soundtrack

While Bandits Thunder Link may be considered derivative, it is undeniably a visually appealing game. The portrayal of the Wild West town is intricately detailed, capturing all the iconic elements one would expect. The animation boasts dramatic flourishes, especially with the skull-faced bandit and the train itself. Delightful nuances, such as the quill pen and the paper on the desk fluttering in the smoke from the bandit’s guns, add to the overall charm. The soundtrack consists of a standard guitar-based loop with a touch of modern electric guitar, accompanied by game-specific sound effects like train whistles, cash registers, and alarms.

Upon triggering the Bandits Thunder Link bonus games, the screen swiftly transitions, revealing an Old West steam train thundering across the field of play. The train’s cars proudly display the three choices awaiting you. Make your selection, and the train will transport you to the bank, where you can make your purchase.

Bandits Thunder Link: Slot Features

The cowboy corpse scatter symbol unlocks the bonus round, where you’ll find 3 distinct games to choose from. Stakelogic ingeniously incorporated popular features from other studios into each game. In addition to activating the bonus games, scatters offer payouts of 2, 5, 25, or 500 times your bet when 2, 3, 4, or 5 symbols land.

First up is Wild Wild Wins. This game grants you 12 free spins with sticky wilds, and all winning combinations are multiplied by x2. If a scatter symbol appears during this round, you’ll receive an extra 5 free spins, but just once.

Next is Wild Bonanza which also starts with 12 free spins and features sticky wilds. However, in this game, when 2 or 3 wilds appear on the same reel, they become x2 or x3 wild multipliers instead of a general x2 multiplier.

Finally, we introduce a feature in the style of Money Train 2 for Thunder Link, kicking off with an initial allocation of 3 spins. Whenever a symbol appears, the spin count resets back to 3. These symbols have the potential to be either bet multipliers or one of the following modifiers:

• Lock symbols: Introduce an additional reel, up to a maximum of 6 reels.
• Revolver symbols: Apply their bet multiplier to all visible symbols.
• Money hats: Accumulate all visible bet multipliers and add them to its own value.
• Dynamite: Add its multiplier to all other symbols that are currently visible.
• Safes: Collect the multipliers from all visible symbols and retain them for the duration of the entire feature.

For gunslingers eager to skip the small talk and dive straight into the shootout, there’s the enticing bonus buy feature. It comes at a cost of 100 times your bet, but guarantees scatters on the very next spin.

And if Bandits Thunder Link already has every other feature a rootin’-tootin’ Western slot needs, why not add a little extra excitement with a gamble feature? This classic face-down card game allows you to double or quadruple your winnings by correctly guessing the color or suit. But be warned, a wrong guess means losing it all.

Best Bandits Thunder Link bonus feature

The most exciting bonus feature in Bandits Thunder Link is associated with the scatter icon. Before delving into this feature, let’s establish that there are five distinct wild icons, each capable of replacing regular symbols.

Lucky players who land three or more scatter icons (depicting dead outlaws) on any reel position will activate a round of Bandits Thunder Link free spins. During this special round, players can select one of three sets of free spins. The first is known as Wild Wild Wins, offering 12 free spins with sticky wild icons that remain in place. Every win in this mode is doubled. Next, we have the Wild Bonanza mode, also providing 12 free spins with sticky wilds. In addition, the wild symbols in this mode carry multipliers of either x2 or x3.

The final free spin mode is known as Thunder Link, which consists of three re-spins. During this round, you’ll encounter unique Thunder Link symbols along with other symbols that hold cash values and multipliers. Each time you land a new Thunder Link symbol, the count of re-spins is reset.

How to play

By simply clicking the button with two pointers on the right side of the screen, you can activate the 5×3 layout in the Bandits Thunder Link slot. Below the matrix, you’ll find the Bet section where you can adjust your total bet size before each spin. The minimum amount to play this game is €0.10, catering to casual players, while the maximum bet is €10.

Similar to other modern slots, this game offers classic options. For instance, players can utilize the auto-play button to trigger auto-spins, or they can speed up the animations for accelerated spins. To access more information about the symbols, features, and paytables, simply click on the three white lines in the upper-left corner. Additionally, you’ll find the game rules and system settings in this section.

For a comprehensive selection of other modern slots, feel free to explore the options available.

Bandits Thunder Link: Slot Verdict

If you haven’t played Dead or Alive 2 in a while, Bandits Thunder Link reignites the love affair with its captivating sticky wilds. Of course, to truly experience their magic, you’ll need enough of them to appear during the feature. When they do, it’s like robbing a stagecoach! And let’s not forget the thrill of choosing between several enticing features. Will you embrace the daring Wild Bonanza or opt for the safer, yet still rewarding, Wild Wild Wins? Or perhaps you’ll abandon both for the allure of the Money Train 2 option. Whichever path you choose, be prepared for the possibility of big wins in any bonus round, with a chance to claim up to 50,000 times your stake.

While there’s no denying the excitement and winning potential, there’s a lingering sense that this game falls short compared to others. Although it produced some impressive results during testing, Bandits Thunder Link serves as a reminder that nothing beats the original. Its sticky wild bonus games lack the exhilarating anything-goes atmosphere of DoA2, and the Thunder Link feature pales in comparison to the likes of Money Train 2 – despite the strikingly similar count up animation. Bandits Thunder Link does offer entertainment value, but one might feel they’re missing out by not opting for the “real deal” just a few clicks away.

Bandits Thunder Link is like a cowboy rolling into town after days of herding cattle, with a pocket full of hard-earned gold. They saunter upstairs to their favorite saloon, only to find their preferred option unavailable. But fear not, because even the backups get the job done, and so does Bandits Thunder Link. After all, it’s hard not to succeed when emulating some of the industry’s finest talents.

Bandits Thunder Link FAQs

Charles Watson

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