Thunderstruck 2 Slots

Review of Thunderstruck 2 Slots

Although I’ve never studied Norse mythology I’ve always enjoyed the stories of Thor and his legendary Mjölnir – the hammer that can smash the world to bits with a single blow. Strangely, this release might get you a little inspired to learn more about the history and stories of these gods and what exactly happened all those years ago. There are definitely some interesting tales to enjoy.

In any event, this expert review of Thunderstruck 2 Slots will concentrate on what it will be like for normal people who don’t know much about Norse history but still want to dip a toe into their universe. You obviously don’t have to have a university degree to enjoy what’s on offer, however, in the end this one might only be enjoyable for long stretches of time if you are someone who’s really into Viking gods.

Screenshots

The screenshots below from Thunderstruck II show you just how careful the software developers were when they designed everything. Most will say that their favorite image that was included is the Bifrost: the beautiful rainbow bridge that joins Asgard with Midgard and links the World of Gods with the world of humanity. Click the images below to enlarge them.

Storyline

Norse mythology states that Thor was the God of Thunder who was tasked with protecting mankind so no wonder he’s the one that most people on Earth know and love. There are tons of characters from these stories and Thunderstruck 2 even includes a few of the lesser-known ones such as Odin, Loki, and Valkyrie.

Odin is primarily known for his sorcery, healing powers, and long beard, and is basically thought of as one of the first true wizards in history. Oh, ancient myths also have him placing bets with his wife Frigg on the results of battles and expeditions: it sounds like Odin might have actually been the God of Gambling!

Some might be surprised to learn that the Valkyrie is not actually one specific person, but rather there are a number of “Valkyries” who preside over battles to determine who lives and who dies, (so it’s probably best to stay on her good side). The Valkyries then transport the dead to Valhalla, which is the “Hall of the Afterlife” where Odin presides over their metamorphosis to “einherjar” – warriors who fought and died in battle.

Finally, Loki has a weird and disputed history in Norse mythology, with most experts deciding that he was the “God of Mischief”. Some stories have him helping the gods, while others have him working against them. Since Loki is known to be a shape-shifter and many tales have him being captured and held prisoner by the gods, it’s probably safe to assume that he wasn’t exactly on the side of humanity.

Unique Symbols

We’d usually complain about the fact that Microgaming chose to use a “9” as a symbol but the rest of them were so well done that we’ll give them a bit of a break. Also, there are 14 symbols instead of the usual 13, so using a 9 isn’t really taking away from something else that could have been used.

All things considered, the images are fairly wide-ranging and provide a balanced set of reels, although they probably could have spruced them up a little to better catch our attention.

• 9
• 10
• J (Jack)
• Q (Queen)
• K (King)
• A (Ace)
• Valkyrie
• Loki
• Odin
• Thor
• Longship
• Bifrost (Rainbow Bridge)
• Thunderstruck 2 Logo (Wild)
• Mjölnir (Scatter)

As with all machines that have 243 ways to win, the payouts during the regular mode are quite low, which is totally understandable given all of the lines. So the highest-paying is the Wild which dishes out 1,000 coins for 5 in a row, and next we have Thor, Odin, Loki, and Valkyrie which award 500, 450, 400, and 350 coins respectively for 5 of a Kind.

Jackpots

It’s extremely rare for a 243 line release to offer a jackpot prize and Thunderstruck 2 follows this tradition and therefore you won’t find any progressive or in-game ones of any kind.

However, if you’re looking for a big pay day, we’ve seen some online casinos claiming that players can win up to $121,500 on one spin and the software itself says that you can trigger up to 2.4 millions coins. This could probably only happen if you were betting the maximum amount and then every symbol on the reels was a Wild but we’re unsure what the actual math is.

Bonus Rounds

The omissions continue and “Bonus Bandits” will be sad to learn that Thunderstruck 2 doesn’t have any unique bonus rounds. This shouldn’t be too surprising though since it has 243 paylines and these usually don’t have any special extras whatsoever.

Although there is a crazy “Wildstorm Feature” that arrives at random during the regular mode that can transform up to 5 reels into Wilds, thus giving you a “storm of Wilds” – get it? This is rare to hit but when it does it starts off dramatically with intense music and thunder booming but it’s all over in a flash leaving you dazed with a fatter bankroll.

Free Spins

There are four free spin modes in Thunderstruck II that you access in “The Great Hall of Spins“. Every time you enter the Hall you get closer to being able to choose from all of the different areas, with each having unique amounts of spins and multipliers.

• The Valkyrie Area is accessible from the 1st time you enter.
• The Loki Area is accessible after the 5th time.
• The Odin Area is accessible after the 10th time.
• The Thor Area is accessible after the 15th time.

So first there’s the Valkyrie who gives you 10 with a 5x multiplier. This is pretty straight forward but you can re-trigger gratis games in this one so there’s tons of cash to be made if you get on a roll.

Next there’s Loki “Wild Magic” which dishes out 15 and Magic Wilds which will randomly transform other symbols around them into Wilds as well. If you get a Mjölnir during the action it will prolong your freeroll: 2 Mjölnirs gives you 1 spin, 3 gives you 2, 4 gives you 3, and 5 gives you 4, which is actually quite confusing. Why didn’t they just match the number of spins with the amount of Mjölnirs? No idea. Oh well, it is what it is.

From there we have the Odin Round which consists of 20 freebies and the “Wild Raven Feature“, where ravens will randomly transform symbols into multipliers of 2x or 3x. If you are extremely lucky you will have both of the ravens land on the same spot and change it into a 6x multiplier.

Finally, once you’ve made it to that golden 15th time in the Great Hall you’ll have access to the Thor Round. This gives you a whopping 25 spins that accompany his “Rolling Reels” that give you multipliers between 2x and 5x if you start to hit consecutive winning results.

There is no bouncer at the doors to the Great Hall and they will be opened if you hit 3, 4, or 5 Mjölnirs anywhere on the reels at once.

Graphics

The graphics in Thunderstruck 2 are pretty darn good, with all 4 of the main characters having special animations throughout the action. In addition, the game’s logo gets smashed, hit by lightning, and even does a little dance during the Valkyrie Round.

The backgrounds are unique for each free spins area so they do a great job of transporting you to the different magical places across the land. The Odin Wild Raven Feature will be many people’s favorite of the group because the backdrop is a beautiful purple nighttime sky.

In general, the details of the symbols of the four main characters look like they took a long time to design and create, so the graphics people at Microgaming definitely deserve a shout out.

Audio & Soundtrack

There is lots of diversity throughout the soundtrack and it’s surprising that they put that much effort into it. The song that’s heard during Loki Wild Magic is quite whimsical and mischievous and is definitely of movie soundtrack quality, while the one in the Wildstorm is quite loud and aggressive. Like the unique backgrounds, the music helps to transport you into the different areas of their universe.

The main song in Thunderstruck 2 is quite soft and comforting, and very similar to the music that you would imagine playing during a fantasy movie as the heroes gallop on horses across the countryside. The song is accentuated with soft lightning crashes and rumbling thunder that set the perfect mood for a release of this genre. Also, the sounds of thunder and lightening perfectly intensify whenever the logo gets smashed or a Mjölnir gets electrified.

Activated paylines that involve characters like Loki and Valkyrie each come with a different sound effect, with some being decent, and some unfortunately being offensive to the ear. Another annoying part of the soundtrack is when you get a big win, tons of gold coins spit out onto the screen and the audios for each coin exploding is quite intense, (although obviously financially rewarding). It will probably remind you of a loud one-armed bandit paying off on the floor of a brick and mortar Las Vegas casino.

Conclusion

Even though most of the graphics in this title are still quite cool, some parts might be starting to look a little dated. Therefore, those who are only interested in the latest and greatest online slot machines might want to take a pass on Thunderstruck II in favor of something newer.

The lack of a proper bonus round is going to offend many who aren’t that interested in a release with 243 paylines in the first place, and those who like variance in their experience may soon get bored. That said, the imagery and symbols will entertain most people for at least a little while.

However, if you’re into fantasy, Norse mythology, and/or big hammers that you can’t pronounce the name of, you’ll definitely want to give Thunderstruck 2 a try. Just don’t get too lost in these “many ways games” and get your bankroll smashed by a stray Mjölnir.

Random Video for Thunderstruck 2

There’s only one video that can be presented at the end of a review for something called “Thunderstruck“. You guessed it – AC/DC’s classic anthem from the early 1990s…THUNDER!!!