Norse themed
Thunderstruck II is a far more sophisticated beast than the original. The reels contain a similar selection of Norse-inspired imagery but the cartoon-style visuals have been ditched in favour of more detailed 3D offerings. Very impressive they are too. Likewise, the soundtrack which has a sweeping cinematic feel. The game was released in May 2010 so does look a little dated compared to new slots – it adds to the charm though.
Symbols include standard A, K, Q, J, 10 and 9 royals – you’ll also see viking longships and Nordic gods Thor, Loki, Odin and Valhalla. Thor (naturally) is the best paying symbol with 16.67 times your stake awarded for 5 in combination.
There’s a Thunderstruck II logo symbol which is the wild and replaces all symbols except the scatter. A wild as part of a winning combination will double your win – if you get 5 wilds in combination, you’ll pocket 33.33 times your stake. You get a win by seeing 3 or more symbols on reels next to each (on any position) other starting from reel 1.
Wildstorm feature
The features have been given a major overhaul too. First there's the Wildstorm feature. Triggered at random, this feature turns up to 5 reels into wild reels offering the prospect of some very healthy payouts – if you manage to fill all 5 reels with wilds, you’ll win 1,000 times your total stake.
The Great Hall of Spins Bonus
The chief attraction though is the Great Hall of Spins Bonus which is triggered when 3 or more Bonus Hammer Scatter symbols appear on the reels. There are 4 levels to this feature, each of which can be unlocked after the bonus feature has been triggered a certain number of times.
- Valkyrie feature - starting things off is the Valkyrie feature which is always available. This gives you 10 free spins complete with a 5x multiplier on all wins. If more Bonus Hammers appear, free spins can be re-triggered. There’s a maximum of 8,100 times your stake to be won here (on each spin).
- Loki feature - after you've unlocked the Great Hall of Spins 5 times, you'll be able to play the Loki feature. This awards 15 free spins. If the Wild Magic symbol appears on reel 3, it will turn up to 14 symbols into wilds.
- Odin feature - next comes the Odin feature which is available after Great Hall of Spins has been activated 10 times. 20 free spins are awarded complete with the Raven feature where random symbols are transformed into wilds with a multiplier. You can boost your winnings by up to 6 times here.
- Thor feature - finally there's the Thor feature which opens after the Great Hall of Spins has been triggered 15 times. Here you'll be awarded 25 free spins, this time with Rolling Reels. After any winning payline, the successful symbols will disappear to be replaced by the symbols above. As long as they keep forming a winning combination, they will keep on exploding, each time increasing the multiplier up to 5x.
8,100 x stake wins
The first Thunderstruck slot proved a huge hit with slots fans and thanks to its stunning visuals and array of features, its successor has followed suit. More complex it may be, but Thunderstruck II has retained the central elements that made the original such a success.
The variance is high so expect plenty of dry spells. It is possible to win big though, especially via The Great Hall of Spins which is a fine addition. Get those Rolling Reels rocking and you can secure a bucket of coins that even Thor would struggle to carry. The most you can win is 8,100 times your stake on each free spin which is decent.
I would also recommend the Immortal Romance slot by Microgaming which is an improved version of Thunderstruck II in my opinion. If you like Norse mythology-themed slots, NetEnt’s Hall of Gods is a great game with a progressive jackpot element.