5 Wild Buffalo 2: Slot Overview
It’s no great secret that casino game makers are inexorably drawn to wilderness locations populated by buffalo, and software provider 4ThePlayer has proven the point not just once but now twice. The studio has returned to its 2024 release, 5 Wild Buffalo, and added a new ante bet, plus a Golden Buffalo symbol and accompanying features to design the sequel 5 Wild Buffalo 2. It’s not a hugely different slot, but for the most part, the new bits are positive additions, so if you’re like cc6 those game studios that can’t get enough North American nature in their lives, let’s saddle up and take a gander.
Slight Visual Enhancements
If you peer at the edges of the screen with a magnifying glass, 4ThePlayer has squeezed in a few graphical changes here and there. Rocks have been replaced with trees, plus the feature buy button has switched sides, but for the most part, 5 Wild Buffalo 2 looks very much like the original did. This means a wooden framed gaming area dotted with theme-appropriate animals, a spinning jackpot wheel, and jackpot prizes displayed up top. It’s one of those bold, jackpot-dominated, in-your-face views that are able to grab the attention of gamblers into this sort of thing, as much as it repels the haters like pushing like-poles of a pair of magnets together.
Gameplay Mechanics
The wild buffaloing takes place on a 5×4 grid with a 1,024 ways to win pay system. Starting from the leftmost side of the matrix, matching symbols must land on at least 3 consecutive reels to create a winning combination. As before, the RTP comes in at 96.01%, while the volatility remains high. Players are able to stake 20 c $/€80 per spin, and they can now activate the Power Bet for an extra 25% to the stake to increase the chance of making it into the free spins round.
Symbol Values in 5 Wild Buffalo 2
Like 5 Wild Buffalo, the symbol values in 5 Wild Buffalo 2 are notably meagre. When hitting 5 OAK winning ways of the lower value 10 to A card ranks, players collect 0.15 times their bet, increasing to 0.2x to 0.25x the stake when hitting 5 horses, eagles, cougars, wolves, bears, and buffalo. Wild rock formation symbols are able to substitute for anything except free spin scatters. Wilds can land on any reel.
Boosting Fortunes Feature
There are 5 Fortune prizes in the game – the Mini, Big, Super, Mega, and Ultra (worth between 8x to 5,000x), each prize sitting above a reel. Diamonds may appear on any symbol on any reel. Landing a Diamond symbol (or a wild symbol in free spins) increases the value of the Fortune prize above that reel. When one or more Diamond symbols hit, the Fortune Wheel bonus may activate and spin to award one of the Fortune prizes. Once won, the Fortune prize resets to its starting value.
Buffalo Thunder: A Big Feature
In the base game or in free spins, landing 4 Buffalo symbols on the same reel triggers the Buffalo Thunder feature. The 4 Buffalo symbols merge to form a single symbol with a multiplier of x5 to x10. This feature offers a nice boost to your winnings and can be a game-changer when it triggers at the right moment.
Golden Buffalo Stacks: The Key to Big Wins
Golden Buffalo stacks count as regular Buffalo symbols when calculating wins. They always land in view as a full 4-high stack of symbols with a stack multiplier of x10. In the base game, Golden Buffalo stacks always land as part of or before one of these features:
- Golden Buffalo Summon: As the reels spin, 1 to 4 Golden Buffalo stacks are placed on the reels.
- Golden Buffalo Shuffle: When the reels stop spinning, 1 or more Golden Buffalo stacks move to another reel. This will either create a new win or improve a current win.
- Golden Buffalo Nudge: When the reels stop spinning, 1 or more reels with a Golden Buffalo stack partially in view or just out of view nudge so the Golden Buffalo stack is fully visible.
Free Spins: More Chances to Win
Hitting 3, 4, or 5 scatters grants 8, 15, or 25 free spins, respectively. During free spins, landed wild symbols expand to fill the reels as a single wild symbol with a stack multiplier of x6 to x12, indicating how many symbols are on the reel for win evaluations. Also, a Golden Buffalo stack moves between the reels on every spin and may cover 1 to 4 reels on any spin. The Golden Buffalo stack cannot trigger the Summon, Shuffle, or Nudge features. Landing 2, 3, 4, or 5 scatters retriggers 4, 8, 15, or 25 additional free spins, respectively. Wilds boost the Fortune Prize above the reels, and any landed Diamond spins the Fortune Wheel.
Feature Buy: Skip to the Fun
Two features may be bought in 5 Wild Buffalo 2. They are free spins for 65 times the bet or a single spin with a guaranteed Buffalo Thunder win for 100x the bet. This is a convenient feature for players who cc6 want to take control of the game and get straight into the action without waiting for certain conditions to align.
Enhanced Win Potential
Adding the “cc6” multiplier in some of the game features gives players an even greater chance to win big. This makes the gameplay more exciting, as the potential for larger payouts is just around the corner. Whether you’re triggering the free spins or landing a few Golden Buffalo stacks, the cc6 multiplier can boost your rewards significantly, offering more thrilling opportunities to collect big winnings.
Slot Verdict: Worth the Play
You would assume that for a creative outfit to consider making a sequel to a game, movie, or whatever, the original would have had to have received a positive reception. If that’s the case, then all of those players who enjoyed what 5 Wild Buffalo did are now able to enjoy an upgraded sequel. Well, maybe not all of them. Maybe those who were hoping for a more innovative stride forward into sequel-dom might feel a little letdown, perhaps. 5 Wild Buffalo 2 isn’t enormously different from the cc6 original, after all, but there are changes, and the new parts do make this a more desirable choice for those who enjoyed the first version and are ready for a little more excitement.
