Brute Force

Brute Force (Nolimit City) Review

Nolimit City’s Brute Force slot blasts you back to the golden age of arcade games. With a visual style reminiscent of classic shoot-em-up action games, and an 8-bit soundtrack that'll have you humming along, Brute Force captures the essence of retro gaming. The backdrop, a cityscape straight out of a 90s videogame, sets the stage for explosive action. In portrait mode, you'll even find interactive buttons that hint at a hidden easter egg - a nod to the secrets and surprises of old-school arcades.

The game features a cast of heavily armed characters, a motley crew of aliens, cyborgs, and transformers that serve as the premium symbols. These armored warriors offer payouts ranging from 5x to 20x your stake for five-of-a-kind wins. The royal symbols, rendered in a charmingly pixelated style, pay a modest 2x for the same. Winning combinations are formed across 21 paylines, starting from the leftmost reel on the 5x5 grid.

Brute Force Slot - Reels Screen

Brute Force sets itself apart from more complex NoLimit City slots with its focus on 3 unique xNudge Wilds. These powerful characters, Joshua, Hyper, and Jason, nudge fully into view, each with their own multiplier that increases with every nudge. Joshua, the blue-haired Rambo lookalike, offers a standard +1 multiplier per nudge. Hyper, the alien android, boasts a +2 increase, while Jason, who resembles Duke Nukem, packs a punch with a +5 multiplier increase per nudge. Each character also unleashes a weapon attack after nudging, further boosting the multiplier. All multipliers are combined in the xNudge Meter, significantly boosting your wins.

The game features 2 bonus rounds: the Brute Bonus and the Super Brute Bonus. The Brute Bonus offers more of the base game action, while the Super Brute Bonus introduces the possibility of sticky xNudge Wilds for even bigger wins. Brute Force casino game boasts a top-tier RTP of 96.08 %, slightly above average, though lower settings are available depending on the operator. As expected from NoLimit City, the volatility is high, scoring a 10 out of 10 on their scale. The maximum win is 40,000x your stake, with a hit frequency of 1 in 41 million. Bets range from €0.2 to €100 per spin, with options for ante bets and bonus buys for eligible players.

Brute Force Features

You get plenty of xNudge Wild action in Brute Force game, with the added benefit of increasing the multiplier beyond the nudge effect. There are 2 different bonus rounds with even more of the same, so let’s check it all out!

xNudge Wilds

The 3 character xNudge Wild symbols of size 1x5 land either fully or partially in view, but they always nudge to cover the entire reel when they appear. The character fires his weapon at the multiplier at the bottom of the wild, increasing it within certain limits. Each character has different multiplier ranges and different xNudge multiplier increments. Here’s an overview:

• Joshua xNudge Wild - increases its multiplier by +1 per nudge, and it can be increased up to x8 via his weapon.
• Jason xNudge Wild - increases its multiplier by +2 per nudge, and it can be increased up to x21 via his weapon.
• Hyper xNudge Wild - increases its multiplier by +5 per nudge, and it can be increased up to x51 via his weapon.

The xNudge multiplier of each symbol is added to the xNudge Meter, which applies the total multiplier to any winning combo.

Brute Free Spins

You trigger the Brue Spins Bonus Round by landing 3 scatters in view, and this awards 10 free spins. This feature plays out like the base game with no extras mentioned in the game info.

Super Brute Free Spins

The Super Brute Spins Bonus Round triggers from 4 scatters in view, awarding 10 free spins. In this feature, xNudge Wilds can become sticky and remain in place for the duration of the bonus round. However, there is no guarantee that each xNudge wild will be sticky.

Brute Force Slot - Free Spins

Brute Force Bonus Buy (not UK)

The red button with a yellow lightning bolt, located above the spin button on the right, grants eligible players access to the Bonus Buy Menu. It comes with NoLimit Booster options and Bonus Buy options as follows:

• xBet - pay 4.7x your stake to get a scatter on reel 2 per spin and increase your bonus round chances by 10x. Guaranteed xNudge Wild - pay 60x your stake to get at least 1 xNudge Wild.
• 2 Guaranteed xNudge Wilds - pay 333x your stake to get at least 2 xNudge Wilds.
• 4 Guaranteed xNudge Wilds - pay 4,000x your stake to get at least 4 xNudge Wilds.
• Brue Spins Bonus - costs 100x your stake.
• Super Brute Spins Bonus - costs 800x your stake.
• Random (50/50 %) Bonus - costs 450x your stake.

The organic bonus round hit rate is 1 in 291 spins without the xBet active. It’s 1 in 29 spins with the xBet active.

Pros and Cons of Brute Force

Our Verdict

Arcade-style slots often charm players with their nostalgic appeal, but Brute Force Nolimit City somehow misses the mark in my experience. The high-resolution graphics lack the authenticity of true old-school arcade games. A fully pixelated approach might have better captured the retro vibe. Additionally, the game feels overcrowded with characters. You get 5 premium symbol characters, plus 3 xNudge Wild characters, which felt overwhelming. Perhaps focusing on weaponry or other thematic elements as premium symbols would have given the game a more distinct identity.

The xNudge Wild characters, reminiscent of iconic action heroes like Rambo and Duke Nukem, are a highlight, but their impact is diluted by the abundance of other characters. Streamlining the cast could have allowed these unique symbols to shine even brighter. On a positive note, it's refreshing to see NoLimit City explore a simpler and less controversial theme, departing from their usual ultra-complex gameplay.

Beyond the somewhat forgettable theme, Brute Force's enhanced xNudge Wilds offer the potential for massive payouts. Appearing on any reel, these symbols unleash havoc with their incrementing multipliers, further boosted by an additional multiplier after the initial nudge. With multipliers reaching up to x51 from a single xNudge Wild, the 40,000x win cap is clearly attainable. We recommend trying the free Brute Force demo and purchasing the 4 Guaranteed xNudge Wilds feature to witness the power of these symbols firsthand.

However, the xBet feature, which increases bonus round chances tenfold, has become more expensive in recent NoLimit City releases. Paying 4.7x your stake might be too steep for many players. Including a cheaper option that simply doubles the bonus round hit rate would be a welcome addition for future releases. The regular bonus round feels like a free version of the base game, though I did observe an increase in xNudge Wilds during testing. It's unclear if this is intentional or simply luck, and more transparency about this in the paytable would be appreciated.

While the Super Bonus doesn't guarantee sticky xNudge Wilds, this allows for more xNudge Wilds to land and contribute to wins alongside any sticky ones. However, despite the powerful xNudge Wild action, Brute Force did not manage to leave a lasting impression. It's a solid enough game compared to many slots out there, but falls short of the innovation and excitement we've come to expect from NoLimit City.