Gold Strike II

Gold Strike II Review

People say lightning never strikes twice, but what can? Gold! My apologies for the bad pun, but today gold really strikes twice in the Gold Strike sequel, named, guess how? Gold Strike II. Yeah, a little bit uninspiring, but let's not jump to any premature conclusions.

So, as I already mentioned, Gold Strike II is a sequel to the Gold Strike slot made by Blueprint - one of bigger players of iGaming industry. Not just a big player, but with a rich history spanning 50+ years, this provider once specialized in making physical slots has already conquered the online slots market with their film-based and original themed games. Their dedication to the gambling world translates into a constant stream of new slot games with an ever-rising quality bar. Blueprint’s hard work didn't go unnoticed as they are known as a multi-award-winning company.

Gold Strike II pampers players with a fiesta of colors and pleasant sound design offering an enjoyable experience for your eyes and ears. But seasoned players will notice, that it looks too similar to its predecessor, almost identical: the blue background switched to purple, and just the logo tells You that its an another game. It is hard for me to praise Gold Strike II, as it is just a visual clone of the previous game.

Gameplay-wise the situation stays the same. Here we have a classic fruit-themed slot with a more modern approach to it. Gold Strike II operates on a 6x4 layout with 4,096 betways. There are a good number of interesting mechanics, but most of them we already saw in the first game. Of the new additions we have Wild Blitz feature and the Bonus buy has been changed to Power Play, but let us talk about them in depth a little bit later. Also, it is worth mentioning, that you can play Gold Strike II on any platform!

Gold Strike II Slot - Base Game

The Numbers department also has undergone a few changes in comparison with the first iteration of the game. The first thing that catches my eye is the decrease in RTP percentage from 96% to 95%. The chances of winning are a little bit lower, but the fact that the game has Med-High volatility implies that wins will be juicy. High risk, high reward - quite tempting, isn't it? You can play the game starting with €0.1 minimal bet, up to €25 with x10,000 Max Win. It is far from high-roller heaven, but perfect for more casual gameplay.

Gold Strike II Features

Let us dive deep into Gold Strike II mechanics. Aside from the familiar mechanics found in the previous release, this game has its own distinct features and fresh touch to the gameplay. But will be it enough to catch players' attention?

Wild Symbol

Wilds are a widespread feature that can be found in many slots as well as in Golden Strike II. They substitute all symbols except Scatter, Cash Collect, or any Cash Prize symbols. They can be found only in 2,3,4,5, and 6 reels.

Cash Collect

Cash prize symbols are depicted with chips and are always active in each reel. To activate them you need also to collect scatter symbols which can be found in 1 and 6 reels. If any collect cash symbols land in view with a collect scatter symbol on reel 1 or 6, this feature will trigger.

Golden Strike II Slot - Cash Collect

Scatter and Gold Strike mechanic

Depicted as a gem, 3 of them on the screen will give you a bonus choice of Wild Strike or Cash Strike. Moreover, a bigger amount of scatter symbols will give you bigger rewards up to 500x of bet plus Wild Strike 8 spins OR 1 spin in Cash Strike. You may feel like you've encountered this before. And You'd be right - this mechanic is also present in the Bison Rising Gold.

Win Blitz

To trigger this feature you need Blitz Collect and any cash symbol on the screen. During Win Blitz, any Blitz Collect Symbol will hold its place for the full duration of the feature and more of them can be added in the next spins. All cash chips will be added to Blitz Collect and Collect symbols until the spin without any cash chips occurs. After this, the player will be paid with the total accumulated value from all symbols.

Golden Strike II Slot - Win Blitz

Wild Strike

During Wild Strike, all Cash prize and Collect symbols are removed, and the increasing win multiplier is active. Every time you land a Wild, it increases the multiplier by x1-x3. Two or more bonus symbols will grant you additional free spins.

Cash Strike

Only Cash Prize, Collect, and Lightning bolt symbols are active during Cash Strike. Every landed cash symbol is added to the Cash Strike trail. Once you collect enough Cash symbols, you will be granted additional spins and multipliers. Feature goes on until all spins are used and the player will be paid the accumulated prize from the event.

Power Play

Gamblers familiar with the first Gold Strike will notice that instead of a Bonus buy, the sequel has a Power play feature. You can switch to the Power Play anytime by pressing the according button on the main screen. During this game mode, only Cash Prize, Collect, Blitz Collect, and Bonus symbols are in play and the bet is increased by 5x of their base stake amount.

Pros And Cons Of Gold Strike II

Conclusion

All in all, Gold Strike II Blueprint is a good game and a decent sequel. “Don't try to fix that already works fine” - is a good description of this game. The mechanics are polished and entertaining, and the visuals with sound work fine. However, will this be enough to compete in the saturated iGaming market? It is a hard question, as the industry evolves rapidly, offering players innovations and new experiences every other day - things felt awesome yesterday, today is just okay and tomorrow will be outdated. In my mind, different background colors and small gameplay changes are hardly enough to add number 2 to the title. But in the end, despite its flaws and unforgivable similarity to its predecessor, I liked Gold Strike II and hope, that you also will enjoy it like me.