Introduction to Gator Hunters 2
Gator Hunters 2 is a casino slot from Nolimit City, depicting another intense confrontation between swamp predators and ambitious American rednecks looking for their next trophy to brag about. Since we've recently had the pleasure of reviewing Duck Hunters 2, a sequel that launched a year and a half after the original, it was expected that the follow-up to Gator Hunters would be right around the corner. The progressive multiplier and Revolver symbols are back, now capable of packing a stronger punch with bullets carrying multiplier values of up to 3,000x. Furthermore, on every spin, you'll see the grid enveloped in a blazing Fire Zone, which will upgrade any special symbols landing inside its borders. Eaters become Super Eaters, Wilds get random multipliers, Bonus symbols become Super Bonus symbols, and Revolvers are loaded with higher multiplier values. Like before, bonus games make the multiplier persistent to help you build up your wins until you hit the max cap of 30,000x the bet.
Theme, Gameplay & Payouts
Gator Hunters 2 is a video slot from Nolimit City with 6 reels, 5 rows, and a scatter-pays win evaluation, requiring 8+ matching symbols to land anywhere on the board. The available stake range starts from a Min.bet of 0.20 and goes up to a Max.bet of 100. Behind the reels, a default RTP of 96.00% runs the game's engine, which is on the lower end of the industry average. Several alternative variants of 94.00% and 92.00% were also released, so make sure to check the version before playing. More valuable wins can be fewer apart when there's a hit, as the math profile comes with a high volatility rating, while the maximum win you can land within a single game round is 30,000x the bet. The top prize is achievable with an average frequency of 1 in ~17.15M spins. Free spins trigger at an average rate of 1 in 205 spins, whereas wins exceeding 100x the bet occur with a frequency of 1 in 798 spins. The base hit rate sits at 18.28%.
The setting in Gator Hunters 2 hasn't changed much compared to its predecessor. Upon launching the game, you land in a foggy swamp dotted with palm trees, where the visibility is only marginally better than before. The thick mist has dissolved just a tad to reveal some foliage surrounding the area, as well as a camping trailer sitting on the right, probably serving as a base camp for the hunters. In the middle, you'll find the familiar chain-link fence lined with barbed wire at the top, with two panels attached to the top right corner to display the current multiplier and the win amount. Imagery on the reels depicts slightly more banged-up members of the redneck family and their makeshift accessories, while an upbeat strumming soundtrack infuses the setting with positive energy. Graphics follow the same washed-out, drawn style, and the entire setup seamlessly adapts to any modern device, whether you play on a PC, a smartphone, or a tablet.
Symbols from the paytable award wins when you match at least 8 identical instances anywhere on the grid. The payout hierarchy is represented by two groups, of which low-paying icons appear as a crushed can, a pair of slippers, a severed arm, a metal pot, and a bundle of fireworks, awarding from 5x to 9x the bet for hitting a set of 14 or more on the grid. High-paying symbols are depicted by four members of the hunting party. These images offer prizes ranging from 20x to 60x the bet when you land at least 14 identical instances anywhere in view. Alongside the regular line-up, there are also Eater symbols in the form of a gator that transform into Wilds, Revolver symbols awarding multipliers, and Bonus symbols represented by a triangular, yellow sign.
Special Features & Slot Mechanics
What is the max win in the slot Gator Hunters 2?
You can win up to 30,000x the bet.
What features are available in the slot Gator Hunters 2?
The features are Cascading, Fire Zone, Eater, Revolver, Gatornado Spins, Fire Gatornado Spins, Extra Spin, Nolimit Booster, Feature Buy (Nolimit Bonus), and Side Hustle.
Cascading
The cascading feature comes into play each time you hit a winning combo on the reels. Next, the winning symbols are removed from the grid, causing all the remaining ones to drop to vacant positions. New symbols then come down from the top to refill the setup. This process continues until no new wins can be formed.
Fire Zone
Randomly at the beginning of a spin, the Fire Zone may appear on the game area. It can be 2x2, 3x3, 4x4, or 5x6 in size. Whenever a special symbol lands inside it, it's upgraded to its respective enhanced version.
Wilds = receive a multiplier of x2, x3, or x10.
Eater = becomes a Super Eater.
Bonus = becomes a Super Bonus.
Revolver = increases the bullet values.
Eater
The Eater symbol removes a random number of symbols and all their instances before transforming into a Wild. The Super Eater behaves identically, but the final Wild gains a multiplier of x2, x3, or x10.
Revolver
All Revolvers activate once Eaters have performed their action and all cascading has finished. Each revolver contains a random number of bullets with multipliers, and can also have empty spaces. The cylinder spins, and if it lands on the multiplier, its value is added to the total multiplier meter. All wins are multiplied by the current multiplier. There are three types of Revolvers.
Normal Revolver = spins once, awarding a bullet or a blank.
Super Revolver = spins a second time if the first spin awarded a bullet.
Super Fire Revolver = if it lands on a bullet on the first spin, it retriggers all Revolvers present on the grid to spin their cylinders again.
Bullets have different colours corresponding to different multiplier values. Possible multipliers are 2x, 3x, 5x, 10x, 20x, 30x, 50x, 100x, 200x, 1,000x, and 3,000x.
Gatornado Spins
Scoring 3 Bonus symbols simultaneously in the main game awards 7 Gatornado Spins. During the feature, each Bonus symbol adds +1 spin, while the Super Bonus symbol adds +2 spins. Any Revolver that gets upgraded via the Fire Zone feature awards all of its remaining bullets before the next spin. The total multiplier is persistent, does not reset between spins, and is applied on spins when at least one Revolver has activated a bullet.
Fire Gatornado Spins
With 4 Bonus symbols scored at the same time, you trigger 9 Fire Gatornado Spins, which play out similarly to the previous bonus, but guarantee the Fire Zone size at 4x4 or 5x6 and all Revolvers to be Super Fire Revolvers.
Extra Spin
The feature can trigger automatically at the end of a round, offering the possibility to play another spin with the total multiplier value and Revolvers with remaining bullets kept from the last finished round. The price depends on the conditions of the last round and can only be triggered if it doesn't exceed the total win.
Nolimit Booster
To enhance your base game spins, you can use several options available in the Nolimit Booster menu.
3x = Bonus Booster, guaranteeing a Bonus symbol on the second reel.
8x = Kill Spin, guaranteeing at least one Revolver to land. All Revolvers have bullets with at least 10x multipliers.
50x = Overkill Spin, guaranteeing at least one Super Revolver to land. All Revolvers are Super or Super Fire Revolvers with multipliers of at least 50x.
1,400x = Massacre Spin, guaranteeing at least one Super Fire Revolver to land. All Revolvers are Super Fire Revolvers with multipliers of at least 1,000x.
Feature Buy (Nolimit Bonus)
If you want to skip the base game grind, you also have the possibility of triggering any of the bonus rounds instantly through the Nolimit Bonus function.
80x = 7 Gatornado Spins.
285x = Lucky Draw with a 66.6% / 33.3% split between Gatorando and Fire Gatornado Spins.
390x = Bullet Juicer, with 7 Gatornado Spins, where revolvers are always fully loaded.
700x = 9 Fire Gatornado Spins.
Nolimit Side Hustle
Side Hustle is a type of ante bet that allows you to win more per spin if you manage to correctly predict the round's outcome regarding activated features. Each bet type increases your active stake but provides a higher return if the condition is fulfilled.
1.2x = pays 1,022x if the multiplier reaches 100x or more.
1.2x = pays 7,054.6x if the multiplier reaches 200x or more.
1.8x = remove the selected high-paying symbol during the round. Pays 17.35x, 19.05x, 21.85x, and 24.30x for each of the high- paying symbols from lowest to highest, according to the paytable.
2x = pays 21.1x if a Bonus symbol upgrades to the Super Bonus symbol.
2x = pays 75.95x if an Eater symbol upgrades to the Super Eater symbol.
10x = pays 11.7x if you score a spin with no win.
Final Thoughts on Gator Hunters 2
Just as the recently reviewed Duck Hunters 2 centred its appeal on the enhanced position multiplier values, Gator Hunters 2 elevates the capabilities of its progressive total multiplier, increased by Revolver symbols. Guns can now be loaded with a wider variety of bullets, each holding a specific value, as opposed to the ranges offered by ammunition in the original. Also, the highest possible single figure on a bullet has grown from 2,000x to 3,000x. Similar to the growth we witnessed in Duck Hunters 2, where the value of a single position multiplier has been doubled from 8k to 16k, this change is not likely to be witnessed too often. Perhaps that's why the producers have introduced another, more frequent and potentially impactful feature called Fire Zone, which will upgrade any special symbols to their more powerful counterparts. Thanks to the fact that it's present on every spin, changing sizes between 2x2 and 5x6, it gives base game spins a proper anticipation boost, at least in theory. In practice, its assistance felt less significant than expected, often resulting in a symbol upgrade, which didn't materialise in the feature trigger due to the unfavourable grid composition.
Fire Zone upgrades, particularly those of the Revolvers, become massively powerful during the bonus round, where they make all Revolvers fire off their remaining bullets after being caught inside the active frame. This can lead to immense multiplier jumps, especially in the Fire Gatornado variant, where the Fire Zone covers the majority of or the entire grid. It's a genuinely satisfying feeling every time you see a bunch of Revolvers start feeding the multiplier. So, while the increase in the cap on a single bullet value alone didn't do all that much for the game on the whole, the Fire Zone feels like an excellent boost, albeit not that helpful during the main game. It may also contribute to the explanation as to why the max win has grown so timidly, from 25,000x to 30,000x, since it looks like creators focused more on the possibilities of reaching more satisfying wins more often rather than raising the general cap.
Gator Hunters 2, to a large extent, remains the same game, although its explosive Fire Zone feature greatly enhances the capability of both bonus games to reach much higher total multiplier more often.
