Wild Swarm 2 Slot Review
Wild Swarm 2 from Push Gaming welcomes the return of a timeless favourite that’ll have players buzzing! Push Gaming are quite passionate about their sequels, and they approach them meticulously to make sure they get them right. With Wild Swarm 2, they’ve maintained their steadfast approach to development by creating Wild Swarm 2 in a way that retains the strong core mechanics that made the original so popular, all while enhancing the game in a meaningful way.
The original game is one of the few to stand tall in the hall of fame in the eyes of players. The stunning potential and the grind for the swarm gave it longevity and appeal, and years after its release players and streamers alike return regularly. One of the biggest problems for Push Gaming when developing sequels to such reputable games is how they go about filling its shoes. We’ve all been disappointed by sequels before, yet Push Gaming proved it possible when they pulled it out of the bag with Razor Returns.
Push Gaming will undoubtedly look on in nail-biting anticipation as they await the reception of the sequel to such a popular game, and in turn, players wait hopefully to see if they’ve done it justice.
Wild Swarm 2 is very familiar yet entirely new, and the hype around it is almost palpable.
Without further ado, let’s check out the new (and hopefully improved) Wild Swarm 2!
Wild Swarm 2 – The Base Game and Features
Wild Swarm 2 is a 5 reel slot with 20 fixed paylines. Forming a win requires at least 3 of any symbol, or 2 of the highest-paying symbols to connect across any of these lines. Wins for forming full lines are fairly substantial, but the bulk of Wild Swarm 2’s appeal lies in some of its later features, namely the chest, free spins and the coveted Swarm Mode features.
Chest Feature
The chest feature is triggered during the Base Game, Free Spins and Swarm Mode when a Chest Symbol lands anywhere.
Within the chest are 5 prizes to pick from. When one of them is selected, the hidden chest prize is revealed and awarded
During the Base Game, the Chest Prizes include
- Bet Multipliers
- Free Spins
- Swarm Boost
- Instant Swarm Mode
The Bet Multiplier Prize values are: 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, 9x, 10x, 15x, 20x, 25x, 30x, 40x, 50x, 60x, 70x, 80x, 90x, 100x, 125x, 150x, 200x, 250x, 500x & 1000x.
The Free Spins prize instantly triggers the feature, awarding various Free Spins Prizes:
- 5, 6 or 7 Free Spins prize will award 3 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
- 8 Free Spins will award 4 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
- 9 Free Spins will award 5 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
The Swarm Boost Prize grants an instant increase of the Hive meter to the start of the next level.
During Free Spins and Swarm Mode, the Chest Prizes include:
- Bet Multipliers
- Extra Spins
- Sticky Wilds Reel
The extra Spins prize vales are: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6
The Sticky Wild Reel Prize fills a specific reel with Sticky Wild Symbols, and the Sticky Wilds reel Prize only applies to the reels with a reel multiplier.
Collectable Bees
During the Base Game, when a Bee Symbol lands anywhere on the reels, it flies into the Hive and gets collected. In its place, the Wild Honey Symbol is left behind on the reels.
There are 2 types of Bees:
- Worker Bee – Flies to the Hive and increases the Hive meter by 1 segment.
- Queen Bee – Flies to the Hive and increases the Hive meter by 5 segments.
When the Hive has reached the maximum level of 5, and any Bee Symbol lands anywhere, there is a chance that the Hive will explode, and Swarm Mode Feature will be triggered.
The Queen Bee has a higher chance of triggering the Swarm Mode Feature.
- Level 1: 10 Worker Bees are required to progress from level 1 to level 2. 96.31% RTP
- Level 2: 30 Worker Bees are required to progress from level 2 to level 3. 96.40% RTP
- Level 3: 50 Worker Bees are required to progress from level 3 to level 4. 96.51% RTP
- Level 4: 100 Worker Bees are required to progress from level 4 to MAX level (level 5). 96.59% RTP
- Level 5 (MAX level): RTP 96.74%
Wild Swarm 2 – Free Spins
Free Spins is triggered when 3 or more Hive symbols land anywhere.
- 3 Hive Symbols – 7 Free Spins and 3 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
- 4 Hive Symbols – 8 Free Spins and 4 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
- 5 Hive Symbols – 10 Free Spins and 5 guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols
Guaranteed Sticky Wild Symbols will only land on the reels that have a Reel Multiplier.
The Reel Multipliers are a new feature in Wild Swarm 2. These appear above reels 2 and 4.
- Reel 2 Multiplier – 2x
- Reel 4 Multiplier – 4x
Upon filling a reel that has a Reel Multiplier with Sticky Wilds, the Reel Multiplier value is applied to each Sticky Wild below that. Filling the reel also awards 1 extra Spin.
Swarm Mode
Swarm Mode is triggered either when the hive explodes due to a collectable bee flying into the hive on level 5, or when instant swarm is won from a chest feature.
Swarm Mode starts with 10 Free Spins with Reel Multipliers placed above each reel.
The Reel Multiplier values are as follows:
- Reel 1 Multiplier – 2x
- Reel 2 Multiplier – 3x
- Reel 3 Multiplier – 4x
- Reel 4 Multiplier – 6x
- Reel 5 Multiplier – 8x
Before the first spin commences, a complete stack of Sticky Wilds will randomly land on one of the reels.
Wild Swarm 2 – Bonus Buy
Those in Bonus Buy markets may purchase a bonus to jump straight into the action.
- 7 Free Spins – 74x
- 8 Free Spins – 139x
- 10 Free Spins – 332x
- Random Free Spins – 125x
Wild Swarm 2 Slot – Our Verdict
Wild Swarm 2 is a delightful sequel to a beloved game, but in many ways, it’s the same as before. In this instance, the old adage ‘if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it’ seems fitting, and it wouldn’t be fair to say that Wild Swarm 2 is too similar to its predecessor. Push Gaming has carefully curated their new game by building around the features that were there before, instead of stripping them out in favour of new ones.
The nuanced enhancements here significantly boosts Wild Swarm 2’s appeal, and the retained essence of the original game was the right move, in our opinion. Players will find the familiar gameplay comforting, and we think they’ll find the new elements quite refreshing. One of the most notable improvements in Wild Swarm 2 is the Multiplier Reels during Free Spins. We think the change proves to be especially effective, and its presence within Swarm Mode with even bigger values takes an already exciting bonus round to newfound levels of excitement.
The Swarm Mode was always the crown jewel of Wild Swarm, and it remains so in the sequel. The anticipation factor has been dialled up making it more nail-biting than it originally would, and the new and improved potential makes it an edge-of-the-seat experience. As was the case before, players can still grind for that Swarm Mode on a lower stake, before increasing it if they fancy their chances at triggering the Swarm.
The increased win potential in Wild Swarm 2 is a significant focal point. With the possibility of achieving wins up to 10,000x the stake, the game substantially outstrips the original.
Overall, we firmly believe that Push Gaming has skillfully balanced maintaining the core appeal of Wild Swarm while implementing clever tweaks to make Wild Swarm 2 a must-play for players everywhere.