I am sure that most slots software houses would describe themselves as innovators and creators of unique games. Very few deserve this label; in fact to the casual observer most slots games look like they came from the same place. Thunderkick are a young company which has come up with some truly unique slots. These take on different themes and ideas, with an unmistakable element of humour running through all of them. These are browser based games, and are riding the wave of the shift to mobiles and change from the old download-only casinos to instant play. You can find the (currently short) list of Thunderkick titles at some of the biggest and best known online casinos around.
Instead of different on-reel behaviours or elaborate break out bonuses, most of the innovations from Thunderkick have come in the overall design of the games. Spinning reels have been replaced in several titles. Examples include Esqueleto Explosivo, which sees singing skulls rolling towards you only to be replaced on each spin. Fruit warm simply throws different types of fruit at a wall and watches them splatter. The core of slots gaming (lining up wins, wilds and free spins games) are all in place – the real innovations come from taking these features and re-imagining new settings for them.
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Welcome bonus for new players only | Maximum bonus is 100% up to £100 | Min. deposit is £20 | No max cash out | Wagering is 35x bonus | Maximum bet while playing with a bonus is £5 | Eligibility is restricted for suspected abuse | Cashback is cash with no restrictions. Further T&Cs apply.BeGambleAware.org.
With so many different themes and types of online slot machine, it is hard to put my finger on hallmarks which would allow you to spot you were playing one of their titles. Configurability is one aspect which is better than even the biggest software houses. You can adjust the sounds and speed of the games in different ways, for example keep the win-line sounds and turn off background tunes. These games also have the ability to play up to 5,000 spins on auto-play!
Changing up the number of win lines (for example 17 on one game) and having overall spin amounts rather than coins per line is another hallmark of Thunderkick slots. The pay-outs are listed as multiplies of your total spin amount on the pay tables.
This is a tough choice, even with a small amount of games to choose from. I have chosen 3 highlights which give you a broad flavour of what to expect from this software house. You can see the individual reviews for more detail on each of these.
#1 Birds on a Wire: Exploding birds is the theme of this game, or maybe fried and then exploding would be more accurate. The ‘reels’ are electricity wires, and birds fly in to land on them. Winning combinations are comically fried, and then explode, allowing the remaining bird to fall into the gaps (with new ones coming in at the top). This creates more wins, and so on. The skeleton effects and very stupid looking birds really bring this game to life.
#2 Esqueleto Explosivo: This is a wonderful slot, with singing Mexican skulls and 3D effects combining to bring you a very entertaining game. Win lines sing, and then explode, with special ‘Elvis’ skulls causing bigger explosions. You’ll get multipliers for several win / explosion combinations in a row. This is a wonderfully produced slot, and is almost guaranteed to make you smile.
#3 Sunny Scoops: This one is based on Ice-cream, with the symbols being different flavours placed on top of cones. A completely original idea. There is a special bonus round with only two flavours to look out for – as well as excellent sound effects.
There is not much information on the company website to go on. They are an online casino games developer from Sweden. They have a Malta license and are already licensing their games to some of the biggest names in the casino industry. I have yet to see any industry awards for their games, though having seen the slots, it can only be a matter of time before these start coming in.
At the moment this company is looking for developers to join their team. I will be watching closely to see what they come up with next.
There are a lot of positives about these games, which are extremely entertaining to say the least. The question is how they will compare to the ‘big players’ with their multi-million jackpots, movie tie-ins and big production and marketing budgets.
Of these the lack of jackpots is probably the biggest miss. Many players like to have the chance of some big money to keep them interested in the games. With many large casinos now featuring these slots, this could well be resolved in the not too distant future.
Browser-based casinos mean that smaller slots makers are getting a chance to be noticed, giving you plenty of opportunities to play Ganapati slots, Bomba Games slots, or those from other less well-known studios. For me it is only a matter of time before word starts to spread on the funny and playable slots from Thunderkick – I expect to be seeing big things from this software house in the future.
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