Junkyard Kings 2

Junkyard Kings 2: Slot Overview

Junkyards aren't the sort of place many people want to hang out in even once, but for the good of online slots, hey, we're about to do it a second time. The occasion is Junkyard Kings 2, released by Hacksaw Gaming partner Bullshark Games as a follow-up to the 2024 original. Junkyard Kings was a rat-infested homage to Sugar Rush with individual Cell Multipliers boosting winning combinations, further bolstered by various wild symbol effects. Bullshark Games has felt no need to spoil a winning formula, so it has repeated much of the first experience, while heaping on extras as if dumping off a box of old metal at the local tip.

The graphics have been completely overhauled in the sequel process. Instead of being outside, trying not to get tetanus from all the rusty metal, Junkyard Kings 2 has been moved inside, where junk is lined up to be incinerated or melted down in a furnace. The main character has changed too, from a villainous-looking rat to a feisty yet friendly raccoon wearing a bucket on his head with the word 'King' printed on it and a single boot. Adorable. As a result, the visuals look less junky than before and more cartoonlike, though not in any sort of 'golly gee no, not for me' kind of way.

Junkyard Kings 2 is once again a cluster paying slot played on a 7x7 grid. It requires 5 or more symbols to be connected to each other in order to create a winning combination, which then gets removed and replaced by the cascade mechanic. Cascades will repeat as long as new wins appear. Volatility has been tuned up a step to 4 out of 5, making it more volatile than before, and the default RTP is slightly higher as well at 96.29%. When picking a bet, the levels range from $/€0.10 to $/€50.

On the lower side of the pay symbol hierarchy are metallic J-A royals, while on the higher side are cheese, a wooden trap, a metal trap, and poison bottle symbols. Royal winning combinations are worth 25x the bet for a 36+ OAK hit, or 50x-500x is paid should a 36+ OAK premium symbol combination land. All kinds of wilds in Junkyard Kings 2 - regular, Booster, and Walking, where all are able to replace any regular paying symbol. Regular wilds appear in the base and bonus game.

Junkyard Kings 2: Slot Features

Rummage around in the yard and you may find Cell Multipliers, several special wild symbols, Junkyard Jive free spins, Rule the Yard free spins, and feature buys.

Cell Multipliers

A position with a winning symbol gets an x2 Cell Multiplier. Subsequent wins on that cell grow the multiplier by +1. Cell Multipliers apply to any win that includes a symbol from that cell. Multiple multiplier values in the same win are added together before being applied to the win. The max multiplier for a single cell is x100, and each Cell Multiplier resets at the start of each base game spin.

Wild Symbols

The special wilds are the Booster Wild and Walking Wild, and both have permanent versions.

• Booster Wild Symbol: When a Booster Wild lands in the base or bonus game, it either adds x2 to x10 to the cell's multiplier or multiplies the cell's multiplier by x2. If it lands on a cell without a multiplier, the additive value sets the cell's multiplier to itself, while the multiplicative value sets the multiplier to x2. It then transforms into a regular wild.
• Permanent Wild Booster: Does the same as a Booster Wild in the base and bonus game, but it stays on the grid after increasing the Cell Multiplier. After a win, if the Permanent Booster Wild was part of a win, it moves to a new random position that was also part of the winning combination, revealing a new additive or multiplicative value for the new cell. It cannot move to a position containing another wild or scatter, and is removed at the start of a new base game spin. It is permanent throughout free spins, where it moves to a new cell on every new spin, increasing its multiplier.
• Walking Wild: When a Walking Wild lands in the base or bonus game, it moves on the grid 2-10 steps, leaving a trail of regular wild symbols behind it. It cannot step on special wilds or scatters.
• Permanent Walking Wilds: May land in the bonus game, where it is permanent till the round ends and acts as a Walking Wild. On each new spin, it lands in a new random cell and creates a new trail of wilds. It activates once per spin and not again during cascades.

Junkyard Jive

Hitting 3 scatters triggers the Junkyard Jive bonus with 10 free spins. It builds on the base game mechanics by making Cell Multipliers progressive. Landing a scatter awards an extra free spin.

Rule the Yard

Landing 4 scatters triggers 10 free spins in Rule the Yard. As well as using mechanics from Junkyard Jive, at least one Permanent Booster Wild or Permanent Walking Wild is guaranteed on the first spin.

Feature Buys

Four features may be bought in Junkyard Kings 2. BonusHunt Featurespins make each spin 5 times more likely to trigger a bonus game for 3x the bet, or Rust Rush Featurespins at 50x guarantee at least one Walking Wild and one Permanent Booster Wild land. Junkyard Jive or Rule the Yard can be bought for 100x or 250x the stake, respectively.

Junkyard Kings 2: Slot Verdict

One person's junk is another person's treasure, so they say, and gamblers who were entertained by the original release should be keen on seeing how Junkyard Kings 2 performs. A lot of what it does was present in the previous slot, but Bullshark Games has bolted on a few new bits of scrap to ensure this is not a repeat performance. The studio has completely overhauled the artwork, totally changing the look and the atmosphere. Gone is the gritty king rat vibe, to be replaced with a king raccoon instead, injecting a touch of Smokey Le Bandit, in the process evoking something more mainstream-friendly and less rodent-infested.

The engine of the game remains the increasing Cell Multiplier effect, which works well but is in some ways arguably not as exhilarating as slots like Sugar Rush, which double the value with each subsequent win. However, what Junkyard Kings 2 does have that the Pragmatic Play sugar hit did not is wild symbols, lots of them, including a regular, Booster, Walking, and two permanent versions. Naturally, the permanent wilds, either will do, are what players will be hoping to see in great quantities, and free spins are needed to access both permanent wild types. Free spins are also where Cell Multipliers are persistent, so they are able to give that phase a real snowball quality when the pace is picking up. It's a pretty sweet mix, actually, if and when it occurs, of persistence, permanence, wilding, walking, cascading and multiplying.

A potentially lucrative mix, too, as Bullshark Games has pushed the win cap out to 20,000x the bet this time. Neither Junkyard game has the Pragmatic Play glossy sheen which Sugar Rush and its ilk drip in, but for an alternative Cell Multiplier slot with oodles of wild action and a big max win, then Junkyard Kings 2 is good enough to encourage first-time or repeat visits to the junkyard.