Hotline 2 is a sequel to the original Hotline title from NetEnt, which is a fair tribute to the 80s. We are once again taken to sunny criminal Miami to chase the villains and get well rewarded. The developers seem to be keen on a car chase theme for it’s their second release featuring the above-mentioned styling in two months, and this one will certainly follow the success ofCash Noire. Even though it might seem light on changes since nothing significant has been done in terms of the design, the second part of Hotline offers a new layer of entertainment and much greater rewards than the first one, so fasten your seatbelt, the pursue is on.
When it comes to the design, it’s almost identical to the original Hotline slot. The backdrop showcases twilight Miami, a piece of retro music accompanies you during the gameplay and top-notch 80s-styled graphics contribute to creating an outstanding atmosphere. Yet again we have two detectives, Quinn and Riviera, to investigate a crime, namely jewelry store robbery. However, this time a special guest is involved and things get only more and more complicated for the cops as Kitty Weiss comes into play. The soundtrack deserves special mention here, as it captures the essential ambiance and fits the theme perfectly, bringing retro vibes and nostalgic memories to all fans of the genre.
Same to the original Hotline, Kitty is the most rewarding symbol. However, the payouts were cut significantly, and now we get no more than 2.66x of the stake for a 5-of-a-kind combo of a top-paying symbol instead of 200x. Fairly lame, though, the maximum winning potential is way bigger in comparison to the first part of the game. The symbol collection consists of 10 regulars, divided by 4 premiums and 6 low-pays. Kitty Weiss is joined by iconic detective duo and another cop, while on the lower side we get a set of jewelry items, such as necklaces, rings, and medallions, incrusted with precious colorful gems.
The slot is played across a 5×3 grid with 243 ways to play, which also expands depending on the activated features up to 3x6x6x6x3 layout with 1,944 paylines. Hotline 2 is powered by a medium volatile math model, so wins theoretically will occur fairly often. NetEnt is also helping with the RTP which is above the average level within the industry at 96.05%, though, it may vary depending on the activated features.
True to NetEnt’s style, the betting range is rather wide and would appeal to both high and low rollers. Players drop in by setting bets from 0.3$ to 150$ per spin, so finding your preferred betting option won’t be a big deal. Not to say that Hotline 2 boasts monstrous potential, though, it’s actually decent when taking into consideration the volatility level. You can hope for a win of 5,184x of the bet, which is whopping 777,600$ on a single spin when playing with the max bet option available.
Hotline 2 doesn’t differ a lot from the first part in terms of features, though, they were given a touch of restyling and now work slightly differently. The first to mention is called Hotline feature, which was present in the first part. While in the original Hotline we had rows to make up the Hotline Zone, this time we get three middle reels, which can be turned on/off independently. The feature increases a chance to win Wilds for a higher bet. The slot is played with 3 bet options, a regular one and two Bonus Bet levels, namely Double and Triple Bets. During the Base Bet game, the 3rd reel is a Hotline, and other reels can be turned to Hotlines:
RTP values vary depending on the number of Hotlines activated, being 94.51%, 95.35%, and 96.05% for 1, 2, and 3 reels activated. All Wild symbols landing onto a Hotline become expanding Wilds, covering the whole reel. The Wilds in Hotline 2 act as regular Wild symbols, substituting any regular symbols to form winning combos or enhance already existing ones.
Flamingo symbols are Scatters, which are the key to triggering the Free Spins feature. By landing 3 flamingoes onto the 3 middle reels you’ll get 7 Free Spins and proceed to the bonus game. During the feature, all Wild symbols landing onto the 3 middle reels always expand to cover the whole reel and also increase the hight of the reels they landed on, creating more ways to play. As mention earlier, the grid can expand to become a 3x6x6x6x3 layout with 1,944 betways, and whenever a row reaches its maximum height, you will be awarded 2 extra Free Spins.
Those who are willing to skip the less exciting part and get straight to the action can use the Feature Buy mechanic. It’ll cost you 20x, 40x or 60x of the current bet level depending on the number of Hotlines chosen for a bonus game.
If you do not want to risk real money in Hotline 2 by NetEnt, but want to check out the slot for free, then you can try the game on our website. Just scroll this page up to the game container and press the ‘Play for free’ button to launch the demo, or simply follow this link toplay Hotline 2 demo for free.
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Since we really loved the original Hotline, we had no other option but to try the second part and share the details of our session with you. However, don’t expect to find any accurate statistics or patterns here for 200 spins are not enough to provide any of these, thus here we’ll share nothing but our subjective opinion based on our personal experience.
We opted for a moderate bet of 1$ per spin, though, due to the fact that we turned on the maximum number of hotlines, the total bet was 3 bucks. Even though it was a luxury for us to play with such a ‘high’ betting option, it took us approximately 5 spins to get a first decent win and justification for betting more than usual. Oddly enough, the first Big Win occurred rather fast and awarded us 41$, and not so long after two more Big Wins happened within 30 spins, bringing us 44$ and 81$.
The Wilds kept appearing on the reels and granting us tasty wins almost every 20 spins so that we even got used to winning that often. However, we still aimed at the Free Spins, which was a much more challenging task, and it was approximately 170th spin that granted us access to the precious bonus. Unfortunately, it failed to be as profitable as we would like it to be so that it hardly deserves mentioning.
To conclude, Hotline 2 actually seems like a decent slot that is likely to turn your dreams of never-seen-before riches true, however, it demands playing big and activating those Hotlines, otherwise, you have to be blessed with luck to land a single sweet win. Speaking of luck, it’s exactly what we wish you, though, as the saying goes, don’t get ahead of yourself, so do remember to adjust your bets wiser to not lose your bankroll to fast.
All up, Hotline 2 despite being simple and rather familiar to all who have ever tried the original part, manages to be a pretty fun and worthy attraction. Just like the first Hotline, this title is a visual masterpiece, and graphics paired with chilling and nostalgic soundtrack contribute to creating a superb retro atmosphere. Even though it doesn’t bring any innovation, fans of the genre and especially those who loved the predecessor will be pleased with NetEnt’s brainchild.
Hotline 2
