Wild Dojo Strike: Slot Overview

You might have heard of ninja turtles before, but have you ever heard of ninja cats? If not, then you're in luck because thanks to Hacksaw Gaming sibling studio Bullshark Games, players are spin-kicked into a world where felines know martial arts, and they're not afraid to use them. The three kitties appear on variously coloured wild symbols, each one linked to a different feature - expanding wilds, multipliers, as well as sticky wilds, which can operate independently or in groups. Cats are fortunate in that they have inbuilt weapons in the form of claws, aiding their efforts of self-defence, so let's see just how sharp and pointy they can be in Wild Dojo Strike.

The cats in Wild Dojo Strike might be ninjas, but they don't seem to be the type that learned their craft in a quasi-mystical temple on a hidden mountain before applying their skills by, say, taking care of evil warlords in craggy fortresses which are inaccessible to all but the most highly skilled assassin. The base game, for instance, looks like a dusty old shed with junk piled high, while free spins take place in a back street. Perhaps the cats' ninja skills are as much imaginary as they are real? Either way, Wild Dojo Strike has a charming cartoon cat look about it that's easy on the eyes and ears in all phases of play.

With 20 paylines spread across a 5-reel, 4-row gaming grid, players are awarded when landing 3 to 5 matching symbols starting from the leftmost side onwards. Wild Dojo Strike is a medium volatile game (3/5), which has a default RTP of 96.27%, though there are lower values, and the return can change when buying features. In terms of bet range, the options go from 10 c to $/€100.

Blocky 10 to Ace card ranks are Wild Dojo Strike's low-paying symbols, worth 1-1.5 times the bet for a 5 OAK winning combination. They are followed by ninja stars, nunchucks, claws, sais, and some sort of golden-bladed weapon as the high pays, awarding 5 to 20 times the bet for 5 OAK.

Wild Dojo Strike: Slot Features

Three ninja cats in Wild Dojo Strike appear on their own coloured wild symbol. Matching a chosen colour to a landed wild activates features and respins, plus be on the lookout for free spins where activated features remain that way till the round ends.

Features Tracker

At the start of each spin, either 1 or 3 colours are selected by the Feature Tracker, and if a wild symbol with the same colour lands, its corresponding feature is triggered, and a respin occurs. If more than one colour is selected, only one of the wild symbol colours will be counted for awarding respins. FYI, all colour wilds act as regular wilds, replacing any pay symbols. Wilds may land on any reel and pay 20x for a line of five.

Wild Features

• Orange Wild Sticky Wilds Feature -? When the orange colour is selected, and an orange wild lands, sticky wilds are activated. A respin is triggered with the orange wild sticky. Each new orange wild landing on the respin becomes sticky while triggering another respin. The feature tracker continues to pick colours. If orange is selected again, nothing happens. If any of the other 2 colours are selected and a wild of the same colour hits, the second feature activates. Only landing another orange wild will trigger an additional respin.
• Red Wild Multiplier Wilds Feature - When the red colour is selected, and the red wild lands, multiplier wilds are activated. Each Red Wild adds a random multiplier of x2 to x100 to the global multiplier, and a respin is triggered with the global multiplier active. Red wilds are not sticky. Each subsequent red wild landing on respins increases the global multiplier while triggering another respin. The feature tracker continues to pick colours. If red is selected again, nothing happens. If any of the other 2 colours are selected and a wild of the same colour hits, the second feature activates. Only landing another red wild will trigger an additional respin.
• Purple Wild Expanding Wilds Feature - When the purple colour is selected and a purple wild lands, the expanding wilds feature is activated. The purple wild expands, and a respin is triggered. The purple wild stays as a full reel wild for the original spin and one respin. Each subsequent purple wild landing during the respin also expands while triggering another respin. The feature tracker continues to pick colours. If purple is selected again, nothing happens. If any of the other 2 colours are selected and a wild of the same colour hits, the second feature activates. Only landing another purple wild will trigger an additional respin.

Wild Dojo Spins

Landing 3 scatters awards 8 free spins while hitting 4 scatters awards 8 free spins with all features activated from the start. If a scatter symbol lands in the bonus, it adds +1 free spin. When the round is triggered by 3 scatters, all features are inactive at the start and must be activated by matching selected colours with wilds during a spin. Once activated, a feature remains activated until the end of the free spins round. When the relevant features are activated - orange wilds are sticky, purple wilds expand but are not sticky, and red wilds add values to the global multiplier. In free spins, respins do not occur.

Bonus Buy

Wild Dojo Strike comes with the ability to buy any of these bonus features:

• BonusHunt FeatureSpins - 3x the bet to make each spin 5 times more likely to trigger free spins.
• FeatureSpins - 20x the bet for a spin, which guarantees a matching wild to trigger respins.
• Wild Dojo Spins - 100x the bet for a 3 scatter trigger.
• Extreme Wild Dojo Spins - 200x the bet for a 4 scatter trigger.

Wild Dojo Strike: Slot Verdict

That was pretty fun. Bullshark Games have done the Hacksaw Gaming thing, where they've combined a cute outer skin with some hard-punching features and gameplay. Who can resist cute cats, especially when they're trying their hardest to do human things? YouTube carries a number of ninja cat clips, and ninja cats appear in pop culture, such as the manga series Naruto, where they're known as 'ninneko', live in a castle and are tasked with keeping the place safe. In other words, there's a certain kitty ninja niche here that Wild Dojo Strike slips effortlessly into.

Fortunately, Wild Dojo Strike isn't only about the ooh and ahh cutie pie moments. It can also deliver exciting gameplay through the features it has on hand. The slot neatly splits its base game and bonus round apart while giving both phases desirable traits. In the base game, you'll need to match the chosen colour with the landed wilds, but when it happens, respins ensue. Later, when triggered, even though respins are absent from free spins, the features are persistent in the bonus round when they are active, which is really where you want to be. Sticky wilds, a global multiplier, full reel wilds; they're a handy trio of effects to have simultaneously throwing punches.

Wild Dojo Strike punched fairly hard during the review, and it can go all the way up to 12,000x the bet when reaching its full potential. So far, Bullshark Games has proven it's not married to any particular theme, nor has it picked any of the usual cliches. Wild Dojo Strike is another example. It is also arguably the studio's most commercially polished release to date, giving gamblers a cute cat ninja game which can unleash a bit of scratching when it's in the mood.