The Goonies Return

The Goonies Return: Slot Overview

The 80s might have left behind a mixed bag of fads, fashions, and cultural artefacts, but one area it excelled in was movies. One cult classic still popular today starred the ragtag group of Mikey, Chunk, Data, and Mouth - The Goonies, who set about saving their family homes by chasing down rich stuff guided by a map to local legend One-Eyed Willy's treasure. What follows is a heart-warming tale of friendship, fraternity, first kisses, bonding, action, adventure, and goodies beating baddies. Must-see viewing that has stood the test of time and put to good use on the reels by developer Blueprint Gaming.

Now the buds are back for another crack at finding rich stuff in The Goonies Return, a follow up to the original game that offers more of everything. This is apparent the moment The Goonies Return loads, where extra voiceovers and character animations mean the game is more saturated in the film than before. What hasn't changed is the core gaming again takes place on a 5-reel, 3-row, 20-payline game grid, backgrounded by a blurred image of the infamous treasure map. Visually, the graphics are slightly clearer, but it's in features and numbers we see the main differences. The biggest number change is potential, but we'll leave that for later. For a branded slot, RTP is well respectable, sitting on a value of 96%, while volatility lingers around medium/high.

Playable from 10 p/c to $/€100 per spin, the character-heavy paytable consists of the four pals Mikey, Chunk, Mouth, and Data as the mid pay symbols, worth up to 10-15x the bet. More valuable is the skull 'n crossbones tile worth 25x the bet for five of a kind, while the remaining pay symbols are made up of J-A card ranks. Replacing any normal symbol is the doubloon wild which lands on all reels. It can make combinations of its own, possessing the same value as the skull 'n crossbones.

The Goonies Return: Slot Features

Fortunately, there won't be a test to take on the features in The Goonies Return, because there is a lot to cover. They are split between 6 x One-Eye Willy modifiers and 6 bonus rounds to trigger, so completists have a lot on their plate to work through.

One-Eyed Willy modifiers trigger on any base game spin. When so happens, players are presented with 3 keys. When choosing one, players get one of the following modifiers:

• Truffle Shuffle Wilds - wild symbols are added to the reels in random positions. Some may be upgraded to wild multipliers.
• Hidden Riches - a Mikey Wild is added to the middle reel, and other Goony symbols that land on the spin may be turned wild as well.
• W-invention Reels - Data punches the reels with his glove to sync up to 5 reels, so they display the same symbols. Or Data may create a colossal symbol on up to 5 reels as well as upgrade the symbols in view to create better wins.
• Lucky Coins - mystery symbols are added to the reels, all turning into the same matching pay symbols when they hit. There is a chance coins reveal cash symbols. If so, respins are awarded until no new cash symbols land.
• Bonus Boost - additional bonus symbols are added to the reels.
• Win Spin - a big winning spin is guaranteed.

In addition to the above 6 features, there are other random modifiers which can turn a losing spin into a winning one:

• The scythe resets the reels into a win.
• Shooting spikes remove one or more columns of symbols to create a win.
• Dynamite can be thrown onto the reels to upgrade the win.
• A cave collapse can occur to remove the symbols in view and cause a cascade of new ones.

Landing 3 bonus symbols triggers the One-Eyed Willy Bonus features. Players spin the bonus wheel to win one of the following:

The Booby Trap Bonus presents players with a key they turn either left or right. This reveals 'Cash' to add a cash value, 'Collect' to end the feature, or 'Bonus Feature' to reveal the name of another bonus game, then awarded to the player.

The Waterslide to Wealth Bonus involves moving along a trail, collecting ascending values of prizes. Hitting 'Collect' ends the feature, whereas making it all the way to the end takes players to the Big Money Bonus Round.

Skeleton Organ Free Spins awards 5 free spins with Skeleton Organ Symbols super stacked on each of the reels. Skeleton Organ symbols are sticky, so any that land remain in position for the duration of the free spins. When any special symbols land in view, players pick a key on the organ to reveal a symbol, which is then overlaid on all Skeleton Organ Symbols in view. When free spins end, gold doubloons appear on screen, and players pick one. This reveals extra free spins, entry to another bonus feature, or 'Collect' returning players to the base game.

Fratelli Free Spins comes with 10 free spins. If a Super Sloth Wild lands, it highlights the position it was in. On the last free spin, either cash or wild symbols land in the highlighted positions. If you hit 5 or more cash symbols, then Momma Fratelli Money Spins are awarded. This feature starts with 3 spins which reset when new cash symbols hit. When the round ends, players pick one of three keys to win more free spins, another bonus feature, or collect their winnings and go back to the main game.

Final Voyage Free Spins uses a full reel Inferno Wild symbol which starts on the leftmost reel. On the following spins, it moves one reel to the right, turning Data, Mouth, Chunk, then Mikey symbols wild on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th spin. This means for the final 5th spin all characters are wild. Afterwards, 5 doubloons appear on screen. Players pick one to reveal 'Collect' to end the feature, win additional spins, or win the One-Eyed Willy Riches feature.

The One-Eyed Willy Riches bonus is a hold & win style feature which starts with 3 spins. Landing cash symbols or character symbols resets the counter and brings these effects:

• Cash symbols display bet multipliers.
• Mikey awards an overall win multiplier.
• Data increases the number of total respins by 1.
• Chunk adds his value to all other symbols in view.
• Mouth collects all other values in view.
• One-Eyed Willy adds an extra column to the game panel.
• Sloth restarts the power of any other character symbol on the board.

A couple of final extras for good measure include the feature gamble option. Whenever a feature is won in the game, except the One-Eyed Willy Riches, players can collect it or gamble. By gambling, players can win better features or a Mystery Prize Win – a multiple of the bet. Lastly is the One-Eyed Willy Exchange. When winning 15x the bet or higher, players can collect the prize or gamble for the chance to win one of the bonus features.

The Goonies Return: Slot Verdict

One of The Goonies' lasting qualities is the way it captured a bunch of friends and somehow made you feel you were right there beside them, hanging out at the Walsh residence or braving the subterranean tunnels to find One-Eyed Willy. It's a film fans can watch in their later years and feel young again. The Goonies Return might not be quite so magical, but it is bursting at the seams with a goony feel-good factor – a lot more so than the original. It's too bad Brand, Andy, or Stef couldn't make it into the game, but maybe next time.

Then there are the extras. Even though we expect this sort of thing from Blueprint when they go on a feature binge, you still walk away when you're finished feeling like you've eaten every single dish at an overpriced buffet just to make sure you got your money's worth. This effect is amplified if you manage to trigger features from the end of other features, potentially leading to numerous repeat bonuses, if you're lucky. Casino streamers who try to showcase every single thing in one clip have really got their work cut out for themselves here. The good thing is the features are as effective as they are fun, creating amusing moments to go with potentially massive wins. Officially, the most you can collect from The Goonies Return is €/$250,000 which is the usual Blueprint Gaming win cap. We're not entirely sure about the xbet potential is but likely around 3-5,000x. After some impressive results during the One-Eyed Willy Riches Bonus, there are no complaints about what the game is capable of.

Blueprint has nicely dialled up the Goonie-ness while throwing in so many extras you can't help but buckle in for the ride. If there's any criticism, it would be that some players might have preferred a more modern reel/paying system perhaps, or that much of the features have turned up in various guises elsewhere, but fans shouldn't find this a deal-breaker. The Goonies Return is an excellent choice for players after a smorgasbord of features in a warm, familiar setting while spinning for solid rewards alongside characters who feel like friends.