Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker

Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker: Slot Overview

Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker from Relax Gaming plants players in an unforgiving testing facility, where crash-test dummies, mechanical mayhem and toxic waste provide the backdrop for a feature-heavy cluster-pays slot. This is the second ClusterBreaker release to come from the studio, following on from the smash 'n' grab antics of Midnight Marauder ClusterBreaker. The two slots share a love of breaking symbols and coins, but diverge when it comes to things like bonus rounds. Also in Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker, the two crash test dummies are linked to two volatility modes which govern how multiplier values are accumulated. First, though, players have to step onto the testing floor for a closer look at the grim world these battered dummies inhabit.

Set in a workshop, testing facility type thing, Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker revolves around crash-test dummies, mechanical hazards, and industrial engineering. Instead of a pristine experimental environment, though, the game has a gritty, almost sadistic vibe at times, as if the lead tester brims with an anger he takes out on his poor crash test dummies. The two dummies, Fender and Bender, live in a world of metallic machinery, warning signs, a wrecked car, and a strangely bubbling barrel of toxic waste. Whilst dummies are not alive, hence their use in crash testing, Fender and Bender's innocent expressions evoke a certain pathos, a sympathy for the endless suffering at the hands of their ruthless human overlords. Is there an allegory here, about the way robots and AI encroach deeper into our lives until they're seen as not only sentient, but friends, maybe even family?

Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker is a cluster pays slot, which pays out when 5 or more matching symbols are connected on its 5x5 gaming area. Winning clusters are removed, letting new symbols cascade in. Players may stake $/€0.10 to $/€60 per spin, and activating the optional Enhanced Spin triples the stake to increase the chance of entering all bonuses and game features. The RTP is 96.1%, and the volatility depends on which mode is chosen. Fender is medium-high, while Bender is the higher option. Not only does this change the volatility, but it changes how the multipliers are collected. Modes can be changed in game.

The paytable begins at the lower end with four spanner and cog symbols, followed by four warning signs, then Roger, the boss of the outfit. Clusters of 5 OAK pay 0.1x-0.5x, while the largest clusters are 20 OAK and are worth 2x-10x the bet. Wilds substitute all symbols except scatters.

Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker: Slot Features

The features are the ClusterBreaker, multiplier symbols, a Max Win Cash Ladder, Coin Respins, bonus games and Supercharge feature buys.

ClusterBreaker & Multiplier Symbols

The ClusterBreaker feature is active on every spin. Symbols that have not been broken may be selected at random and broken into 2, 3, or 4 matching symbols. Regular pay symbols, wilds and coins can be a ClusterBreaker. Not scatters or multipliers, though. Multiplier symbols have values of x2 to x50. They are dormant until they are randomly activated by Fender or Bender. All activated multipliers are collected and applied to the win at the end of the spin. During multiplier collection, Fender Mode adds them; Bender Mode multiplies them together.

Max Win Cash Ladder

The Max Win Cash Ladder can be triggered during the base game or bought from the Supercharge menu. At the end of any spin, if there are between 1 and 4 coins in view, the Cash Ladder may randomly activate. The coin values are collected, as is the value of any ClusterBreaker win. The ladder starts at x11, increasing in steps through x22, x33, x44, x55, x66, x77, x88, x99, up to the Max Win. Each step multiplies the win. The climb can stop at any rung; when it does, players win the payout shown on the screen.

Coin Respins

The Coin Respin Bonus is triggered by landing 5 or more coins in the base game. Coins are worth 1x to 10x the bet. Triggering coins remain in position and are carried into the bonus round. Players are awarded 3 lives, which reset each time a new coin lands. The ClusterBreaker mechanic is active in the bonus. When 5 or more coins form a cluster, all coins and their values merge into a single coin, with the values combined. Multiplier symbols may land with a value of x2, x3, x5, or x10. Multiplier symbols act as wilds to help form coin clusters. Multipliers have between 1 and 3 lives, indicating the number of respins they will remain in view before being removed. If the multiplier does not form part of a winning cluster before its lives run out, it is removed on the next respin. When multipliers are part of a coin cluster, all coins in the cluster are multiplied by the value.

Bonus Games

• Fender Bonus - Triggered by landing scatter symbols on reels 2, 3 and 4, awarding 10 free spins. Landing 3 scatters during the bonus will retrigger it, adding +5 free spins. All activated multipliers get added to a progressive multiplier, which applies to all wins. Multiplier values are additive when they are combined.
• Bender Bonus - Works the same as Fender Bonus, but all activated multipliers multiply the progressive multiplier and multiplier values are multiplicative when they are combined.
• Fender & Bender Super Bonus - Triggered by landing scatters on reels 2 and 4, plus the super scatter on reel 3. Ten free spins are awarded. In the super bonus, Fender (+) and Bender (x) multipliers are active. If Fender (+) and Bender (x) multipliers are activated on the same spin, Fender multipliers are collected and added first, then Bender multipliers are applied. Landing 3 scatters during the bonus round adds 5 more free spins.

Supercharge Menu

At the Supercharge Menu, it is possible to activate Bender Bonus Reels for 10x, which removes regular symbols from the reels, landing only Bender scatters. The Fender Bonus Reels are the same, but it lands only Fender scatters. Super Spins cost 10x to guarantee the Fender & Bender Super Bonus when landing 3 scatters. The Coin Respin Bonus costs 100x to buy, the Bender Bonus 150x, or the Fender Bonus 150x. 150x also buys a Mystery Bonus, which could be the Fender Bonus, Bender Bonus, Coin Respins, Fender & Bender Bonus, Fender & Bender Super Bonus or a cash prize. For 250x, Fender & Bender Mega Spins can be bought, which is a single spin with Fender and Bender active. At least one multiplier lands for each, and only the Fender & Bender Super Bonus can be triggered. The Fender & Bender Super Bonus can be bought for 500x, or a Max Win Cash Ladder spin can be triggered for 1,000x the stake.

Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker: Slot Verdict

Fender and Bender are two crash-test dummies that might not have much say in their working conditions, but perhaps their plight will one day be something the robot rights movement will address. After all, if we get increasingly comfortable treating AI and artificial beings as companions, where exactly do we draw the line between a machine and something deserving of sympathy? At times it feels like we're teetering on the event horizon of some massive society-altering revolution of robotics and artificial intelligence that will not be contained once the lid has been removed. Till then, we've got Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker to aid in working through thoughts as to what makes an artificial construct conscious or not, and can a robot really have feelings?

Feelings are certainly to be experienced when playing Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker, which was a roller coaster to review. Highs included climbing high on the Max Win Cash Ladder, hammering the total multiplier in bonus rounds, specifically those involving Bender, which multiply the total multiplier rather than just add to it, and the satisfying way the game is able to break symbols down while chaining together lengthy sequences of cluster wins. On the opposite end of the feelings scale, Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker is no broken ATM machine that's attained awareness and wants to give away banknotes to the needy. Cluster values are on the small side, so they often need a sizable multiplier boosting them, even when a bunch of clusters link together for a final payout. The Ladder could be brutal when bought, and the volatility can swing wildly either way.

Then again, that is kind of to be expected in an online slot, so maybe don't assume Fender or Bender will always act as amiable as they look; they've got an agenda of their own, as well. Still, with a max win of 15,000x the bet and a stack of features to crash test, Fender & Bender ClusterBreaker is a full game, one that was quite satisfying in the end. It may mete out punishment, but get the machinery working in your favour, and it can also be a rather uniquely styled, entertaining cluster pays slot.