Yokozuna Clash (Yggdrasil Gaming): Overview

While it doesn’t enjoy the worldwide fame of football or tennis, most people have at least a basic idea of what sumo wrestling is. It’s a battle of determination between two enormous men, each intent on using sheer body weight and a firm understanding of Newton’s Laws to shove the other out of the ring. Despite their size, the sport can be surprisingly elegant, and the level of discipline needed to reach the top deserves respect. As a slot machine, though, not much of that depth really translates in Yokozuna Clash.

Running on a 5-reel, 243 ways to win, pay-both-ways setup, Swedish developer Yggdrasil Gaming invites you to the Grand Sumo Tournament for plenty of belly-slapping, foot-stomping spectacle. Playing as sumo wrestlers Riku or Haru, your goal is to beat every opponent and lift the trophy to become the Yokozuna (grand champion). You can step into the dohyō (ring) on your computer, mobile phone or tablet, with stakes ranging from 0.10 to €/$125 per spin.

Sumo-themed slots aren’t entirely rare, but Yokozuna Clash has its own identity. Set inside a Ryōgoku (sumo hall) with intense music driving the atmosphere, two wrestlers square off in the foreground while the reels spin behind them. Although the sport has ancient roots, the presentation and mechanics are anything but old-fashioned. Yokozuna Clash feels thoroughly modern, built to pull players in with advanced, video game-like animations and visuals. It won’t be everyone’s style, but it’s undeniably impressive.

A quick look at the paytable shows Yggdrasil has ditched the confusing coin-value approach, which is a welcome change. Showing symbol payouts in cash value based on your current bet is clearer and more transparent. On the reels you’ll find low-value card suit symbols alongside dragons, turtles, tigers and phoenix birds. The phoenix is the top payer, awarding 12 times your stake for five of a kind. The wild symbol, clearly marked with the word “wild”, substitutes for every symbol except the scatter.

Yokozuna Clash (Yggdrasil Gaming): Features

Yokozuna Clash depends largely on its free spins feature for the biggest payouts, but the base game does include a couple of random boosts to help along the way:

• Riku (wearing the blue belt): can randomly add up to 2 wilds on the three central reels.
• Haru (wearing the green belt): can add a 2x or 3x multiplier to boost your winning combinations.

The core of the action is the multi-level Tournament Free Spins feature, triggered when the free spins scatter lands on the first and last reels at the same time. Before the match begins, you’ll be given either Riku or Haru and paired against a randomly selected first-round opponent. Each fighter comes with their own special abilities (up to 4 wilds or multipliers of up to 4x), which can be added to the reels as the wrestlers try to force one another out of the ring.

Wins from left to right cause your sumo to attack the boss and move you forward to the right. If you hit a winning combination from right to left, the opponent counters and pushes you back. The battle bar beneath the ring shows who has the advantage—if it fills completely red, your wrestler is thrown out and the free spins end. If it turns fully blue, you move on to the next boss. Altogether, there are only 2 bosses to beat to claim the trophy. Reach the final and you’ll face the demon sumo, where a doubling multiplier is applied to your total winnings if you defeat him.

Lastly, there’s the Sumo Clash feature, activated when you land a five of a kind. When it triggers, 2 to 4 extra symbols of the highest 5oak symbols are added to the reels, increasing your payout beyond the original win.

Yokozuna Clash (Yggdrasil Gaming): Verdict

When you first load up Yokozuna Clash, you may feel as lost as we did. Once you’ve played a bit, though, it becomes clear it’s not as complex as it initially appears. In short, the random base game features also apply during free spins, where they’re improved (if you reach the second stage) and show up more often to help produce larger wins. With the potential for payouts of over 3000 times your stake, Yokozuna Clash sits around the medium variance area. Free spins aren’t especially difficult to trigger, but most of the time you should expect fairly modest returns.

As is often the case, Yggdrasil delivers fresh ideas and standout visuals, but once the newness of Yokozuna Clash fades, what remains is a somewhat underwhelming slot that doesn’t quite hit hard enough. It may entertain casual players for a week or two, but more serious gamblers are likely to shrug and move on.