Merge Up 2: Sweepstakes Casino Game of the Week

Merge Up 2 trades the usual spinning reels for a match-3 puzzle board, and that is exactly why it earns this week’s Game of the Week spot. It pairs a pastel, mobile-puzzle look with a headline RTP of 98 percent and a 10,000x max win, a combination that is rare in the sweepstakes casino lobby.

BGaming released the cluster-pays sequel on October 28, 2025, following up its original Merge Up. The sequel keeps the merge-upward idea but pulls multipliers and bombs into the base game, adds three Buy Bonus options and sharpens the visuals. If you like your slots with a bit of puzzle logic, this one is built for you.

Gameplay and Reel Layout

Merge Up 2 is played on a 6×6 grid with no paylines. Instead, four or more identical symbols touching horizontally or vertically form a cluster and pay out, with bigger clusters paying more. Bets run from $0.25 up to $25 per spin at most casinos, and the max win is 10,000x your bet.

The numbers are what make the game stand out. BGaming’s default build advertises a 98 percent RTP, though a 97 percent configuration also exists, so it is worth checking the info screen wherever you play. Volatility is listed as high to very high, meaning quiet stretches are common and the big hits tend to come in bursts. If that term is new to you, our social casinos guide is a good place to get oriented before you start spinning.

Symbols and Paytable

There are nine symbol levels, climbing from basic gems up toward the top tier, with the Scatter sitting as a tenth level. The higher the level of the symbols in a winning cluster, and the more symbols in it, the larger the payout. There is no traditional wild symbol; the game’s progression system does that heavy lifting instead.

The Scatter can land on the grid or be created when a Bomb explodes. Landing 3, 4, 5 or 6 or more Scatters triggers 12, 15, 20 or 30 free spins respectively, so the Bomb mechanic doubles as the main route into the bonus.

Merging Clusters and Cell Multipliers

Here is where the game gets its name. After a winning cluster is paid, some of its symbols vanish while others transform into the next symbol level, and fresh gems tumble in to fill the gaps. A single spin can chain several merges together, each one pushing the symbols toward the top of the ladder.

Every cell that takes part in a winning cluster is marked. If another win lands in a marked cell, that cell gets an x2 multiplier, and the multiplier doubles with each new win in that spot, up to x128 in a single cell. When a cluster includes multiple multiplied cells, their values add together. The marks stay until the spin ends, so a long cascade can snowball quickly.

Bombs and Free Spins

When a cluster of eighth-level symbols forms, it creates a Bomb. The Bomb explodes, clearing the eight symbols around it, filling the space with new gems and bumping the multiplier in each cleared cell up one stage. The Bomb then turns into a Scatter, which is how a strong base-game run can roll straight into the bonus round.

During free spins, marked cells stay marked until the round ends, so multiplier progress keeps building spin after spin. Landing three or more Scatters during the round adds 5 more free spins. This is where the 10,000x ceiling is most realistically chased.

Buy Bonus and Chance x2

Merge Up 2 offers three Buy Bonus options: a standard free spins round, free spins with a starting x2 multiplier in every cell, and free spins that begin with 3 to 9 bombs on the grid to seed multipliers that carry into the bonus. A Chance x2 feature is also available, which slightly raises your bet to improve your odds of triggering the bonus, and it switches off while a Buy Bonus is active. Since buying a bonus is costly, our payout calculator can help you gauge what a given bet size could return.

Why Merge Up 2 Is This Week’s Pick

A 98 percent RTP is well above the roughly 96 percent average for online slots, and that matters when you are stretching a balance of Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins. Pair that with cell multipliers that reach x128 and a 10,000x ceiling, and you have a game with real upside for a modest stake.

It is also a refreshing change of pace. The pastel, match-3 aesthetic is a long way from the horror, Western and mythology themes that dominate the sweepstakes lobby, and the visible symbol progression above the grid makes it easy to follow what is happening. That clarity is a big reason the game has been drawing attention this month.

The caveat is the variance. High volatility means long dry spells are part of the deal, so size your bets to survive them and remember that RTP is a long-term average, not a promise for any single session. Play within your means, and treat the big multiplier chase as the bonus it is.