Online slots have been around for a while. The first one appeared
along with the initial digital casino in 1994. In the first two years
of the industry’s existence, there were only fifteen such
platforms, but two years later, players could find over two hundred
operational gambling sites. Nowadays, this figure stands at over two
thousand, and according to the latest data, the number of real money
slots on the internet is now over fifteen thousand.
Back in the day, things use to be simple. You would enter a
land-based gaming venue, and on its casino floor, you would find a
slew of three-reel games. Each slot machine would resemble the other.
In today’s digital realm, things are very different. Due to the
expansion of the sphere, competition is fierce, and developers have
to churn out new titles to remain relevant. Generous promotions are
one method with which gambling sites hook new players, but having a
massive library of games is even more essential.
Demand is enormous, and the choice
of gaming slot options is abundant, as diversity has
increased tremendously in recent years. What follows below are some
themes that are industry mainstays and serve as constant inspiration
for developers.
Mythology
Slots
It may sound strange to laypeople, but games based on Egyptian,
Norse, and Greek mythology rule casino catalogs and top-ten lists in
the iGaming industry. Undoubtedly, the most popular theme from this
genre are games that exploit Egyptian myths. If you glance over at
the modern slot landscape, you can see that there’s a massive chunk
that uses this motif among the most played titles in the sphere.
Book of Dead, Eye of Horus, Legacy of Dead, and Cleopatra are just a
few. Ancient Greece is not far behind. Age of the Gods is one of the
most popular series ever, and Divine Fortune is among the most famous
jackpot games of all-time. Thor and Odin also have their place and
are well-represented in the slot-verse, as they are the subject of
dozens of reel-spinners.
History
Slots
Myths are stories of narrative origin not necessarily based on fact.
They interpret and study sacred tales or fables, whereas history is a
narrative of recent and factual events situated in human time.
Because conquerors, historical figures and events, are known
worldwide, or to put it in modern terms, have a developed brand, and
require no licensing agreement, they are the ideal source material.
Caesar and other Roman emperors have been the subject of many games,
such as Caesar’s Empire and Neros Fortune. The same applies to
Napoleon and the French Revolution and several other figures and
occurrences found in history books.
Vegas
Slots
While Sin City is no longer the gambling mecca of the world, having
lost that title years ago to Macau, it is still the first location
people associate when they think of the activity.
You can find hundreds of reel-spinners from dozens of developers that
use the name Vegas in their title and incorporate the City of Second
Chances in their games. Mr. Vegas, Weekend in Vegas, Lost Vegas,
Vegas Night Life, Cat in Vegas, and so on, and so on. It would be a
chore and a near-impossible task to locate all the titles that
utilize the desert city’s name or its spirit somehow.
Sports
Slots
You likely will not find it surprising that the internet is
overflowing with sports-themed slots. However, what may shock you is
that the most popular games do not feature football or basketball
stars. The most played games are horse racing ones, such as
Scudamore’s Super Stakes and Frankie Dettori’s Sporting Legends.
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s snooker-theme slot ranks pretty high as well.
Naturally, football, being the powerhouse that it is, dominates
overall. Sadly, developers cannot afford to license player’s and
club’s likeness. Therefore, most of these games feature generic
characters and made-up teams. Some football titles that rank pretty
high are Football: Champions Cup, Super Striker, and All Win FC.
Wild
West Slots
Westerns were likely the most popular movie genre in the late 1940s
and the early 1950s. Then, it went away, only to get resurrected in
Italy in the early 1960s, and again fade away by the 1970s. In the
slot-verse western-themed games, players were not very attractive
until NetEnt’s Dead or Alive came onto the scene in 2009.
It brought the American West back in the limelight, and over the next
few years, developers began producing more Wild West slots. In recent
times, we’ve witnessed the release of quality western reel-spinners
such as No Limit’s Tombstone and Deadwood, NetEnt’s Dead or Alive
2, and Relax Gaming’s two Money Train slots. It’s safe to say
that gunslingers are back in style.
Fantasy
Slots
Why is fantasy popular? Well, who doesn’t like iconic characters
and beautifully crafted worlds where magical things are possible? It
is a genre where the stories usually consist of heroes who quest to
pursue their dreams, fighting against evil, in hopes of a better
tomorrow. Plus, did we mention that there’s magic involved,
something that appeals to everyone’s inner child.
That said, this genre does not only feature fairies, elves, and
sword-swinging good guys. It also involves ghouls, vampires, and
other creatures of the night. Microgaming’s Immortal Romance is a
legendary industry title, as is the Kingdoms Rise series, and
Wilderland is a popular enchanting reel-spinning adventure.
Fruit
Machines
Slot machines have multiple names. You may hear some people refer to
them as one-armed bandits, others as pokies, and some may even call
the fruit machines. The latter moniker comes from the fact that the
symbols used in the earliest versions of these games were fruits,
such as lemons, berries, cherries, and the like.
Since most of the games had a combo of classic card royals and fruit
symbols, players gave them the name fruit machines. Keeping with this
tradition, developers release vintage-like slots that utilize this
theme, hoping to capture a sense of nostalgia. Fruit Frenzy from
pioneer Realtime Gaming is a five-reel game that takes this concept
to a whole new level.
Branded
Slots
We mentioned before that companies either have difficulty acquiring
or flat out refuse to spring for expensive licenses to use the
likeness of sports stars. However, branded slots do exist, as games
that feature the likeness of famous bands, TV shows, movies, old
arcade games, and pretty much everything else are a thing. There are
Megadeth and Kiss slots.
There is a Narcos reel-spinner, as well as a Game of Thrones one.
Yes, Jurassic Park is a movie series, but several coin machines are
also based on the films. You can play Street Fighter 2: The World
Warrior at an online casino, and you can watch Rick and Morty rotate
on reels on the same site as well.
Megaways
Slots
Megaways is a game engine invented by Australian-based company Big
Time Gaming and licensed to other developers such as Red Tiger
Gaming. It is a random reel modifier that changes the number of
symbols that can appear per reel on any given spin.
It’s a type of slot where each rotation can have a different grid
layout, making it possible for thousands of available paylines.
Today, this is one of the most popular genres out there, as such
titles are known for massive wins and gameplay that’s more complex
than what classic games provide.
Progressive
Slots
When touching on the subject of big wins, how can we not mention the
category of slots that provide the biggest prizes of all, progressive
jackpots? Progressive games are reel-spinners with a jackpot reward
on the line that grows with each unsuccessful attempt to claim it.
These titles tie in multiple platforms into a single massive prize
pool, enlarging until someone wins it all. Once a player gets lucky,
the jackpot amount resets to a seed value and begins rising again, as
the cycle starts all over again. These are the prizes that can change
your life. They can make tomorrow different that all the days
preceding it.
Final
Word
As technology evolves, game developers are continuously on the
lookout for innovative ways to entertain reel-spinning enthusiasts.
While new types of games and contemporary themes are exciting, some
will remain ever-green. We do not foresee a time where there will be
a drought regarding Egyptian-theme games or sports-themed ones. So,
you can both fall back on classic motifs and look forward to new
ones.
The iGaming landscape is vast, and there are plenty of choices, both
in terms of available platforms and titles that utilize all kinds of
different motifs and gameplay concepts. Find a reputable online
casino with a decently sized welcome bonus, search out a coupon code,
register, and start spinning reels whose theme best resonates with
you.
