The new series of graphics cards is here, and video games are about to get better than ever. Namely, just a while back, NVIDIA revealed the RTX 4070 Ti GPUs at CES 2023 and announced a whole new lineup of 40 series cards that will allow game developers to take the world of gaming to a whole new level.
Needless to say, the popularity of video games is at an all-time high, and video games continue to inspire developers and creators from all sorts of industries—we’ve seen video games inspire movie directors and book writers and even give birth to iconic characters.
However, did you know that video games inspire even online casino software providers?
The Close Relationship Between Video Games and Casino Games
Video slots are the most popular type of online casino games. Today, you can play everything from exclusive titles and vintage slots to jackpot and progressive video slots. Moreover, if you favor crypto over fiat currency, you can even play Bitcoin slots at every reputable crypto casino out there.
Regardless of your preference, one thing’s for certain—there are thousands of video slots. Because of such a high demand, casino software providers continuously look for new ideas for their latest titles.
In a lot of cases, the inspiration often comes from video games, which are, basically, a more advanced and complex version of early gambling and board games.
To prove it, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most popular video games that inspired online casino software providers, and we will also show you how each video game fares to its video slot counterpart.
Street Fighter
Street Fighter is a fighting video and arcade video game developed by Capcom. The game was first released in 1987, and the latest game in the franchise, Street Fighter 6, is scheduled for release in 2023.
Street Fighter pioneered the fighting games genre, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that the game inspired even casino software providers to create their own versions of the game—the most popular video slot inspired by Street Fighter is Street Fighter 2: The World Warrior slot by NetEnt.
NetEnt published the slot in 2020. It features five reels, cluster pay betways, and a generous RTP of 96.06%. The game allows you to select one of eight Street Fighter characters—we picked Ryu, of course, because everyone loves a good Hadouken—and fight others by filling up your Wild meter.
The slot has original Street Fighter graphics, sound effects, original characters as symbols, and more. In addition, Street Fighter 2 by NetEnt has bonus features that pay homage to the original game, making it excellent in every regard.
Call of Duty
Call of Duty is a first-person shooter developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. The first game in the franchise was published in 2003, while Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 was published in November 2022.
The action is set in different periods, and the game allows players to embark on various campaigns, drive various vehicles, equip and upgrade all sorts of weapons, play against the AI, or fight against other players.
The Call of Duty franchise has nearly 30 games developed for everything from consoles and PC to mobile devices. The one that inspired a casino slot is from the Modern Warfare series, seeing it is titled Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare.
The slot was developed by Cryptologic and published in 2011. It features five reels, 25 paylines, Wild symbols, Scatter symbols, and free spins. In short, all the good stuff you’d want from a video slot.
Call of Duty 4 also includes symbols in the form of weapons and equipment you may encounter in Call of Duty games. Unfortunately, while the Call of Duty franchise sold more than 400 million copies, the Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare video slot was published by a lesser-known provider and didn’t experience the same success.
Tomb Raider
If you’re a gamer or a movie buff, or if you simply didn’t live under a rock for the past two to three decades, chances are you know who Lara Croft is. Now, we don’t mean Angelina Jolie or Alicia Vikander—we’re talking about the original archaeologist and thrill seeker from a Tomb Raider video game released in 1996.
Microgaming was the first provider to introduce Lara Croft to the world of online gambling. The company released the Tomb Raider slot in 2004, which features 15 paylines and an RTP of 95.22%. Tomb Raider also has Lara Croft with her well-known Heckler & Koch USP pistols as one of the symbols and, of course, a treasure map to lead her to a new adventure.
Despite being released nearly two decades ago, Tomb Raider is still fairly popular among slot enthusiasts. Microgaming also released a sequel in 2008, titled Tomb Raider Secret of the Sword, while Triple Edge Studios released Lara Croft Temples and tombs in 2019.
Hitman
The first Hitman game, Hitman: Codename 47 released in 2000. In the game, you play Agent 47, a genetically modified assassin who travels the world to execute hits on notorious criminals.
Known for his ability to use every weapon, barcode tattoo, and the shiny cue ball, Agent 47 quickly became one of the most popular video game characters, which fueled the success of the entire Hitman franchise.
Recently, the game received a soft reboot, and IO Interactive A/S developed and published the World of Assassination trilogy, which features three games and a lot more complexity, detail, and fun than any of the previous games.
As far as its video slot counterpart goes, the Hitman video slot was published by Microgaming in 2007. The slot comes with an RTP of 95.84%, 15 paylines, and is packed with features that will take anyone who played Hitman games on a trip down memory lane.
Apart from the Agent 47 symbol, the game also features many weapons from the game. However, there is no muffin symbol, so we have to wonder if Atrioc has tried to speedrun this one yet.
Resident Evil
The Resident Evil series is the best-selling horror game series, with more than 131 million copies sold worldwide. The first game in the franchise was released in 1996 by Capcom, and Umbrella Corporation has been creating the T-Virus ever since.
The games follow multiple protagonists who try to stop the Umbrella Corporation while evading hordes of zombies and antagonists like Nemesis, Tyrant, Alex Wesker, and many others. The games were, and still are, extremely popular, and there are even seven Resident Evil movie adaptations.
Regarding its casino counterpart, the Resident Evil 6 slot was developed by Skywind Group and published in 2019. It has a decent RTP of 95.09%, five reels, and 25 paylines. The slot features Ada, Jake, Chris, and Leon as symbols, eerie music, and several features that further add to the atmosphere.
Overall, Skywind Group did an excellent job encapsulating Resident Evil’s essence and created a suspenseful video slot that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
The Wrap Up
In addition to all the video games we’ve mentioned, there are plenty of other popular games that influenced casino software providers. For example, Blueprint Gaming created two video slots themed after the Worms video game and another title based on Plants vs. Zombies, a popular mobile game.
Moreover, you can even play slots based on Space Invaders, Zuma, and even the X-Men series of video games.
In case you decide to give some of the slots on our list a try, make sure to gamble responsibly—use your best wits about it and never spend any money you cannot afford to lose.
