The Hitman franchise has even spawned an online slots game.
Photo by Square Enix / Public Domain
Ubisoft caused a bit of a stir at the end of last year when it announced it would tone down some of the more edgy content in the Asian market release of Rainbow Six Siege, including slight references to gambling and exotic dancing. As it transpired, these “aesthetic changes” — which included replacing the knife in Siege’s melee icon with a fist, removing blood splatter, removing slot machines, changing a kitsch neon sign of a pole dancer into an elegantly pointed finger, and, bizarrely, removing skulls from everything across the board — would become the global default for the game.
Gamers were naturally perplexed at these changes, especially since there are far more graphic games out there, and in some gaming genres, activities like card playing, casinos and gambling integrate into the core action. Ghost Recon: Wildlands has its own “Casino” mission, which centres on the destruction of a Santa Blanca casino, and the Wild West saloon card games players can participate in during side missions in the Red Dead Redemption franchise are almost as famous as the game itself.
It should come as little surprise, then, that video games have inspired casino game designers for as long as online casino gaming has existed. Popular video games, much like movies and long-running TV serials, provide the perfect fodder for something like an online slots game — they already have a large following, are instantly recognisable, and there are plenty of characters and situations that one can utilise in different levels.
With that in mind, here’s a look at some of the more popular video game tie-in online slots games still going strong today, all of which pay out real money prizes.
Hitman
It’s nearly 20-years-old, but the Hitman franchise of video games is still a favourite with new and seasoned gamers alike. Hitman, the online slots game, consists of five reels with 15 unfixed paylines. That pretty much gives players 15 chances to get a win with every spin, and since they’re unfixed, players can decide how many of few lines they want to play at once. Fans of the game say that it’s as suspenseful to play as the source material, which is no doubt thanks to the various bonuses and special features available.
Call of Duty
This first-person shooter franchise is, like Hitman, an internationally-loved series that has been on our consoles for under two decades. It may not seem the obvious choice to base an online slots game on, but the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare slot has proven to be a nail-biting gaming experience. Style-wise it’s a perfect match, as the game’s designers have incorporated the dark theme of the original to great effect. This slot also integrates the action from the video game version in quite a neat way: One of the bonus features, for example, is a flying grenade that adds wilds to the reels when it explodes.
Tomb Raider
The adventures of Lara Croft need little introduction, especially on a gaming blog like this one. Ms Croft has inspired not one but two different online slots games: Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider: Secret of the Sword. Both games originate from the Microgaming, and while they may not feature 2019-worthy special effects and graphics, they harken back to the original console games in a cool, retro way. The original Tomb Raider slot goes back to 2004, but the newer Secret of the Sword follow-up barely edges past it thanks to 30 paylines and plenty of video content from the original games.
Street Fighter
At over 30-years-old, this iconic arcade fighting game franchise is still one of the most popular series out there, successfully crossing over into all manner of formats, including online slots. The original Street Fighter game and its further instalments may have been aimed at blood-thirsty teens, but the Street Fighter slot aims strictly at adults. Another five-reel game, but this time with 25 paylines, this slot is much like the first Tomb Raider slot in that it centres on the original arcade game. You play the game as a character and even get to choose from Ken, Ryu, Chun-Li, Sagat and Guile. Bison crops up as the Wild symbol and fights your chosen character when the bonus round activates.
