While slot machines are certainly among the most popular games, they are too simple and straightforward for the average gamer. After all, all they require from the player is to passively push buttons and wait for Lady Luck to smile at them. Today’s gamers are said to have grown up with a controller in their hand, requiring more action, more interaction, and perhaps more entertainment value from their games.
While traditional video slots are still very much in demand, the developers of the top casino games today are already exploring different directions. The result of their effort is a series of games that don’t feel like gambling at all.
Dungeon: Immortal Evil (EvoPlay)
It may seem impossible to merge a dungeon crawler with a slot machine – but with Dungeon: Immortal Evil, EvoPlay did just that. The protagonist of the game is an unnamed warrior who has to fight his way through a dungeon filled with monsters. He doesn’t have to worry about being slain, because our hero is immortal – but so is the evil infesting the realm. With each new room, our hero has new enemies to slay. Like in a traditional RPG, these enemies drop loot, sometimes in the form of power-ups, but usually coin. The coins they drop represent the players’ winnings for the round.
Dungeon: Immortal Evil has graphics worthy of an MMORPG from a few years ago. It is a welcome break from the constantly spinning reels.
Reactoonz (Play’n GO)
The cascading wins are among the most satisfying things in “match-3” type games – when the game begins to play on its own, with combinations falling into place one after another. Play’n GO borrowed this element from these popular casino games and turned it into a game of their own: Reactoonz.
On a 7×7 grid, coloured aliens fall into place from above. Unlike in match-3 games, here you need a combination of five symbols for them to disappear. This, of course, makes triggering a cascade much more unlikely. But it’s all the more satisfying once it finally happens.
Star Guardians (EvoPlay)
Finally, let’s go back to EvoPlay for another venture into the world of gaming: Star Guardians. Similar to Dungeon: Immortal Evil, Star Guardians is a dungeon crawler, but this time with a sci-fi theme. The player guides a mech through what seems to be a space station filled with hostile aliens. But it’s not just automated slaying – players can actually take control of the mech, choose what weapon to use (between what looks like a plasma gun and a frag grenade), find keys, and open chests – basically, it’s a third-person looter-shooter with real-world money put in play.
Final words
A new generation of casino players requires a new generation of games, something today’s top developers are eager to deliver. Whether it’s the barbarian slaying monsters or the aliens triggering cascading wins, all of these games provide not just different and maybe familiar forms of fun but also real-life winnings hidden in their chests. But only as long as you play them in a responsible fashion.
