Is Pop Culture and Celebrity Changing the Casino Scene?
Easily accessible from home and on mobile.
Online casinos have enjoyed a huge rise in popularity in recent years with technological advances helping it to become easily accessible from home and on mobile. The influence of popular culture and celebrity has also been apparent across its range of slots and games. We take a look at some of the ways in which online casinos have taken inspiration from contemporary pop culture.
Using Pop Culture to Redefine Roulette
The classic game of roulette has been used across a multitude of iconic cultural touchstones including films like Casino Royale and Casablanca. Its online iterations, however, have repaid the favour in some instances by drawing inspiration from established legends of popular culture. This is illustrated by the popularity of Superman Roulette, for example, which is available when you play roulette online with Betfair.
The game takes advantage of the enormous popularity of the superhero genre as a whole, and the big names in bonafide celebrities like Henry Cavill, which immerses the user in the world of Superman whilst retaining the fun of traditional roulette. Its use of the iconic red, blue and yellow colours of Superman coupled with its emphasis on associated symbols like the famous ‘S’ logo all help to bring a different dimension to the game. This roulette game demonstrates the success online casinos have found in taking inspiration from popular culture.
Keanu Reeves Fronting Slot Games
Slot games have also benefited from the influence of popular culture and celebrity. The ‘Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure’ slot celebrates the 2020 release of its sequel ‘Bill & Ted: Face the Music’ by returning to the original film. Keanu Reeves, who stars in the movies, remains a global megastar and his magnetism is a sure-fire attraction to online users. This slot shows how online casinos continue to rise in prevalence as the industry is adept at keeping up with the zeitgeist - even if this is more than 20 years in the making - and using the recognisability of generational celebrities.
Indeed, slots often create gaming environments based around popular television shows like ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’ in order to entice users. There's ‘Deal or No Deal: Megaways’ slots, for example. And, in terms of celebrity influence, Meghan Markle famously began her career on the US version of the show and these connections help online casino games to appeal to a wider audience.
Unlikely Celebrities Step Up to the Plate
Even simple games like blackjack often draw inspiration from contemporary culture with established shows like ‘Deal or No Deal’ again being used. In addition, however, there are blackjack games like ‘Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven’ which boosts its popularity through the celebrity name recognition of the once-unavoidable jockey, who has also found fame as a television personality on shows like ‘A Question of Sport’. It is clear that recognisable brands and established celebrities have been crucial to the increasing popularity of online casino games like blackjack.
It is evident that online casinos have drawn upon a wide range of influences from the deep well of popular culture - ranging from individual celebrities to sporting legends, as well as film and television mainstays. The marriage of these games with hugely popular cultural icons has proved to be of fundamental significance to the rising prevalence of the online casino industry.