How do you know when you’ve made it as a celebrity? Maybe when you get your name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Or perhaps Bollywood’s Walk of the Stars? Maybe it’s a Grammy award? Or appearing on the front cover of Vogue or GQ for the first time? But how about appearing in your own casino slot game? It’s a trend that seems to be getting more popular, and we can count dozens of examples of celebrity-fronted slots. In a sense, it’s an act of merchandising for the internet age, akin to a celebrity releasing a calendar or appearing on a lunchbox.
So, what exactly is a celebrity-fronted slot game? The concept of branded slot games first arrived online in the mid-2000s. It was Microgaming – now one of the world’s largest suppliers of online casino games – that created the first branded slot, which was based on the Tomb Raider video games. The idea is that they use officially licensed material from the video game and incorporate it into the gameplay and imagery of the slot. Others that followed included Jurassic Park, Justice League, Ted, Game of Thrones, The Goonies, The Matrix, and a ton of other branded slots.
Dita von Teese arrives at the casino
But when we say celebrity-fronted games, we mean something a little different. These are not based on a movie, tv-show, or video game, but on real people. A good example is the Burlesque by Dita online slot by Aurum (one of Microgaming’s subsidiary studios). It is based on the real-life burlesque star Dita von Teese, the so-called Queen of Burlesque.
We can also find online titles based on Frankie Dettori (the famous jockey), rock bands like Guns N’ Roses, Ozzy Osbourne, Joe Exotic (that one surprised us), Michael Jackson, and several others. If you make a trip to Las Vegas, you will also likely see the Ellen Slot machine in physical casinos. This one is based on the talk show host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres.
Gameplay is the key to sustained success
And yet, the key to the success of these games is not celebrity branding for the sake of it. Two we mentioned earlier, Burlesque by Dita and Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven, are popular not simply due to the allure of the stars fronting the game. They incorporate elements of the celebrity’s career into the gameplay. Dita von Teese’s game, for example, has some fun elements from the world of burlesque, whereas Dettori’s slot features bonus games based on horse racing. The gameplay is the important thing – not the fact that a celebrity’s image is on the game.
Of course, you can understand the reasons why online slots developers choose to do this, as it offers crossover appeal to players. It’s basic marketing tactics. If you are a fan of horse racing or hard rock music, your head is more likely to be turned by a game like Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven on Guns N’ Roses slots compared to a generic casino game. The
But in the end, it doesn’t matter who is fronting the game. That might get players to try it for the first time, but they will not come back to play again if there aren’t alluring and fun gameplay elements. Slots are supposed to be a form of entertainment, not glossy adverts for celebrities. But if both elements are combined, developers know they can have a smash-hit release.
