Plenty of top musical artists have lent their image to brands. This extends to everything from appearing in adverts to being playable characters in video games. It’s part of the attraction of making it; your image becomes an asset.
Yet, this also extends to online slot games, with many of the biggest stars in the world – sometimes posthumously – lending their images, their music and most iconic moments to game developers.
Below, we look at seven of the most notable of those titles. They are all mainstream games, found at both real-money online casinos and online sweepstakes casinos in the US and beyond. What unites them – apart from their popularity – is that they are all officially licensed, using real music, imagery and, sometimes, video footage of legendary artists:
1. Whitney Houston – IGT
A hugely popular title by IGT, which provides slots for both online platforms and casino resorts, this title puts every era of Houston’s career front and center, even changing symbols in some features to capture the star’s different looks. It’s big on bonus features and jackpot games, too.
2. Michael Jackson: King of Pop – Light & Wonder
We have a feeling that MJ is going to go through a bit of a renaissance now that the new biopic, Michael, is releasing in theaters. Anyway, Light & Wonder went big on this game, tying it into Jackson’s most iconic moments and looks. Features include Moonwalk Wilds.
3. Jimi Hendrix Video Slot – NetEnt
NetEnt chose to showcase some of rock’s biggest legends with a flurry of games in the 2010s, which included this top game based on the iconic guitarist and singer. It does a couple of things very well: Infusing the sights and sounds of Hendrix’s career into the gameplay, and it comes with loads of themed bonuses.
4. Elvis Lives – Williams Interactive
There are actually several officially-branded Elvis Presley slots out there, but one of the most popular with players is Elvis Lives. You’ll hear a few of Presley’s hits as you play, and there is a bit of an old-school charm to the gameplay. An underrated title.
5. Guns N’ Roses Video Slot – NetEnt
As mentioned, NetEnt released a flurry of games of this genre in the 2010s, believing that infusing rock music into the titles would blend nicely into the gameplay. This certainly does that, with tracks from Appetite for Destruction and Use Your Illusion I and II forming part of the action.
6. Megadeth – Leander Gaming
True heavy metal bands like Megadeth also get showcased in slot games, which really dials the action up to 11. Often with branded games like this, the artists don’t really do much in terms of promotion, but Megadeth actually trumpeted the virtues of this slot on the band’s website.
7. Danger: High Voltage – Big Time Gaming
We will finish with a game not really based on a band, but a song. Electric Six’s Danger High: Voltage was a huge hit in 2002 for the American rock band, yet Big Time Gaming somehow decided to make a tribute slot just over ten years later. It was a strange idea, perhaps, yet it quickly became one of the biggest slots of the 2010s. Like the band behind the song, Danger: High Voltage is unique.
