A History Lesson on Microgaming Slots
This trio are so dominant that it is rare to find a reputable online casino which does not feature at least two of them amongst their gaming providers. Most will include all three. Microgaming belong in this select group because of the number and quality of their superb slots and other games, but also because of their sheer size.
Founded in 1994, this company have been around since the very dawn of the industry. Headquartered on the UK protectorate of the Isle of Man, the company have hundreds of employees. Most of its workforce is based on the island and elsewhere on the UK mainland. Microgaming also operate a small satellite office on the Mediterranean island of Malta and employ remote workers based all across the globe.
In recent years, the company have deployed a new strategy of sub-contracting much of their games design functions to tiny games development studios based in a variety of locations based all over the planet. This includes outfits in Estonia, Malta, South Africa and several more far flung territories.
At the time of writing, there are already around a dozen of these, with more possibly in the pipeline. Although apparently independently operating and not technically ‘owned’ by the company, they produce content exclusively for Microgaming. It is a matter of judgement as to whether they are ‘employed’ by Microgaming, but as far as players are concerned it’s an irrelevance – all these games are effectively Microgaming titles, and are distributed exclusively by them.
The company’s office is particularly impressive. Situated on the Isle of Man just a stone’s throw from the coast, Microgaming re-located to their new ultra-modern five-storey building in 2017. Moving was not too much of a problem however. The new premises are linked to the old office via a sky bridge. The swanky new building contains all the features you would expect of a forward looking modern technology company. It includes more than a dozen break out rooms, a fully equipped gym, a treatment room, a well-equipped social area complete with soft furnishings and entertainment, a restaurant, coffee shop, library and even a roof garden. Oh, and a periscope. They don’t say what that is used for…
All this impressive infrastructure is all well and good, but even more spectacular is the quality and quantity of superb slots and other games the company has produced over the years.
What To Expect From Microgaming Games
Microgaming have released in excess of eight hundred different games. These are predominantly slots, but the company have also produced dozens of traditional table games. These cover all the main casino games such as Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker and Roulette, each in a variety of formats. The company also operate their own live studio, streaming live dealer games to thousands if not millions of players all over the world.
When accounting for the vast array of slots released by the company over the years, it is difficult to know where to start. It is simply impossible for a regular player of online casino games not to have played a Microgaming title. Their portfolio contains some of the most iconic slots in the history of online gaming.
The production line started early. Initial releases seem a little simple and clunky by contemporary standards, but have nevertheless earned the right to be termed nostalgic classics. Early Egyptian title Pharaoh’s Fortune and Martian Money belong in this category, as the line first sprang into action early in 1998. The early years of the 21st Century saw the release of similarly classic titles like Monster Mania and Reel Thunder.
These were succeeded by games which are still very popular today, such as Break Da Bank (2003), Spring Break (2003) and Big Kahuna (2004). Perhaps most famous of all amongst the early cohort is Thunderstruck (2003), title which has spawned sequels and constant updates, the most recent of which came in 2020.
Things really began to take a step up in late 2004 with the release of the ground breaking Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. This game saw a step change in graphics as the fictional video game (and now movie) hero was re-imagined in slot form.
This talent for turning officially licenced movies into slots really came to the fore the following decade. The year 2014 saw Microgaming take the industry by storm with the release of the mega movie hit Jurassic Park and the stonewall classic Arnold Schwarzenegger Sci-Fi movie Terminator 2 .This was followed the following year by the issuing of a slot version of the worldwide TV phenomenon Game of Thrones.
The release of this series really threw the gauntlet down to the company’s rivals and raised the game of the entire industry. Today, additional classic characters like Jungle Jim are also charming the world’s online casino gamers, and the standard of graphics has improved still further. More recent releases like Stumpy McDoodles, Tiny Gods and Assassin Moon have raised the bar still further.
Microgaming is also renowned for its progressive jackpot slots. Its games regularly break records for the maximum pay out for an online slot. Indeed, its progressive jackpot network has already paid out well over €1 billion at the time of writing. Mega Moolah is probably its most famous game in this category. Now available in a variety of versions and re-boots, it is the go to game for many players seeking the biggest prizes.
Today, much of the company’s game design output is outsourced to independent software studios operating under exclusive licencing deals. Nevertheless, Microgaming continue to release fresh titles and update their back catalogue. The company’s commitment to this process was demonstrated in 2020 by their decision to licence Big Time Gaming’s Megaways TM mechanic in order to add some extra excitement to their new and legacy games. Microgaming’s family of independent software partners can also access this licence.
All casinos operating on the Dragonfish platform have access to the full range of Microgaming’s current range of slots. I’d recommend that you look out for them, but in truth, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding them – there will be dozens, maybe even a hundred or more, on every Dragonfish casino.