While those unfamiliar with the world of online slots available on casino sites across the web might assume that they rely on pretty basic designs inspired by the fruit machines and one-armed bandits of old, this could not be farther from the truth.
Today, big development teams plough lots of effort into designing online slots that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are technically effective.
Here is a quick run through of some seriously good-looking slots from both an artistic and design perspective.
Legendary Excalibur
Themed around the magical sword from British mythology, Legendary Excalibur is easy on the eye and also manages to run very smoothly in spite of boasting plenty of visual bells and whistles, especially during its more hectic moments.
From the carefully crafted symbols, featuring golden goblets dripping with jewellery and a noble king amongst others, to the clever way that the two dimensional elements shift into 3D models when respins are unleashed and wilds won, every element speaks of a lot of care and attention.
The well judged visual presentation is complimented effectively by the great soundtrack and effects, which hep to make the imagery really pop and bring a bit of meat to the bones of the slot.
Immortal Romance
Piggybacking on the popularity of all things vampire-related, this slot is oozing gothic appeal with its art style that features an almost hand-sketched quality to the symbols, rather than going for something completely clean cut and overly sanitised.
The higher value symbols feature fictional characters clearly inspired by some of the great recent works of blood-sucking horror, including the likes of True Blood, Twilight and The Vampire Diaries. There are also spooky mansions, eldritch scrolls and gilded plaques in amongst these humanoid heroes, keeping things fresh with each spin.
Raging Rhino
There are plenty of animal-oriented slots out there, but a lot of them are a little childish in their interpretations of the wild beasts they feature. This is not the case with Raging Rhino, which has wonderfully detailed representations of the titular horned creature, as well as a wealth of other animals that you would be likely to encounter out in the wilds of Africa.
From the intimidating jaws of a caiman to the spotted skin of a cheetah, there is definitely a lot of cool artwork in this slot. It even features the famously aggressive honey badger, an animal which is more than willing to go head to head with beasts several times larger than itself.
The only downside of the artistic presentation of Raging Rhino is that the standard symbols are nowhere near as inspired as those featuring animals, which seems like an oversight in an otherwise attractive game.
Skulls Up
Anyone who loves the romantic view of pirates that pop culture has developed in the past century will definitely get a kick out of Skulls Up. Its art style owes a debt to other games, with the still idolised Monkey Island series of point and click adventure titles from LucasArts seeming like a fairly significant aesthetic influence.
Icons include a scimitar-wielding seadog, a confident-looking female corsair, a cheeky monkey wearing a golden bracelet on its bicep and even a parrot casting an accusatory eye at the player as it grips a golden necklace in its beak.
The reels roll through over the background of a treasure chest and the slot is enhanced further thanks to the fact that the rest of the screen is taken up by tiki torches, tropical foliage and the crashing waves of the Caribbean behind it all. It is one of the most consistently well designed and executed slots to play today.
