Best NetEnt Casinos & Slots

NetEnt, formerly known as Net Entertainment, is a Swedish software supplier based in Stockholm. It’s primarily known for producing casinos experiences, including video slots, table and live dealer games and progressive jackpot networks. NetEnt’s portfolio of over 200 games is available to play on hundreds of popular online casinos.

NetEnt was first established in 1996 by Pontus Lindwall. However, its history stretches back to the 1970s when Pontus’ father, Bill Lindwall, founded Cherry – one of the largest brick-and-mortar casino operators in Scandinavia. The business was successful in its first few years until Sweden outlawed slot machines in 1978 and essentially destroyed Cherry’s business model.

Pontus founded NetEnt to take advantage of the growing online gaming market, convincing Cherry and Swedish investment company Kinnevik to invest 75 million SEK (around €8.5 million) into its development.

The company has become an iGaming pioneer and secured its first gaming licence in Malta in 2005 and became a publicly traded company in 2007. NetEnt was granted operating and slot software licenses by the UK Gambling Commission in 2015.

Quick facts

• Number of slots: 267
• Newest game: Dead or Alive 2 (April 2019)
• Next game: Arcane Reel Chaos
• Oldest game: Mega Fortune
• Highest RTP: Blood Suckers 98%
• Lowest RTP: American Roulette 94.74%
• Min. bet per line: 1p
• Max. bet per line: £1
• Our favourite: Planet of the Apes

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Creating a US division

NetEnt’s casino products are readily available across Europe, but in 2015 the company also made its way across the pond and established a subsidiary called NetEnt Americas LLC.

NetEnt Americas LLC operated in New Jersey under a transactional waiver which allowed the company to supply online casino games in the Garden State while its permanent Casino Service Industry Enterprise licence was being reviewed. The licence was finally approved by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE) in early 2019.

The company was also granted a licence in Pennsylvania by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) just 18 months after the state legalised online casino gambling.

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NetEnt's branded slot titles

Branded or trademarked slots are games themed around popular movies, TV shows, brands or celebrities. It’s a clever way for slot providers to entice new players by creating products based on current trends such as Game of Thrones or Love Island.

Ever since Microgaming launched the first trademarked online slot game in 2005 (Tomb Raider), other slot providers have followed suit, collaborating with famous brands and creating high-quality slot games.

NetEnt has teamed up with huge movie franchises including Jumanji, Dracula and Planet of the Apes to produce outstanding slot games.

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Game design & features

NetEnt presents its portfolio of games as though they were blockbuster movies on its official website which isn’t completely out of place given the advanced graphics and stunning 3D animations featured.

All of NetEnt’s slot games are designed tightly around themes including classic fruit slots, angels, cowboys and vampires.  

It’s not just about the looks, however, as the in-play features are fun and innovative. Some of our favourites include the two way-wins in Starburst, cascading symbols in Gonzo’s Quest and hot spot areas in Archangels Salvation.

We also like that the progressive jackpots don’t rely on you hitting a mysterious combination. Instead, you simply have to land the bonus round to be in with a chance of winning.

Mobile slots

NetEnt launched it’s first set of HTML5 games in 2011, known as the NetEnt Touch range. It started with the most popular games like Gonzo’s Quest, but the company has since migrated its entire portfolio to be mobile-friendly and all new launches are compatible by default.

The mobile version of NetEnt’s slot games is identical to the desktop version. The only notable difference is the menu layout. When you load up a game and turn your mobile or tablet horizontally, you can play with a simplified menu.

Award-winning slot provider

Given the quality of its products, it’s unsurprising that NetEnt has picked up numerous industry awards in the past 10 years.

NetEnt has received particular recognition from eGaming Review (EGR) and has won 25 awards since 2010 in categories including software supplier, innovation in mobile, live casino supplier of the year and slot provider of the year.

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Top 5 NetEnt casino slots 2020

Starburst

Starburst remains one of NetEnt’s most popular slot games thanks to its simple gameplay and retro graphics. The game plays on a standard five reel playboard and has a modest 10 paylines.

What really stands out about Starburst is the ‘both way wins’ feature, meaning a winning payline can be formed from left to right and right to left. Although there are no bonus rounds in Starburst, if you land a wild, it’ll expand over the reel and trigger a re-spin up to three times.

Gonzo’s Quest

Gonzo’s Quest was the first video slot game to replace the traditional reel spin with cascading symbols, known as the Avalanche feature. It has stunning 3D graphics and features an entertaining movie-like introduction inviting you to join Gonzo as he goes on a quest to discover the location of Eldorado – a fictional lost city of gold.  

All winning paylines trigger the Avalanche feature and increase the multiplier up to five times your original wager. Land three Free Fall symbols in succession to trigger the Free Fall bonus round where you’re awarded 10 free spins and the multiplier increases to 15 times your bet. 

Dead or Alive

Dead or Alive is a cult classic and one of NetEnt’s most successful titles. It’s set in a wild west saloon and features a traditional five reel playboard, nine paylines, wild symbols and scatter wins.

Land three or more scatter symbols to trigger 12 free spins and a two times multiplier on all wins. The bonus round also has a sticky wild feature, with every “Wanted” poster symbol that appears remaining in place for the rest of the round.

Hall of Gods

Hall of Gods is part of NetEnt’s progressive jackpot network and features three jackpots: mega, midi and mini. Set in the Viking Age, Hall of Gods features Norse Gods Thor, Loki, Odin and Idun and plays on a five reel board with 20 paylines.

To win one of the three jackpots, you’ll need to hit three bonus symbols anywhere on the playboard to trigger the bonus game. Break the shields using the hammer and match either three amounts of jackpot symbols to win.

Archangels: Salvation

Archangels: Salvation is an epic 3D slot game where you’ll have to make the ultimate choice – good or evil. The game plays on a six reel playboard and is NetEnt’s first to feature 100 payline combinations.

The unique Heaven and Hell features are what set Archangels: Salvation apart from other NetEnt casino games. Land a 2x2 wild in either the top or bottom ‘hot spot’ areas and stacks of wild symbols are placed over the board. If a wild symbol lands in either ‘hot spot’ area again, more stacks of wild symbols will be generated until a final win is calculated.

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Our verdict

NetEnt is undoubtedly one of the gaming industry’s leading casino software providers, having invested a lot of time and money into creating a portfolio of high-quality products.

The game selection isn’t as extensive as competitors like Microgaming, but each variant is unique with strong identities, one-of-a-kind bonus features and stunning graphics.

Contact information

Address: NetEnt
Vasagatan 16
SE-111 20 Stockholm
Sweden

Email: [email protected]
Phone: +46 8 578 54 500
Official website: https://www.netent.com/