From niche product to a mass phenomenon
For the past few years, Marvel’s masked heroes and villains have enjoyed an immense increase in popularity. The comic adventures were already a huge success, of course, but the superheroes and villains in tights had a certain reputation: they were reading material for nerds. This all changed when they made the leap to the big screen. Suddenly, comic series like X-Men, Spider-Man, The Avengers, Iron Man, Dare Devil and the Fantastic Four were the “in thing”, not only for the loyal community of fans who already knew their favorite superhero’s adventures, but also for a wider audience. In other words: Marvel’s figures, clichéd at first glance but profound upon close inspection, have become a mass phenomenon.
It’s no wonder that the successful movies were followed by game adaptations. In the past, video-game adaptations, and their big-screen equivalents, have been a guaranteed flop – just think of games like Wolverine: Adamantium Rage (1994, SNES, Mega Drive) or Spider-Man: Separation Anxiety (1995, SNES, Mega Drive, PC) . Nowadays though, the software versions are high-quality and fun to play. X-Men Legends (2004, PS2, GC, etc.) and Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes (2014, PS4, Wii U, etc.) are examples of appealing adaptations of popular Marvel franchises. But the figures’ influence extends beyond the usual scope of game consoles.
Be it pinball machines or online slot machines of Spider Man, the Marvel warriors enjoy great success across all media channels. Playtech is one innovative developer that stands out. Among other things, the company produces online slot machines based on Marvel series, including the popular Iron Man and Dare Devil franchises. The slot-machine implementation of the second Iron Man movie focuses on a successful layout that is based on the character’s celluloid template. By the way: Playtech’s first slot machine was developed for Iron Man. The playing field is made up of 50 play lines, which is the case with many Marvel slots. The right combination, composed of the Iron Man logo, rewards players with up to 10 free games, making the slot machine interesting for beginners.
Dare Devil is no different. Playtech made a slot machine based on the red-suited masked avenger. Unlike Iron Man, the fields are based more on the comics, even though there are similarities to the fairly mediocre movie with Ben Affleck. Divided into 20 play lines, the game attracts players with its bull’s-eye feature and the fact that the slot machine is part of the Marvel Multilevel Jackpot Network, where four jackpots can be won.
It remains to be seen where else the Marvel characters will pop up. But regardless of what else the resourceful minds will come up with, one thing is certain: there will be many movies coming out in the next few years, offering plenty of new material for new games. Not to mention the comics still being continued. Anyone wanting to know which movies are planned between now and 2019 can find an overview here.