Slot Versions - Brand Names

by John Grochowski
 
Brand Name Slot Versions are hitting the casino floor at a tremendous pace. Learn more about these slot versions at the Learn, Play Slots program.
Here are some examples of these slot versions with descriptions.
I Love Lucy. M*A*S*H. The Honeymooners. The Three Stooges. Laverne and Shirley. The Beverly Hillbillies. The Munsters. TVLand, or maybe Nick at Night?
The Price Is Right. Jeopardy! Hollywood Squares. The Match Game. Let's Make a Deal.
And, of course, Wheel of Fortune.

Maybe the Game Show Network or syndication in any market.
Clint Eastwood. Marilyn Monroe. Bogart and Bergman. James Dean.
Could be American Movie Classics, or maybe Turner Classic movies. Budweiser. Popeil. Yep. Even the commercials are covered.
 
OK, put away the remotes. We don’t really need them. A stroll through the slots floor or a visit online will do. That’s where the stars come out for many of our old TV and movie favorites.
Of course, not every game will be on any given casino floor. Prime time for a slot version is even shorter than that for a television show. But even with the older slot version, you can count on some old friends to surprise you every now and again.
You walk into an unfamiliar casino, find all the latest games and flickering in a corner, there it is --- a rerun.

So let’s put away our TV Guides and tune in to some of the slot versions we’ve been viewing over the last few years. Most seem made for the video screen --- after all, that’s where we originally saw them.
Let’s take a spin through a few film favorites, then come back next time and check out some TV nostalgia.

Clint Eastwood: After the initial release of A Fistful of Dollars: Wanted, and A Fistful of Dollars: Wild Shot had Clint shooting straight in the Old West , WMS Gaming has turned to a different Eastwood character with the 15-line video Dirty Harry slots. The Make My Day bonus puts Harry on the trail of a criminal --- roll the dice in the top box and hope you’re on the right track. No gunplay is necessary in the ‘Do You Feel Lucky' bonus. Just decide if you like your bonus, or feel lucky enough to try for a bigger one.
 
Monty Python And The Holy Grail: A 15-line IGT video slot with a die and game board in the top box, this one has the Python crew stamping their own brand of silliness on the Arthurian legend. The top box die is for the Holy Grail bonus, with seven rolls of the die up top and a look at the “Camelot” song scene on the screen below. There are plenty of film clips, and multiple bonuses --- watch out for the Trojan Rabbit.
 
Men In Black: The sci-fi comedy crew romp through three WMS video games now --- Men In Black, Men In Black Riches of the Universe and Men In Black Galactic payback. In the original, go alien hunting by choosing among 20 Top Secret file folders. Each contains either a bonus amount or a picture of an alien. Bonuses accumulate until the player finds an alien picture. That launches yet another screen with animation of people in a park.
The player must decide which person is really the alien matching the picture. When the choice is made, the screen "X-rays" the chosen one's head. If it's really an alien in disguise, the player gets the largest bonus.
 
Austin Powers: Just as in the theaters, Austin Powers isn’t so much a one-time oddball as a shagadelic oddball franchise for IGT --- Austin Powers, Austin Powers in Goldmember in both video and reel-spinning slots, Austin Powers Poker.
The original Austin Powers video slot brings together our hero with Mini Me, Dr. Evil and all the sights and sounds of the movies. Visit Dr. Evil in his headquarters underground to go for a bonus multiplier, or match characters to find the Fat Bastard. The “Goldmember” versions even come with a spinning silver disco ball for top-box bonuses.
 
Marilyn Monroe: Available in both a reel-spinning game with a top box bonus and the video game with Marilyn symbols, diamonds, voiceovers and music befitting one of Hollywood’s most glamorous stars, Marilyn Monroe is a gem in the IGT collection.
The video slot is part of the “Diamond Cinema” series that brings a whole cast of Hollywood legends to the slots floor ---- James Dean, Bogart & Bergman, Steve McQueen and Frank Sinatra.
 
The Beverly Hillbillies: “Come and listen to my story about a man named Jed …” The Clampetts may have been millionaires, but it only takes pennies to play this video slot made for the one-cent market. With images along with the Clampett clan, pigs in the mud, moonshine and more, The Beverly Hillbillies takes you from the backwoods to the mansion with the cee-ment pond.
And when you get to the Bubblin’ Crude bonus, the familiar theme song plays along with a video clip of the TV show opening, with Jed shootin’ at some food and bagging the crude instead. Oil, that is.
 
I Dream Of Jeannie: Barbara Eden works a little magic of her own in a series of games. Jeannie’s bottle in the top box spins through bonus numbers while an animated Jeannie she dances onscreen in one bonus. In one version, you touch bottles on the beach to collect bonuses. The more you collect before finding Jeannie’s the better. When you find it, Eden’s voice apologizes, saying “Sorry master,” as she dissolves into her bottle.
 
Saturday Night Live: All the classic comedy bits on the long-running NBC series have given ample material for a multigame series. There’s the Church Lady, Wayne’s World, Hans & Franz, the Coneheads --- it can go on and on. Remember the Coneheads lifting complete six packs to “consume mass quantities”? Here, one bonus round is the chance to Win Mass Quantities by bouncing your spaceship off planets to reveal bonus amounts.
Or you can try the Senso-Ring toss, selecting either an animated version of Jane Curtin’s Prymat or Dan Aykroyd’s Beldar to toss the rings over the other’s cone. Unearthly fun.
 
Wheel Of Fortune: The hottest thing in slots for most of a decade, Wheel of Fortune has spawned sequel after sequel, both on three-reel-spinners and in five-reel video. The original reel-spinner, with the top-box wheel spinning while the audience on the game’s audio chants “WHEEL! OF! FORTUNE!” remains a staple of any slot floor. Video versions were inevitable.
There are several, including Wheel of Fortune Special Edition --- Triple Action, featuring live-action video of TV hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White.

Hollywood Squares: uses game themes and the images of stars in a whole series of games. In the original, Whoopi Goldberg is center square as you choose stars to answer questions in the game’s version of tic-tac-toe. New in the franchise is Premiere Night, with live-action video of Joan Rivers announcing as a limo pulls up. Touch the car's windows to choose a celebrity for bonuses.
There’s also Hollywood Squares Prize Fun, with an unusual “wheel” on top. A circle is divided into wedges depicting stars, but it’s not the circle that spins. It’s the wedges, each with a different celebrity on each of its three sides.
 
Rocky And Bullwinkle: The plucky little squirrel and muscular moose are on the way into casinos with a series of games. There is a full complement of Jay Ward characters on both five-reel video and three-reel versions --- help Dudley Doright save Nell from Snidely Whiplash, or take a trip with Peabody and Sherman in the Wayback Machine. “Hey Rocky! Want to watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat?”
 
Popeye: The cartoon Sailor Man has starred in games with spinning reels for the main game and a video screen for bonuses in the top box. Popeye draws his strength from spinach --- it just seems right somehow when he's down for the count, but Swee’ Pea delivers a can of spinach so he can continue knocking down Brutus’ goons on his way to rescue Olive Oyl.
 
But Wait! Win More! Think back on late-night TV commercials, and chances are you’ll come up with a product or two from Popeil or Ronco. Which is your favorite? The Pocket Fisherman, perhaps?
Here, you can pick a Popeil product such as the electric inside-the-shell egg scrambler, and inventor and TV pitchmeister Ron Popeil comes along to announce your bonus round.
No matter how much a bargain any product seemed in the old commercials, there was always something extra. Same thing here. After your initial bonus, Popeil will keep pitching: “But wait! There’s more!”  
Now, put that remote on “pause,” it’s time to play your favorite slot versions.

Slot Versions is followed by Slots Myths
OR
Return to Learn Slots, Play Slots 1

Gambling Teachers Home

GT is attentive about getting the word out about our free programs, lessons and add-ons offered, however, we ask your assistance and consideration in promoting us.
Click link below that reads, "Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how..." to add a link to your site, blog or personal page.