Best Egyptian Themed Slots [2023]
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What is it about the pharaohs, Tutankhamun, Cleopatra, pyramids, and ancient Egypt that gives slot machine developers such a thrill? Ever since the Las Vegas strip first spun into action, the Egyptian trope has been a firm favourite with punters, players, and casino owners alike. We’ve cracked open the tomb, to discover a few classics of the genre. Grab that chariot and get ready, as we dodge the Mummy’s curse and spin our way through the very best Egyptian Themed slots.
Top Egyptian Themed Slots
Cleopatra, from iconic software developers IGT, is one of the most popular slots of all time and a casino evergreen. And let’s face it: Cleopatra seduced both the Roman emperor Julius Caesar and had three children with his trusted general Mark Antony. That woman had some pull, and there is no land-based casino on the planet that doesn’t host an Egyptian-themed game.
Online – it’s no different. Check out the top ten games at any online casino, and you will soon discover the Egyptian trope in full swing. The Book of Ra, the Eye of Horus, and Legacy of Dead are three online slots that always make it to the top of the charts. Let’s grab an archaeologist and dig a little deeper…
Scarab Gold
| Developed By | Reels | Paylines | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowborn Games | 6 | 10 | 94.90% |
Scarab Gold is a six-reel, 5-row, online slot, released by Inspired Entertainment in May 2021. It’s a multi-payline game, with 15,625 potential ways to win. It’s also an avalanche game. If you line up three or more matching symbols, across adjacent reels, the winning combo evaporates and the reels reload; potentially leading to more than one win from a single spin.
Icons are all the usual suspects: Anubis the dog, Sobek the crocodile, Hesat the cow, and more. The base game jackpot is an Egyptian queen; hit her six times and you win 10x your stake. Visually, it’s pretty generic, cartoon-style, branding, with a gold topped pyramid taking centre stage. The most important icon in the game is the scarab beetle. When it hits, it scuttles around the grid filling scarab shaped voids and creating winning combos. The scatter is also worth hunting out. Land three or more pyramids to get 10 free spins, with an increasing multiplier every time you win.
Clearly Scarab Gold is a hugely popular title for Inspired Entertainment; they have at least three different versions of this game in their portfolio. It does exactly what it says on the mummified tin. Old school with a twist – created by a developer that knows its stuff.
Rich Wilde and the Book of the Dead
| Developed By | Reels | Paylines | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Play N Go | 5 | 10 | 96.21% |
We need a leading character whose name suggests wealth and online slots. Hold my beer and say hello to Rich Wilde; the adventurer with a moniker, so irritating, that it merits a punch in the face. First things first: Rich Wilde and the Book of the Dead is really, really, good.
Visually, it is one of the most beautiful online slots available today. The icons are well illustrated and animated. The game looks exactly like a high-end Las Vegas slot. The audio is also next level. As well, as the clank of the reels, both the soundtrack and the sound effects are on point, integrated, and just very good. Rich Wilde and the Book of the Dead is the work of developers Play’n Go; a Swedish company, founded in 2005, that is now widely regarded as a gaming colossus, with more that 280 online casino games in its portfolio. The Book of the Dead is a testament to that story. It was the most played slot in 2021. Play’n Go claim it is still the world’s most popular online slot. It is certainly featured in the top ten of most online casinos.
The game is five reels and three rows, with 10 paylines. You can choose how many paylines to play with each spin. There are also auto-play options and a Bet Max button. The five base game icons are the classic cards – from Jack to Ace. The high paying icons are Egyptian gods. The jackpot is the eponymous Rich Wilde. Of course, the big money is all about the Free Spins. Three scatters sets you off. You also get a randomly selected expanding symbol that boosts wins.
Rich Wilde and the Book of the Dead is an absolute corker of a game. It has already spawned a family of sequels and this is a franchise that will run and run. Great volatility, great game play, great visuals, great music. It’s pretty… err… great.
Charlie Chance and the Curse of Cleopatra
| Developed By | Reels | Paylines | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Play N Go | 6 | 6 | 96.25% |
Charlie Chance and the Curse of Cleopatra is a fabulously different take on the Egyptian theme, with a Betty Boop meets Inspector Clouseau vibe. The music is more Parisian tea dance than Egyptian funeral dirge. The graphics are quirky, fun, cartoon-like, and cleverly animated. We love the dancing Cleopatra – but why the bandages? The game grid is six by six. It’s a cascade-style game. Match at least five identical icons on adjacent squares to start winning. As you win, the icons collapse – opening up the chance of more combos. It gets better: every three cascades, increase the multiplier by one – up to a maximum of three.
Charlie Chance and the Curse of Cleopatra is another online slot from Play’n Go – and the quality shows. It’s rich with features, well-engineered, and a lot of fun to play. In game features include: Cleo’s Columns, the Charlie Mega Symbol, Flying Scarab Wilds, and the Serpent’s Tail. These all pop up randomly and keep the game ticking along.
To win the Free Spins, you need to hit the scatter – Cleopatra – three times. Three scatters nets you 8 spins. In the bonus round, the multiplier can hit 10x and Cleo’s Columns are active on every spin. Bottom line: you can win up to 5,500x your bet. Let’s hope you dodge the curse and roll a good one.
Tomb of Akhenaten
| Developed By | Reels | Paylines | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| NoLimit City | 5 | 3125 | 96.09% |
Disruptive online casino game developers Nolimit City play it pretty safe with the Tomb of Akhenaten. Renowned for their controversial games about serial killers, cannibalism, depression, urinating statues, sex parties, and so much more, Nolimit City’s vanilla take on this controversial pharaoh is a little disappointing. Akhenaten is best known for not being known. When he was pharaoh, he banned the worship of all gods except Aten. The locals disapproved. After he died, they removed all trace of him from history. But… he was re-discovered – and now he’s the central character in a five-reel, three-row, online slot. Ain’t fate a funny old thing.
The slot has 243 paylines, by default. When you win, up to two new rows appear, increasing the potential paylines up to 3,125. In game, there are both sticky win spins and pyramid wilds. The motherlode kicks in when you trigger the Akhenaten Spins.
Visually and aurally, this game is competent and well put together, However, it does feature Egyptian gods that Akhenaten forbade. Possibly, not a game for any pedantic slots-loving Egyptologist.
Cleopatra
| Developed By | Reels | Paylines | RTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| IGT | 5 | 20 | 95.02% |
Cleopatra is one of the most iconic female figures in history; the last ruler of the Kingdom of Egypt, mysterious, enigmatic, beautiful, and powerful. She’s got all the ingredients to make a claim as the queen of the casino; both online and on the gaming floor. Cleopatra has scores of games based on her life. But it is developers IGT who are behind the classic 5 x 3 slot you will see at every casino. IGT was founded in 1975, when it introduced the world to video poker machine gaming. It was the beginning of the end for mechanical slots.
IGT describe the Cleopatra slots as a ‘legacy theme with high player affinity’. This probably explains why they have at least 27 games dedicated to the milk bathing, asp-averse, queen in their portfolio. (FYI: it wasn’t an asp. She poisoned herself – apparently).
The basic game has 20 paylines. You can choose how many to play. The audio is just a gentle drum track with Egyptian accents. It makes for easy listening. The gameplay is slick and the graphics are pure Las Vegas-style slots. Cleopatra also packs in wilds, scatters, and Cleopatra Bonus worth 15 spins and all wins tripled. Three scatters gets you a date with the lady.
This is one of the most popular slots in the world. It’s smooth, responsive, and familiar. Slots fans love to hang out with this lady and it is easy to see why. Just watch your asp, when you are playing this game.
Best of the Rest
There are plenty of slots to discover about Ancient Egypt. Here’s a quick excavation.
- Ancient Disco (Red Tiger)
- Crown of Egypt (IGT)
- Egyptian Heroes (NetEnt)
- Gods of Giza (Genesis Gaming)
- Mega Moolah Isis (Microgaming)
- Pharaoh’s Fortune (IGT)
- Anubis Wild Megaways (Inspired Gaming).
Egyptian Themed Slots – The Background
In 1922, Indiana Jones prototype, and Egyptologist, Howard Carter made – arguably – the most incredible archaeological discovery of the 20th century: the tomb of Tutankhamun. Hidden for more than 3,000 years, the tomb was crammed with treasures. When Carter’s eyes grew accustomed to the light, he said he could see ‘wonderful things – and everywhere the glint of gold’.
Carter’s discovery was a sensation, inspiring a craze of ‘Tutmania’. This was hidden treasure on an epic scale. Ancient Egypt was an authentic source of mystery and legend; all held together by a pantheon of gods, and a culture rich with mythology, cruelty, and mind-blowing architecture.
Incredible but true: the ancient Egyptian civilisation lasted for more than 3,000 years, from 3100 BC to around 600 AD. To put that in perspective, the people that built the pyramids, the Lighthouse and Library at Alexandria, as well as developing basic medicine, mathematics, irrigation, and art, were dying out, as we were still sitting in mud huts, fending off rapey Vikings, and at least 1,000 years away from eating our first potato.
Ancient Egypt is one of the most important human civilisations ever. Only equalled by the Sumerians, Chinese, and Incans. It’s longevity a testament to its brutality, power, and effectiveness.
The period that attracts the most love and attention starts in 2700 BC. It is the age of the Pyramid Builders, including the kings Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, who built the pyramids at Giza. A millennium later and temple-building pharaohs like Ramesses II and queen Hatshepsut were still expanding the empire.
The unique art, the hieroglyphics, the burial customs, the many gods: Osiris, Anubis, Horus and co., the Book of the Dead (a guide to the afterlife), and a mind-blowing architectural legacy, that still stands today. It all combines to make this ancient civilisation rich pickings for storytellers and creatives.
The Sights and Sounds of Egypt
There are plenty of reasons why ancient Egypt is such a popular theme for online slot developers. Aside from the drama and the narrative, the iconography is stunning and easy to identify. The scarab beetle, obelisks, hieroglyphs, and the classic Ankh: the symbol of life. All are iconic and timeless.
Not surprisingly, all of these – and many more – have weaved their way into the portfolio of every online casino. When the written language is basically symbols and icons, it’s easy to find great material for that brand new slot.
On the audio front, it’s not so cut and dried. Ancient Egyptian music would have been played on a lyre, benet, darbuka, sistrum, percussion, pipes, and trumpets. Combined, it creates that generic ‘Sands of Arabia’ vibe. Add some strings and you get the Hollywood remix.