How Did Greek Mythology Took Over Games And Western Culture?
In the days of Ancient Greece, people weaved tales of gods and their adventures of fantasy and violence. Even long after the fall of the Greek civilisation, the stories remained. They were passed down through writing and verbal traditions, even morphing into Roman gods that blessed another mighty empire.
But even though Greek gods died out when the last pagans were converted, the interest in Greek mythology is still alive to this day. It has sparked the imaginations of artists through the centuries, and to the delight of players everywhere, it has managed to seep through the world of online gambling.
Greek Mythology Around Us
The mythical nature of the Greek gods and the fascinating stories surrounding them continues to amaze. Ancient Greeks and the mythology that they created still influence in the modern world:
- Democracy. This is perhaps the most significant contribution of ancient Greeks to the modern world. The idea that everyone should have a voice has allowed representation from every segment of society.
- Company names. Amazon is a billion-dollar company that's named after female warriors who helped in the Trojan War. There are other examples like Oracle, Pandora, and Olympus.
- Language. Achilles died with an arrow to his heel, the only part of his body that wasn't submerged in the River of Styx. Today, Achilles' heel means a weakness that can cause failure.
- Greek mythology games. Slots have overtaken every type of casino game today. You'll find that many of them are inspired by the ancient Greeks and their gods.
Mythical Characters in Online Games
- Zeus. The god of thunder is perhaps the most popular character in the entire mythology because he's the highest-ranking god. It's no surprise, then, that there are many games inspired by him. If you're interested in how they delved into his character and transformed it into a slot game, titles like Zeus Lightning Power Reels and Zeus the Thunderer are worth checking out.
- Hades. Following the mythology, Hades is one of the twelve Olympian gods and is the god of the Underworld. So, it's no surprise that the Greek mythology games inspired by him are of a darker theme, like Titan Thunder Wrath of Hades and Haul of Hades.
- Athena. The goddess of wisdom and battle strategy is also heavily featured in a lot of slot games, usually in her battle gear. She's seen as intelligent and strong, and this is how she's represented in various slot titles like Legend of Athena and Athena's Glory.
- Cerberus. This dog is also known as the Hound of Hades, and he prevents the undead from escaping from the Underworld. You'll see his iconic three heads on a slot named after him, Beat the Beast: Cerberus Inferno.
- Pegasus. Pegasus is a winged horse that was fathered by Poseidon. In popular culture, he is depicted as a white stallion with wings. He is also normally associated with Hercules, as is evident in a slot game called Hercules and Pegasus.
- Olympus. This is the house of the gods where Zeus sits on the throne as the king of gods. As its rightful ruler, it's no surprise that a lot of the slots created that are inspired by this godly abode (like Rise of Olympus and Gates of Olympus) also feature Zeus.
- Hades. The Greek Underworld, where souls go after death, is also called Hades. But because the ruler of this realm is also of the same name, the two have become synonymous with each other.
Slotsjudge.com Favourite Greek-Themed Games
It's no surprise that Greek mythology games are popular even in the realm of online casinos. Today, there are so many slot titles that have been inspired by some parts of this body of myths. To determine our favourites based on the long list of slot titles under this theme, we have considered the following:
- Adherence to and inventiveness of the use of the Greek mythology theme
- Relevant slot information like RTP, volatility, and max win
- Reputability of the software provider
- Gaming experience
Based on these factors, we have set these two to be our favourites:
Zeus vs Hades
Zeus vs Hades takes on the two most popular characters in Greek mythology and has them face each other. Released by Pragmatic Play in May 2023, the central concept here is the epic battle between these two iconic characters. With an RTP of 96.05% and a high level of volatility, very rarely does the slot give out significant cashouts to players; however, this also means that the potential winnings are much higher as a result.
This game has a starting bet of just 10 cents and follows a 5-5 and a 15-payline layout. So, what sets the Zeus vs Hades slot apart from other titles of this theme? Greek mythology slots usually focus on just one character, but this gives you a contrast. Even to the sounds, the developer mixed the joyous and triumphant sounds of the Olympus with the dark and gloomy tones of the Underworld. Below are some of the game features:
- Expanding wilds with multipliers. Not only will you get 20 times your bet for getting five expanding wilds, but the symbol itself will expand to the entire reel. Then, you will be awarded a multiplier of up to 100x, which will apply to all wins passing by that symbol.
- Free spins. Head over to the free spins round when you get scatter symbols on reels 1, 3, and 5. This will award you 10 free spins, where you can get even better rewards. The expanding wilds will also stay in their place until the free spins round is over.
- Buy free spins. You have the power to choose between Olympus Mode or Hades Mode. They have essentially the same RTP, but what makes the latter better (and more expensive) is it gives you one guaranteed multiplier wild.
Zeus vs Hades makes sure not to leave out the visual impact, with the symbols all related to the overarching theme. Apart from Zeus and Hades, some symbols that you may see include Pegasus, Cerberus, and a chalice.
Wisdom of Athena
Wisdom of Athena is another Pragmatic Play slot game that is just as visually impactful as the first one on this list. The slot symbols used truly represent the femininity and strength that Athena embodies. Apart from the wise owl, you'll also see vividly coloured gems, swords, helmets, and chariots. The layout is surrounded by different shades of gold that give you visions of Olympus.
But the Wisdom of Athena slot game is more than a visual masterpiece. With an RTP of 96.1% and a high level of volatility, the chances of landing generous prizes are larger. This balances out the drought in wins between the bigger payouts. The game also has various features that make it compound your win as close to the 5,000x max win as possible:
- Multipliers that get up to 500x are added to your total win when the cascading stops.
- Free spins bonus that you get for landing four scatter symbols. The multiplier also increases here every time you get one. You can extend the free spins if you get three scatters before the bonus round is over.
- Tumble feature, which brings in new symbols to replace symbols on a winning payline, which can keep the wins going.
- Ante bet feature that lets you wager twice your bet amount to double your chances of getting free spins.
- Bonus buy feature that enables you to buy your way into a free spins bonus round for 100x of your bet.
Takeaways
Greek mythology games will continue to be very popular in slots, just like they are in other forms of entertainment. And as much as we love Wisdom of Athena and Zeus vs Hades, slots under this theme don't offer anything that you can't find in titles from other themes. Therefore, you should place Greek mythology games under the same scrutiny as any other slots.
Now, does this make Greek mythology slots any less special? Definitely not! However, when money is at stake, we should still assess gaming options objectively. After all, your money is at stake!
