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Can any of the upcoming slots dethrone Starburst in 2021

Published

5 years ago

January 20, 2021

Starburst is the video slot created by NetEnt back in 2012. Despite its age, it is still one of the most popular slots currently, and probably the most played video slot game of all time! What makes this classic 5×3 slot so special that is still played by millions today, and can anyone find the secret behind its success, and create the slot which can dethrone Starburst in 2021? We will analyze the facts of what makes Starburst that popular, and take a look at some of the upcoming slot releases from the first quarter of 2021 and try to give an answer to that question. Also, if some of you, by any chance, still haven’t tried this amazing slot, Starburst free play is available. Try it now and see why it is so popular.

The Building Blocks behind Starburst Popularity

At first glance, we can see that Starburst’s graphics and design are impeccable. It is still modern, although it is more than eight years old! Although this is just makeup, it is very important for slot longevity.

With the fast evolution of technology and the fact that graphics are becoming more sophisticated, even slots that are only two or three years old can look outdated. After that, their player counts go to the abyss. With Starburst this didn’t happen, and we even believe that it won’t, because graphics are that sophisticated, and yet so simple, that we won’t see a huge dip in their popularity anytime soon.

The second reason behind Starburst slot popularity is its simplicity. Some of the slot game providers experiment with a huge number of reels and rows, many different features, and various cosmetic additions to keep the players entertained and happy. Starburst makes all the things simple, with its classic 5×3 design. Some players argue that Starburst is boring, but it is not a coincidence that the 5×3 design is the most popular slot design ever. It is not too plain and boring, and not too complicated as well, because slot game players want to win some cash, and not feel overwhelmed by design and gameplay.

Starburst has a huge betting range, from €0.01 to €100. That allows both casual players and high-rollers to play this slot. Although high-rollers don’t like this slot very much, because it is not volatile, casuals adore it. There are many more casual players than high-rollers, so they again targeted a broad audience.

We mentioned that Starburst has low volatility and therefore is not that popular with the players who want to win big. However, casuals love to see many small wins, because they have a feeling that they are generally winning, although they actually don’t – the wins you will get will often be smaller than the bet you made, but some of the players somehow don’t notice it. The sessions are usually long if you play for the smallest amounts, so you can have fun, even if you lose money.

For all these reasons, Starburst retained its popularity over the last eight years. Although it is not the best slot in terms of the chances of winning big, all the reasons we mentioned make it appealing for most players, which happen to be casuals.

We will now take a look at some of the upcoming slot releases and try to guess whether or not they have a chance for dethroning Starburst.

The Most Anticipated Slot Releases 2021

January is not over yet, and we already got some exciting slots this year. For example, we got an exciting video slot from Gamomat, an independent slot game provider, called Crystal Strike. It is a highly volatile slot, beautifully designed, with classic features such as respins and wilds.

Nolimit City released San Quentin xWays. This slot is based on the infamous US jail, which is a theme that wasn’t widely used, so it can be hit or miss, but we expect to be popular, especially among the younger audience.

iSoftBet, another award-winning games supplier, released Mighty Stallion Hold & Win, the Wild West theme-based video slot. It is another slot that uses their Hold & Win mechanic, but the theme is not inventive, nor the slot itself is offering something new – it is basically the type of slot we get from them all the time, only with a slightly altered theme.

Play’n GO released Miner Donkey Trouble, while Pragmatic released Mysterious Egypt. These slots feel like they were already seen before, and there is no chance that slots that use the same, boring theme, such as the Ancient Egypt flourish and dethrone Starburst.

Pragmatic Gaming has a more interesting release scheduled for February – Dragon Kingdom: Eyes of Fire. This slot should be way better and way more popular than Mysterious Egypt because it has a flawless design and many features attached. Dragons are still a popular topic, and they aren’t overused in video slots such as Ancient Egypt, so we can see this release gaining popularity right off the bat.

Another highly anticipated release should be the Playtech Age of the Gods series’s next release – Book of Oracle. This slot should be the first to come from Playtech in 2021, and they decided to go big right away. Age of the Gods series gained a significant amount of players which is getting bigger with every new slot release. We expect that this slot will be masterfully done in terms of the graphics and interface (since we still didn’t have an opportunity to see it), and the features should be similar to the ones from the previous slots. This is a volatile, progressive jackpot slot, so it will draw attention from the high-rollers.

What Features Should a Slot Have to Beat Starburst

Since we know what is behind Starburst’s popularity, and we saw what the first slot releases are in January 2021, the question arises – does any slot from this list have the features and traits required to dethrone Starburst? We can never know for sure, but the answer is probably – no.

To be as popular as Starburst, the audience must be predominantly casual players. There are some amazing, volatile slots you can make a fortune on, but there are not enough people who would risk big money to try it out. Long, interesting sessions, with lots of small wins, which give you the false impression that you are an overall winner, are the key to the slot popularity.

After that, the slot must have an impeccable design that will age well, so it can stay relevant with time, and must have simple, but yet unique and interesting features. You should overcomplicate, but the slot can’t have a dull theme or average graphics.

Summary

We eagerly expect more great slot releases in 2021. In January and February, we should get several amazing slots from the biggest slot games providers, but in terms of popularity, we don’t think that any slot will be able to dethrone Starburst anytime soon.

However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try out new slot additions, especially if you are a high-roller. There is a trend of more progressive jackpots, mega ways, and other great features incorporated in new slot releases, and in general, it seems that the average volatility is getting higher, which is excellent news for the ones chasing big wins.

Bet builder

GG.BET launches Bet Builder for a new way to bet

Published

10 hours ago

December 3, 2025

George Miller

gg.bet-launches-bet-builder-for-a-new-way-to-bet

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Customers can now use Bet Builder, a format that lets them build their own set of markets on one match into a single bet with higher odds. Bet Builder is available for both esports and sports events. You can try out the new feature with a deposit bonus of up to 150% and a free bet worth up to $50.

Customers can now place a combined bet on a single match by picking various options for how events in the match will play out. For example, in CS2, customers can choose which team will win on a specific map, how many kills a specific player will rack up, how many rounds will be played on a single map, and so on.

To place a Bet Builder bet, pick an event that hasn’t started yet, press the ‘Bet Builder’ button, put together your selection of markets from those available, get higher combo odds, and finish placing the bet in one click. At this initial stage, GG.BET is offering Bet Builder on football, basketball, hockey, CS2, Dota 2, LoL, and VALORANT, with more sports and disciplines to be added down the line.

“GG.BET has always been known for embracing unconventional markets and elaborate betting options. Bet Builder is there to meet customer demand for more interesting formats in a single match. The ability to make predictions right down to a specific round and any other tiny detail of a match is what gives users variety and improves their skills,” the GG.BET press office explained.

GG.BET is offering customers the opportunity to test out the Bet Builder format with a deposit bonus of up to 150% and a free bet of up to $50.

The post GG.BET launches Bet Builder for a new way to bet appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Battle of the Tribes

POLYTOPIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 BREAKS RECORD PARTICIPATION AS FINALS DRAW CLOSER

Published

13 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Wladimir P.

polytopia-world-championship-2025-breaks-record-participation-as-finals-draw-closer

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Celebrated strategy game The Battle of Polytopia confirms its first ever World Championships has exceeded expectations with over 10,000 sign-ups in its qualifying rounds. While no stranger to tournaments, previously hosting smaller scale, local tournaments called ‘Polysseums’, developer Midjiwan’s first step into global esports has been met with extreme success. The inclusive esports event has a $10,000 prize pool and will conclude on 6 December 2025, 14:00-21:00.

The finals will take place in front of a live-studio audience, with expert commentary and a chance to peek behind the scenes at Midjiwan itself. First place will receive $4,000, the runner-up will take away $2,000, the third and fourth place finishers will get $1,500, and the fifth and sixth place $500.

The Polytopia World Championship 2025 is being hosted by eSports platform, Challengermode, who Midjiwan has relied on for its monthly local tournaments since 2022. Midjiwan also partnered with Black Molly Entertainment to help organise and manage the event. Black Molly Entertainment have years of experience managing eSports tournaments, with notable events including the Geoguesser World Cup and CS:GO Pinnacle Cup Championship.

Midjiwan has worked closely with its community to ensure engagement is high with each round, building a bespoke ‘Spectator Mode’ into the game so fans can watch each game live through the game itself. In the spectator mode the viewer has visibility of all players simultaneously, with stats on how many cities, technologies, kills and more available for quick access.

Christian Lovstedt, CEO of Midjiwan commented:
“Polytopia has always been about welcoming all kinds of players into the world of 4X strategy. That’s why our championship is open to everyone – not just pros with sponsors. We’ve been thrilled at the amount of interest this tournament received from our community, reaching participation numbers way beyond our expectations. We’re excited to bring the finalists to Stockholm and can’t wait to see the strategies that emerge.”

The Polytopia World Championship 2025 kicked off in September, with its ‘Battle of the Tribes’ qualifying round – weekly battles where players competed to be the best in each of the game’s 12 tribes. After an exciting six weeks, the top player from each tribe faced-off, reducing the qualifiers to six finalists. These six winners are listed down below.

Tribe	Qualifying Player
IMPERIUS	ArthurL248
BARDUR	slimmingboy
OUMAJI	Dreamlander3000
HOODRICK	Theetat
XIN-Xi	LeLiberateur
LUXIDOOR	Meisterlampe

Recaps of each round of the tournament prior to the finals can be watched on the official Battle of Polytopia YouTube channel.

Part 1: Polytopia World Championship 1st Qualifiers Wrap-Up – BARDUR, IMPERIUS, KICKOO, ZEBASI
Part 2: Qualifiers Wrap-Up – Oumaji Hoodrick Yadakk & Quetzali – World Champoinship 2025
Part 3: Final Qualifiers Wrap-Up – Xin-Xi, Luxidoor, Ai-Mo & Vengir – World Championship 2025
Face-off stream: https://youtube.com/live/GnU6mWPoJiY?feature=share

To watch the finals live on December 6,visit here: https://polytopia.io/stream/

To stay up to date on the Polytopia World Championship 2025, or purchase one of the limited tickets for the live event, visit the official website or join the Official Polytopia Discord.

The post POLYTOPIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 BREAKS RECORD PARTICIPATION AS FINALS DRAW CLOSER appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Latest News

Second Prize Drop of N1 Puzzle Promo: Top Affiliates Score Porsche, Cartier, Leica & Apple for Driving High-Quality Traffic

Published

14 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Master Editor

N1 Partners is wrapping up the second lottery of the N1 Puzzle Promo! From September 1 to November 30, partners were actively collecting puzzle pieces for FTDs and climbing the rankings to secure their place among the winners.

A notable trend this season: the Top-5 leaders by traffic and collected puzzles differ from the main leaderboard. This means some partners slowed down, while others pushed harder — and now have every chance to boost their position in the overall standings by the end of the promo.

Five luxury prizes will be awarded to partners with consistently strong performance who entered the Top-5 by puzzle count during the second mini-lottery period.

Which prizes did the leaders receive?

1st place — MacBook Pro

C*** *****h

2nd place — Porsche eBike Sport

A***********t

3rd place — Cartier Santos Medium watch

T****** ****d

4th place — Leica Q2 camera

P******k

5th place — Apple Vision Pro

S** ****s

“The promo is entering its final stretch — a crucial checkpoint for the entire N1 Puzzle Promo, where the fate of the leaderboard may be decided,” notes Alexa Bond, Head of Affiliates at N1 Partners. “With one month left until the end, even those who joined later still have a chance to make a breakthrough, while the leaders can strengthen their positions and widen the gap. N1 Puzzle Promo isn’t about luck — it’s about consistent work and mutual trust between partners and the affiliate program.”

The Grand Finale in Barcelona Is Getting Closer

The race continues: the more puzzle pieces collected throughout the promo, the higher the ranking — and the greater the chance to fly out of Barcelona in your very own helicopter!

On January 20, 2026, in Barcelona, during iGB Affiliate and ICE, N1 Partners will host the final N1 Puzzle Promo party, where winners will receive exclusive gifts — and the grand prize: a Robinson R22 Beta II helicopter.

Guests of the event can also expect:

Exclusive prize ceremony;
Live performance by top artists and the evening’s headliner (announcement coming soon)!
Activities and surprises from the N1 Partners team;

Still Not Too Late to Join

N1 Puzzle Promo runs until December 31, 2025, and partners still have time to collect puzzle pieces, climb the leaderboard, and compete for the grand prize and additional rewards. Traffic from Tier-1 GEOs counts toward the ranking, and only registered N1 Partners partners can participate.

All details and registration are available at: https://n1.partners/puzzle_promo

There’s still time! Collect your puzzle pieces, level up in the leaderboard — and your team might be the one taking home the Robinson R22 Beta II right off the stage in Barcelona!