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Revealed: The public’s all-time favourite on-screen characters of film, TV and gaming

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  • If search volume equated to Instagram followers, the Joker could charge $102k (£74.5k) for a sponsored post 
  • Rachel Green has the most Instagram posts hashtagged with her name of all sitcom characters (1 million) 
  • Pennywise, Chucky and Jigsaw are the most searched-for horror characters 
  • Games featuring Pikachu rake in highest revenue ($90 billion/£65.9 billion) of all the top gaming characters 

There are hundreds of iconic characters from film, TV and gaming who will forever be household names. But which characters are the public’s all-time favourites? New research by Currys looked at online search volumes and social media posts that talked about some of the most famous personalities from various media genres. Below you can find out who topped each list as the most legendary icons of their genre.

The most iconic gaming characters

  • If search volume equated to Instagram followers, Sonic could charge $67k (£48.9k) for a sponsored post 
  • Pikachu has the most Instagram posts hashtagged with his name of all gaming characters (7.4 million) 
  • Mario has appeared in the most games of all characters (259) 
  • Total revenue for the Pokemon game series ($90 billion/£65.9 billion) is higher than any other game, with second-placed Mario Bros lagging far behind ($30.3 billion/£22.2 billion) 

The world of gaming has transformed over the decades, but is it the high-definition characters of today that are the fan favourites, or the iconic cartoons of decades gone by? The answer appears to be the latter. The ever-so-speedy Sonic the Hedgehog raced to the top of the search volume ranks, followed by Pikachu and Pac-Man. It’s a similar story on Instagram, with Pikachu, Mario and Sonic receiving the most posts.

Rank Character Global Monthly Search volume No. of Insta posts with name hashtagged
1 Sonic 6,700,000 3,273,487
2 Pikachu 3,700,000 7,430,874
3 Pac-man 3,000,000 1,642,920
4 Mario 2,100,000 5,559,810
5 Big Boss 712,500 2,800,000
6 Luigi 641,200 1,300,000
7 Lara Croft 607,700 735,000
8 Kratos 571,900 654,000
9 Yoshi 556,700 1,800,000
10 Diablo 490,900 1,100,000

The most terrifying horror characters

  • If search volume equated to Instagram followers, Pennywise could charge $15k (£10.9k) for a sponsored post 
  • Pennywise has the most Instagram posts hashtagged with his name of all horror characters (2 million) 
  • Hannibal Lecter has the highest average IMDb rating (rated 7.2) 

Although many of us would probably rather forget some of the most memorable horror characters, the fact that we can’t makes them all the more iconic. Taking first place for search volume and number of Instagram posts is killer clown Pennywise, who has really had a lasting impact on audiences. He’s followed by evil doll Chucky and Saw’s murderous mastermind Jigsaw in terms of search volume, and Dracula and Halloween’s Michael Myers in number of Instagram posts.

Rank Character Global monthly search volume No. of Insta posts with name hashtagged
1 Pennywise AKA IT 1,500,000 2,000,000
2 Chucky 1,400,000 1,100,000
3 Jigsaw 967,000 844,000
4 Freddy Krueger 943,000 991,000
5 Michael Myers 798,000 1,200,000
6 Frankenstein’s Monster 673,900 124,000
7 Hannibal Lecter 635,000 332,000
8 Dracula 632,000 1,500,000
9 Slenderman 579,500 517,000
10 Eli 324,100 1,000,000

The Best-loved sitcom characters

  • If search volume equated to Instagram followers, Mr Bean could charge $11k (£8k) for a sponsored post 
  • Rachel Green has the most Instagram posts hashtagged with her name of all sitcom characters (1 million) 
  • Rachel, Monica, Ross and Phoebe from Friends have the joint highest average IMDb rating (rated 8.9)

There have been plenty of memorable sitcoms over the decades, each attracting die-hard fan bases. So, it’s interesting to see that the data reveals a landslide victory for Friends, with the cast beaten only by Mr Bean in search volume. Not only does this suggest that Friends could be the most iconic sitcom of all time, but it also answers the question many Friends fans have been dying to know – who is the most popular ‘Friend’? It turns out the on-screen couple, Ross and Rachel both take the crowns.

Rank Character Global monthly search volume No. of Insta posts with name hashtagged
1 Mr Bean 1,100,000 568,000
2 Ross Geller 589,300 932,000
3 Rachel Green 509,400 1,000,000
4 Monica Geller 491,700 969,000
5 Joey Tribbiani 470,000 957,000
6 Will Smith 364,000 247,000
7 Phoebe Buffay 338,000 812,000
8 Bart Simpson 303,000 590,000
9 Jerry Seinfeld 273,000 125,000
10 Homer Simpson 266,000 688,000

The most legendary superheroes and villains

  • The Joker, Spider-Man and Black Panther are the most searched-for superheroes and villains in the world 
  • Batman has the most Instagram posts hashtagged with his name of all superheroes and villains (28.2 million) 
  • Black Panther has the highest average IMDb rating for all films he has featured in (rated 8.1) 

Who steals the title as the greatest superhero is a popular topic of debate. As is the Marvel vs. DC Comics rivalry. To settle these disputes once and for all, the data reveals that Batman, and his nemesis the Joker, take the victory as the most-searched-for and posted about characters. But if we’re basing the win on a majority vote, Marvel and DC Comics are neck and neck, with five characters each ranking in the top 10 – leaving the competition very much open between the two market leaders.

Rank Character Global monthly search volume No. of Insta posts with name hashtagged
1 Joker 10,200,000 13,700,000
2 Spider-Man 7,200,000 20,500,000
3 Black Panther 4,400,000 6,000,000
4 Wonder Woman 3,800,000 9,300,000
5 Iron Man 3,400,000 16,600,000
6 Batman 3,200,000 28,200,000
7 Harley Quinn 3,200,000 6,600,000
8 Thor 2,800,000 10,900,000
9 Deadpool 2,700,000 6,100,000
10 Aquaman 2,600,000 2,500,000

Methodology

The top characters were identified using Google searches for the “top sitcom characters”, etc. From this, a list of approximately 100 characters was curated for each category, which was narrowed down to 15 based on the highest search volumes (found using SEMRush). Instagram hashtag counts are based on the number of posts hashtagged with the characters’ names, e.g. #Sonic, etc. Potential Instagram earnings were calculated by using the search volume for each character as a hypothetical ‘follower count’. With these figures, we calculated an earning per post based on an unspoken industry standard rate of $100 per 10,000 followers. IMDb ratings were calculated by averaging the IMDb rating of all TV shows or films the character has featured in. For gaming, we identified the total number of games the characters have featured in.

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Stake releases Zoo casino game: a fast, multiplayer Stake Original where players bet on the wild side

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A new live-round Stake Original where every player bets on the same outcome – six animals, a 20-tile track, three results per round, and wins up to 1,000x in play.

Stake, the world’s largest online casino and sportsbook, has today launched its Zoo casino game, a new multiplayer Stake Original that brings every player into the same live round to bet on six animals across a 20-tile track. Available worldwide on Stake, Zoo is the latest title to join the growing Stake Originals collection.

Zoo takes the shared-round excitement that has made games like Crash a Stake Originals staple and pairs it with simpler, more visual decision-making. Each round, six animals – Lion, Cheetah, Elephant, Crocodile, Rhino, and Penguin – appear on a 20-tile circular track, with each animal showing up a different number of times to create clear volatility tiers and payout differences across the board. Players have ten seconds to back one or more animals before the track spins up and locks in three result tiles in the center of the screen.

Zoo launches with a 98% RTP, a top multiplier of 1,000x per round, and full auto bet controls that let players preset their wager amount, number of rounds, and chosen animals. Designed as a simpler, more visual evolution of popular casino games like Roulette and Sic Bo, Zoo strips back the complexity without compromising on depth. The rarer the animal, the bigger the reward – Lion and Cheetah each appear only once on the track, Elephant and Crocodile twice, Rhino four times, and Penguin ten, giving players a clear read on the risk and payout of every play. With three result tiles drawn each round, players win based on how many times their chosen animal lands across all three.

“Zoo is exactly the kind of game we want Stake Originals to be known for – fast, simple to pick up, and genuinely fun to play in an online setting filled with other players. There’s real tension in watching the three tiles land for the whole table at once, and we think players are going to find their favourite animals pretty quickly,” said Stake’s Chief Marketing Officer, Akhil Sarin.

Zoo joins a growing line-up of in-house multiplayer game creations on Stake Casino, with the goal of keeping every Stake Original easy to learn, quick to play, and a little bit different from anything else in the iGaming industry.

About Stake

Stake is the world’s largest online casino and sportsbook, attracting over 100 million monthly visits across its global domains – more than any other iGaming platform on earth. Founded in 2017, Stake attracts over 80 million monthly visits and processes more than 100 billion bets per year. Stake is renowned for its innovation in crypto wagering and its growing expansion into regulated local-currency gaming markets, including Italy, Denmark, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. The brand boasts an extensive global sponsorship portfolio including Drake, X Games, Everton Football Club, and the UFC.

Contact

Stake.com

[email protected]

The post Stake releases Zoo casino game: a fast, multiplayer Stake Original where players bet on the wild side appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

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Stake releases Zoo casino game: a fast, multiplayer Stake Original where players bet on the wild side

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stake-releases-zoo-casino-game:-a-fast,-multiplayer-stake-original-where-players-bet-on-the-wild-side

A new live-round Stake Original where every player bets on the same outcome – six animals, a 20-tile track, three results per round, and wins up to 1,000x in play.

Stake, the world’s largest online casino and sportsbook, has today launched its Zoo casino game, a new multiplayer Stake Original that brings every player into the same live round to bet on six animals across a 20-tile track. Available worldwide on Stake, Zoo is the latest title to join the growing Stake Originals collection.

Zoo takes the shared-round excitement that has made games like Crash a Stake Originals staple and pairs it with simpler, more visual decision-making. Each round, six animals – Lion, Cheetah, Elephant, Crocodile, Rhino, and Penguin – appear on a 20-tile circular track, with each animal showing up a different number of times to create clear volatility tiers and payout differences across the board. Players have ten seconds to back one or more animals before the track spins up and locks in three result tiles in the center of the screen.

Zoo launches with a 98% RTP, a top multiplier of 1,000x per round, and full auto bet controls that let players preset their wager amount, number of rounds, and chosen animals. Designed as a simpler, more visual evolution of popular casino games like Roulette and Sic Bo, Zoo strips back the complexity without compromising on depth. The rarer the animal, the bigger the reward – Lion and Cheetah each appear only once on the track, Elephant and Crocodile twice, Rhino four times, and Penguin ten, giving players a clear read on the risk and payout of every play. With three result tiles drawn each round, players win based on how many times their chosen animal lands across all three.

“Zoo is exactly the kind of game we want Stake Originals to be known for – fast, simple to pick up, and genuinely fun to play in an online setting filled with other players. There’s real tension in watching the three tiles land for the whole table at once, and we think players are going to find their favourite animals pretty quickly,” said Stake’s Chief Marketing Officer, Akhil Sarin.

Zoo joins a growing line-up of in-house multiplayer game creations on Stake Casino, with the goal of keeping every Stake Original easy to learn, quick to play, and a little bit different from anything else in the iGaming industry.

About Stake

Stake is the world’s largest online casino and sportsbook, attracting over 100 million monthly visits across its global domains – more than any other iGaming platform on earth. Founded in 2017, Stake attracts over 80 million monthly visits and processes more than 100 billion bets per year. Stake is renowned for its innovation in crypto wagering and its growing expansion into regulated local-currency gaming markets, including Italy, Denmark, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. The brand boasts an extensive global sponsorship portfolio including Drake, X Games, Everton Football Club, and the UFC.

Contact

Stake.com

[email protected]

The post Stake releases Zoo casino game: a fast, multiplayer Stake Original where players bet on the wild side appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

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