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Fan Index Reveals: The MOST Popular Gaming Character of ALL TIME
The most popular gaming character is Mario, receiving a whopping 451 points from the fan index
In second place is Sonic the Hedgehog with 394 points, receiving a staggering 59,700,700 Google searches in the last year
Legend of Zelda’s Link lands third place with 377 points, holding the largest number of Reddit mentions
The least popular gaming character is Jack from BioShock with just 48 points!
We’ve spent a lot of time at home, getting to know our favourite video games more than ever before, falling even more in love with a whole range of gaming characters. However, there is plenty of debate about which characters are the nations’ favourite!
With this in mind, experts at Stashbird.com wanted to discover the most popular gaming characters of all time from the best-selling video game franchises*. To thoroughly investigate, Stashbird.com created a gaming fans’ index by analysing the following factors:
Sales of the franchise
Average worldwide searches over the past year
Number of hashtags on Instagram
Number of Reddit mentions
Gamers’ popularity score (survey)
The top 10 most popular characters
Stashbird.com can reveal that in first place, and crowned the most popular gaming character, is Mario with a massive 451 fan index points!
Mario ranked first for franchise sales with a staggering 653,000,000 worldwide copies of Mario games sold, bagging him an easy 100 points. The fun-loving character also ranked sixth for average worldwide searches with 4,606,547 (86 points) in the past year alone! Despite these results, Mario only ranked 10th for popularity, with 45% of gamers choosing him as their ultimate favourite.
Not far behind in second place is Sonic the Hedgehog with 394 points. The extraterrestrial hedgehog ranked second for worldwide searches (59,700,000), giving him 97 points! He was voted the favourite by only 21% of gamers surveyed, however bagged himself 91 points for his 94,300 Reddit mentions.
Link from The Legend of Zelda places third, accumulating 377 points! It is no surprise as the star of the Nintendo series to have ranked top for Reddit mentions (3,920,000) and popularity score (74%), receiving 100 points for both! Interestingly, he ranked lower down for search volumes, with 1,196,200 average searches over the past year.
At number four is Donkey Kong with 354 points, scoring high with 3,930,000 yearly average searches (83 points), 570,000 Instagram hashtags (77 points) and 26,400 Reddit mentions (80 points).
To complete the 10 most popular gaming characters, the results are as follows:
5. Master Chief (Halo) 323 points, Crash (Crash Bandicoot) 323 points, Sora (Kingdom Hearts) 323 points
6. Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy) 314 points
7. Pac-Man (Pac-Man) 308 points
8. Kirby (Kirby) 306 points
9. Geralt of Rivia (The Witcher) 294 points
Closing the top 10 is Ezio Auditore Da Firenze, star of four of the Assassin’s Creed games, with 291 points!
Just making the bottom 10 is Joel Miller, ranking 25th out of a possible 34 places, from the Last of Us. This is not surprising as the franchise only scored 14 points for its 24 million sales. He also scored low on Reddit searches, receiving just 29 points for his 1,670 mentions.
John Marston from Red Dead Redemption and Simon Belmont from Castlevania were both among the least popular with 94 and 74 points, respectively.
Bioshock’s Jack rounds off the bottom 10 list with measly 48 points – a staggering 403 points less than first place contender Mario.
Methodology
1. *Stashbird.com analysed the list of best-selling video game franchises that have sold at least 20 million copies and pulled the most popular/recognised character from each to compile the list of 36 most popular gaming characters of all time.
2. The team then created an index looking at several factors, including sales of the franchise, search volumes using SemRush, the number of Instagram hashtags per character and the number of mentions on Reddit.
3. Finally, to complete the index Stashbird.com surveyed 4,567 gamers worldwide to ask them to vote for their favourite from the list to give each character a popularity score.
4. Games where there is no playable main character were excluded from the list.
5. Stashbird normalised the data by using the PERCENTRANK.INC function in Excel. This function returns the rank of a value in a data set as a percentage of the data set between 0 and 1. These values were then multiplied by 100 to make the range between 0 and 100. The maximum score a character could receive was 500.This enabled the team to rank the 36 characters from most to least popular based on their total points. The data was collected on 29/02/2021 and is correct as of then.
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1spin4win
1spin4win reveals key 2025 performance results, including a 56% surge in GGR
The studio reflects on a successful 2025, marked by major performance milestones, new partnerships, and continued market expansion. Among the year’s key achievements was a 56% increase in GGR compared to 2024.
One of the primary drivers behind this growth was the strengthening of collaboration with clients. Last year, the 1spin4win company reached the milestone of 1,000 global partnerships. The slot provider is now trusted by leading aggregators, including SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator, EveryMatrix, Alea, Digitain, and BetConstruct, among others.
Throughout 2025 and in 2026, the studio’s month-to-month retention rate consistently exceeded 40%, highlighting strong, long-term player loyalty. The main contributor to this figure was the 1spin4win portfolio of over 190 classic online slots, regularly updated with four, sometimes five, monthly releases. In 2025, the provider launched 52 titles, presented 10 branded games for partners, and introduced 12 new mechanics.
Recognized for their well-balanced gameplay and transparent math models, 1spin4win’s classic offering also contributed to a robust 64.24% surge in player count and a 52.06% rise in bet count.
Olga Hlukhovskaya, Business Development Director at 1spin4win, shared, “2025 was an outstanding year for us. Alongside the continued success of our slots, our expansion into both new and existing markets also played a significant role in this growth. While maintaining a strong presence in Europe, we significantly strengthened our position in Latin America and Africa. We’re excited to carry this momentum into 2026 and push our games and partnerships even further.”
About 1spin4win
1spin4win is a trusted game provider founded in May 2021 by ambitious developers with over 15 years of experience in the gambling industry. Since its inception, the company has expanded its portfolio to include over 190 classic online slots, all characterized by quality mathematics, transparent mechanics, and well-balanced gameplay — key factors that drive strong player retention. The studio aims to release an average of four new games each month in 2026 and offers effective promotional tools for casino operators to help them enhance player loyalty.
The post 1spin4win reveals key 2025 performance results, including a 56% surge in GGR appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
1spin4win
1spin4win reveals key 2025 performance results, including a 56% surge in GGR
The studio reflects on a successful 2025, marked by major performance milestones, new partnerships, and continued market expansion. Among the year’s key achievements was a 56% increase in GGR compared to 2024.
One of the primary drivers behind this growth was the strengthening of collaboration with clients. Last year, the 1spin4win company reached the milestone of 1,000 global partnerships. The slot provider is now trusted by leading aggregators, including SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator, EveryMatrix, Alea, Digitain, and BetConstruct, among others.
Throughout 2025 and in 2026, the studio’s month-to-month retention rate consistently exceeded 40%, highlighting strong, long-term player loyalty. The main contributor to this figure was the 1spin4win portfolio of over 190 classic online slots, regularly updated with four, sometimes five, monthly releases. In 2025, the provider launched 52 titles, presented 10 branded games for partners, and introduced 12 new mechanics.
Recognized for their well-balanced gameplay and transparent math models, 1spin4win’s classic offering also contributed to a robust 64.24% surge in player count and a 52.06% rise in bet count.
Olga Hlukhovskaya, Business Development Director at 1spin4win, shared, “2025 was an outstanding year for us. Alongside the continued success of our slots, our expansion into both new and existing markets also played a significant role in this growth. While maintaining a strong presence in Europe, we significantly strengthened our position in Latin America and Africa. We’re excited to carry this momentum into 2026 and push our games and partnerships even further.”
About 1spin4win
1spin4win is a trusted game provider founded in May 2021 by ambitious developers with over 15 years of experience in the gambling industry. Since its inception, the company has expanded its portfolio to include over 190 classic online slots, all characterized by quality mathematics, transparent mechanics, and well-balanced gameplay — key factors that drive strong player retention. The studio aims to release an average of four new games each month in 2026 and offers effective promotional tools for casino operators to help them enhance player loyalty.
The post 1spin4win reveals key 2025 performance results, including a 56% surge in GGR appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Conferences
Galaxy Gaming to Participate in Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention 2026
Galaxy Gaming Inc., the world’s largest independent developer and distributor of casino table games and technology, is going to showcase its latest innovations at the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention (IGA). At booth #2551, Galaxy Gaming will highlight its industry-leading portfolio of table games, progressive systems, and licensed content designed to drive performance on the casino floor.
“We’re looking forward to connecting with tribal operators and demonstrating how Galaxy Gaming continues to evolve table games. From iconic licensed experiences like MONOPOLY to our cutting-edge progressive technology, and proven titles like EZ Baccarat, and Player’s Edge, we’re focused on delivering games that engage players and generate meaningful results for our tribal partners. Our commitment to Deal Excitement is on full display at IGA,” said Matt Reback, President and CEO of Galaxy Gaming.
MONOPOLY Reimagined for the Casino Pit
Through an exclusive licensing agreement with Hasbro for table games and ETGs, Galaxy Gaming has brought one of the most recognizable brands in the world, MONOPOLY, to the casino table game pit in a bold new way. The MONOPOLY-branded table games combine familiar brand elements with innovative mechanics, progressive features, and eye-catching visuals, creating a premium player experience that blends nostalgia with modern gameplay.
Built to attract both core and casual players, the MONOPOLY Table Game Progressive delivers added excitement through engaging bonus events and scalable progressive jackpots, making it a standout attraction on the casino floor. It’s perfectly paired with the brand-new Ride Free MONOPOLY edition, which includes exciting bonus wagers like Free Parking, Get Out of Jail Free, and Ride Free!.
Dealing Excitement with GOS Sapphire
Also featured at IGA is GOS Sapphire, Galaxy Gaming’s next-generation table game operating system. GOS Sapphire powers the industry’s most dynamic table game progressives with advanced jackpot configurations, sleek Nebula sensors, and real-time digital tracking. Its flexible electronic bonusing capabilities—including Dynamic Progressive, which can award random multipliers of up to 10x—add excitement to every round of play.
GOS Sapphire also allows operators to link jackpots across multiple tables and properties, providing scalable solutions that enhance both player engagement and operational efficiency.
The Most Comprehensive Table Games Portfolio
Galaxy Gaming continues to offer the most robust table games library in the industry. From proven favorites like 21+3, Lucky Ladies, and EZ Baccarat, to innovative branded and proprietary titles, Galaxy delivers solutions designed to perform across a wide range of tribal casino environments.
Also on showcase at IGA 2026 is Player’s Edge 21 with the electrifying Monster Match Progressive, which thrills players with frighteningly fun animations and multipliers of up to 10X.
The post Galaxy Gaming to Participate in Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention 2026 appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
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