Fans of the fantasy genre must have long appreciated the American television series Game of Thrones, based on the saga “A Song of Ice and Fire” by George Martin. A large number of characters, the development of several storylines at once, and the scale with which the motion picture was filmed did not go unnoticed, receiving recognition from world critics. As the popularity of the TV series grew, many gaming software providers decided to catch the wave of its popularity. They began to create games on the theme of medieval fantasy (Fire and Steel by Betsoft Gaming), dragons (Double Dragons by Yggdrasil, Dragon’s Kingdom by Amatic), and the symbolic confrontation of ice and fire. To beat all the competitors in this managed company Microgaming, which created slots Game of Thrones (15 lines) and Game of Thrones (243 Ways) with the participation of HBO. Both slots which can be found at wagering advisors, are made in full accordance with the original: here, players will plunge into the world of Game of Thrones thanks to the color accompaniment, canonical names, colors, emblems of noble houses of Westeros, as well as video and audio inserts from the series.
Playing a slot Game of Thrones (243 Ways), fans of the series will see so many familiar elements that it will be hard to contain their excitement. Game components of the slot are no less diverse: Gamble function, allowing you to increase the amount of each winning spin by 16 times; free spins and multipliers feature; the possibility of winning up to $121,000. An ingenious solution from Microgaming for those who want to win to the tune of their favorite TV series. Since the slot machine was created with the official participation of HBO, which has all the rights to Game of Thrones, it was not necessary to “forge” the names used in the gameplay, emblems, and symbols. All elements of the game are original.
Players of real money online casino are greeted by the well-known soundtrack from the series splash screen when starting the slot.
The color design of the game menu combines dark brown colors of the general background with the colors and emblems of the four great houses of the world of Game of Thrones:
- The Baratheons (the color is gold, the symbol is a stag),
- The Lannisters (color – red, symbol – lion),
- The Starks (color – gray, symbol – wolf),
- The Targaryens (color – black, symbol – dragon).
Among other original symbolism, you will see video moments from the series in wild symbols and when passing levels of the additional Gamble feature.
Recently the TV series House of the Dragon started on HBO, the long-awaited prequel to the epic fantasy series Game of Thrones. We sincerely hope that the developers of online games will soon release an exciting new slot for the new casino. And now, we’ll talk in detail about the prequel and the first estimates of viewers and experts.
Game of Thrones is back. House of the Dragon
The television show is adapted from George Martin’s book “Fire and Blood,” which tells the backstory of the “Songs of Ice and Fire” series. The plot of the series is about the rise of the Targaryen dynasty, from which Daenerys the Stormborn and Jon Snow were descended.
The 60-year peaceful reign of Aerys I Targaryen is ending – the Seven Kingdoms have no direct heir. The leading candidates are from the Targaryen bloodline: grandson Viserys and cousin Rhaenys. The male line wins, of course. And to make sure it’s clear to everyone, there are close-up captions on the screen: “172 years before Daenerys Targaryen”.
It’s the ninth year of the reign of Viserys, of whom the viewer has previously heard only from legends and tales of Westeros. His wife is pregnant. Their firstborn is Rhaenyra’s daughter, so everyone in the Seven Kingdoms is hoping for a male heir. Soon we meet Viserys’ presumptuous prodigal brother, Prince Daemon. He has taken over the city guard of King’s Landing, and what is most interesting is that such a man has unchildish ambitions to take the Iron Throne.
You can tell from the first episode that House of the Dragon is an expensive series
It may be forgotten now, but at launch, Game of Thrones was not yet as massive as it is remembered from its final seasons. House of the Dragon, on the other hand, is being pitched as a costly project right off the bat. The basis partly requires this of the plot: during the heyday of House Targaryen, they had nine dragons at once. So the special effects here are initially at a high level.
The authors had also decided to invest in the actors. The leading roles are not first-rate stars, but the viewers know them all the same:
- Matt Smith,
- Paddy Considine,
- Rhys Ifans,
- Emma D’Arcy,
- Olivia Cooke.
Even the young cast was not recruited from newcomers. Milly Alcock had already done a great job in Upright with Tim Minchin. And Emily Carey seems to be repeating Mckenna Grace’s fate: she’s constantly playing young versions of well-known heroines. Before that, there was Wonder Woman and Tomb Raider, and now the prequel Game of Thrones.
The setting doesn’t let up either. So far, we have shown a couple of locations, but each of them is worked out in detail and immerses the viewer in the fantasy world of the Middle Ages (we want to believe that we will not see the coffee cups and plastic bottles). In short, it’s immediately apparent where the claimed $20 million for the episode was spent. And Miguel Sapochnik proved his directorial skills a long time ago. The parallel montage of the birthing scene and the knight’s tournament is a great way to introduce the routines of this cruel world in a few minutes. It is to be hoped that there will be many more such artistic devices.
House of the Dragon is all about intrigue and cruelty
Perhaps those two words are the easiest to describe Game of Thrones. And House of the Dragon inherits that approach but again shifts the emphasis. If the famous predecessor was mainly the confrontation of the great houses, the main intrigue unfolds in a narrower circle of heirs to the throne.
At first, their rivalry occurs more often at the table than on the battlefield. However, there will surely be many more battle scenes for the viewers in the future. But already in the first episode, we are shown that all the characters are ambiguous, each pursuing his interests. Though the hero of Matt Smith is made as a too grotesque villain. But he is responsible for the frankness and violence that once made Game of Thrones famous. In his first appearance, Daemon and his golden cloaks massacre the town. Then he also participates in a knight’s tournament and entertains himself in a brothel.
There are plenty of other violent scenes. But no spoilers, just be prepared that the new series perfectly picks up the mood of its predecessor: it’s better not to watch House of the Dragon with children and especially impressionable friends.
Viewers Opinion
A few days before the start, the first episodes managed to assess the film critics, whose opinion was divided. Some wrote that the show was fascinating, while others saw only fan service. But the impressions of the first viewers, who started watching the series on HBO Max, were more unequivocal.
For the most part, the first series was an immense delight. Many viewers noted that the series awakens a sense of nostalgia and brings back their beloved Westeros.
We publish several reviews of the first viewers:
- “The House of the Dragon series is terrific and insanely beautiful; I am obsessed and in love!”
- “I am intrigued that the series focuses on the conflict of forces surrounding the throne rather than the houses feuding. While the pilot didn’t wow me, it lays an exciting foundation for what’s yet to come.”
- “After the first episode, I can only say that Matt Smith is absolutely brilliant! This is a fantastic show.”
- “No spoilers: House of the Dragon starts many things off right. I kept looking for more about the characters, fascinated by the unique yet familiar world.”
- “It was great to learn that even after the killer final season of Game of Thrones, there are still plenty of good stories to tell.”
The Verge reports that House of the Dragon premiered on HBO and HBO Max Sunday night with 9.986 million viewers in the U.S. alone, and revised figures for one whole week put the number of first episode viewers closer to 25 million American viewers! The creators of the series and representatives of the channel have openly stated that they do not believe it is possible to repeat the success of Game of Thrones. Still, the numbers have already surpassed the premiere series of the first five seasons of the original series. This is the best start to a new series in HBO history (within the U.S.). A representative of the local HBO Max division does not give European numbers but notes that the number of viewers of the first series exceeded all expectations; it is the most significant start in the history of HBO and HBO Max in Europe.
Experts Opinion
Reviewers note strong acting, complex, three-dimensional characters who, however, are in no danger of eclipsing the far more memorable characters of Game of Thrones. No truly charismatic heroes like Tyrion Lannister have been found by critics yet.
Some experts argue that nothing in the first few episodes indicates we are looking at a potential masterpiece. There are structural flaws, blatantly secondary elements, and a ringing emptiness in moments when the viewer should have resonated with the character.
Drama, intrigue, betrayal, and political disputes are all there, but the audience does not find the spark and fire in them. The conversations, they say, do not reach the level of expressiveness of the main series’ dialogues. There were no threatened clingy phrases or vivid quotations for which Game of Thrones was famous.
As for the blood and nudity, the latter scenes are reviewed as more aesthetically pleasing than Game of Thrones, and the former category includes eerily naturalistic birthing scenes. These were filmed to emphasize the plight of women in the conditional Middle Ages.
But the fans of strong and independent women are likely to be satisfied with the movie, for the female characters, as the reviewers say, are being showcased as much as possible.
Among the definite pluses, they note the music of Ramin Djavadi. Meanwhile, the preliminary review aggregators are harvesting a crop of professional reviews. The epic fantasy has an 85% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an 8.8 out of 10 rating on IMDb.
So the main intrigue, for now, is how well the writers – including director Miguel Sapochnik, who directed some of the most significant episodes of the original series, and George Martin himself (who has been given even more creative freedom) – can keep up with the bar they have set?
