Novomatic is part of the one of the biggest gaming technology companies on the planet, Novomatic Group, which turns over billions of euros a year.
The company's knowledge of the casino games is deep, stretching back to its roots in the land-based casino industry from 1980, and it has introduced innovative technology and equipment along the way, most notable the iconic American Poker II game and the Micro Processor 01 unit.
Such success laid the groundwork for a move into the digital sphere. The Coolfire Coldfire Risc Processor provided the hardware platform in interactive live gaming, and helped the Group break the $1 billion annual turnover mark in 2005. The company then moved into several new markets in Asia, South America and Europe.
In 2008, the acquisition of Greentube Group helped Novomatic break into the online sector and it continued to acquire a series of companies to boost their growth.
Today Novomatic Group has a presence in over 50 countries, employing over 30,000 people. Its casino games arm has a diverse mix of online slots games and electronic table games, some of which we'll take a look at in the next section.
Novomatic online slots all share one great feature in common – a classic feel with traditional designs their preferred style; these are games that can also be played in land-based casinos and, as such, they attract fans of these who want to try them out online. They have a variety of tempting jackpots that can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Dolphin's Pearl is one of its oldest titles and it stays true to Novomatic's bright style. A five-reeler set deep in the ocean, it has a serene quality about it, and some gorgeous symbols of marine animals. Its generous bonus feature 'Free Spins extra' has helped make the game so popular that a Deluxe edition was released later on.
Book of Ra has a very different theme, but still tempts players with beautiful visuals of Ancient Egypt. It also has a modern Deluxe version which includes an exciting extra that gives the player a chance to double their winnings. But perhaps the biggest reason for the game's popularity is its great free spins feature. Here, accompanied by dramatic music, a winning symbol is selected to fill in the reels it lands on during the free spins but, unlike other slots of the time, the winnings don't have to go from left to right on the grid when this happens. This was an innovative concept that inspired others to follow its lead and resulted in a plethora of "Book of …" titles from a number of providers.
Novomatic also has a range of more classic-looking titles, with Sizzling Hot Deluxe being among the favourites. It offers the classic fruit symbols of gambling machines of yesteryear and will appeal to the traditional player. A downside is that there are no bonus features in this title, which may put off some people who are used to them in modern slots games.
Speaking of traditional games, Novomatic also offers a number of classic and table games, including roulette, blackjack and electronic poker. All of these offer different styles within the game; so with the poker title, for example, you can switch between 3-card and Caribbean poker as you play.