Motorcycles vs. Cars: Which Theme Do Casino Game Creators Favour?

More often than not, it is the theme of an online casino slot that drives the greatest engagement. That’s because it is what gives people the first clue of what the slot is about, so the theme is the hook that initially captures a player’s attention.

Someone who enjoys fishing may go for more sedate games featuring that particular theme, while gearheads may naturally lean more towards the power of cars or motorcycles.

Naturally, a casino player needs to find a good platform where they can explore slots. Because this is a heavily saturated market, with a large range of sites to choose from, it is useful to study  some expert references, like Legalbet, a service  which breaks down the different platforms by assessing areas such as game variety, customer support, payment options and more. Having been carefully analysed and checked, Legalbet UK top casino sites are a good starting point to find the best slot games from leading providers like NetEnt, PlayNGo and Pragmatic Play for your preferred theme.

While the percentage of vehicle-themed casino slots is quite low compared to other major slot themes such as mythology, Ancient Egypt, or animals,  still this niche category appeals to many players. However, within these slots, is there a winner between cars and motorcycles in terms of popularity? The answer is yes, and it’s cars that race well ahead of motorcycles with the number of slot games that you can find. But what is the reason behind such a disparity, and are the two-wheeled speed machines ever likely to catch up in this arena?

Cars Dominant

Regardless of the legal gambling platform that you end up selecting, when searching through the game portfolio, you will see a clear discrepancy between car and motorcycle titles. The library will boast a lot more of the former, covering everything from Formula One-esque racing cars, to classic hot rods, luxury cars and even futuristic vehicles tearing around an apocalyptic future.

Popular car-themed casino slots like Hot Rod Racers, Street Racing HD, The Night Racing and Muscle Cars are commonly found within online casino libraries. Part of the reason for that is just that cars are a lot more relatable to many people than motorcycles are. For many, cars are just part of everyday life, whether that’s an old banger to get to work and back, a much-loved restoration project or watching something like F1 on television.

Pop Culture

Pop culture has also played a large part in boosting the popularity of cars. Think action movies, which are packed with high-octane, thrilling car chases and television shows that show luxury cars that are well out of the reach of most people, but allow people to dream of ownership.

There’s also something iconically freeing about cars, like taking a road trip and just cruising along an open road for a taste of freedom. So it’s natural that it has bled over into car-themed slots being fairly popular, because whether it’s race cars or luxury cars, it’s a theme that people can simply relate to.

In contrast, motorcycles, while they also carry an element of freedom when hitting the road, are a much more niche area of transportation. You may see motorcycles appear as game symbols in slots like Wild Hogs and Bikers Gang, but it’s much harder to source games for this theme.

There’s a big subculture of motorcycling, but it’s just nowhere near as mainstream as the culture of cars. This then feeds back into game developers not putting so much into making motorcycle-themed slots, because there isn’t quite as big an audience to capture with them.

Priority of Developers

Game developers have to prioritise the themes which are going to make the most money and attract the most people. So it is about giving people what they want, based on demographics and trends, and simply four wheels win out over two, so developers hone in on mass market appeal.

Cars have already been well-established in different designs as well, appearing in settings like futuristic cityscapes, blistering hot desert tracks, or even in iconic settings like Route 66. When you add in audible elements like the roaring of an engine or some squealing tyres, again, it is extremely relatable and recognisable, far more so than their two-wheeled counterparts.

Beyond the Slots

This phenomenon extends beyond slots as well, because you can look at the racing genre in standard video games and find a clear dominance of cars. Car racing games have long been a pillar of video gaming, from rally driving to street racing in the popular Forza, to smashing monster trucks around a track and, of course, the hugely popular Mario Kart. Motorcycle racing doesn’t touch the seemingly endless variety of games that cars do, and naturally, slot game developers have just followed suit and tapped into what they know works.