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Without a strong online casino software provider behind them, the biggest gambling brands are nothing. Software companies are the essence of an online gaming site, and are what give life to it.
Not all software providers are created equal, and before signing up with a good online casino it's important to look and see that it uses a reliable and respected software company. Nothing is worse than joining a site and making a real money deposit, only to discover that it has a terrible selection of software casino games that bug out, aren't visually appealing, or just aren't fun to play. But if you take the time to look for sites that have good strong software from the trusted companies we recommend on this page, you can avoid making that mistake and be playing top-quality games for real money all the sooner.
Playtech is the self-proclaimed "world's largest gambling software and services supplier". The Isle-of-Man based company provides software solutions for online casinos, sportsbooks, bingo sites, mobile gaming sites, live dealer games, and more. They are also the developer of iPoker, currently the third-largest online card room in the world. Playtech is particularly well-known for its software casino games like Jackpot Giant, Beach Life, and Spamalot Holy Grail that have all produced million-dollar winners in the recent past. The developer also has a number of licenses that allow it to produce popular slots themed after popular comics and movies, such as X-Men, Iron Man, and the Incredible Hulk.
Founded in 1994, Microgaming are believed to be the creators of the first online casino ever. Years later, the company remains one of the leaders in the industry and it is the software of choice at many major casinos online including Jackpot City, Lucky Nugget, The Gaming Club and the Palace Group. A standard Microgaming casino games software package comes with over 600 real money games that includes slots, blackjack, roulette, and much more. Their most famous game is Mega Moolah, the progressive jackpot slot turns several players each year since the late 2000s into millionaires. Some of their other notable slot games include Thunderstruck II, Dolphin Quest, and the officially licensed Jurassic Park slot.
Found in 1996, NetEnt is an award-winning creator of online video slots, table games, scratch card games, and more. Renowned for their beautiful graphics and high ease of use, several of their titles (such as Starburst, Mega Fortune, Aliens, and their licensed South Park game) are some of the most popular slots online in 2024. Be it those games or table ones like blackjack, roulette, or hold 'em, NetEnt's titles all work great on the latest mobile devices, too.
International Game Technology (IGT) is a slot machine and casino games software developer that has offices in England, the United States, and Italy. Formerly known as Gtech and Lottomatica, the company is best-known for its signature video slot titles which includes games like Cleopatra, Pharaoh's Fortune, Monopoly, Wheel of Fortune, and Wolf Run. Most of IGT's games run on an instant-play HTML5 platform, meaning you never need to download an app or other software to play.
Vegas-based Bally Technologies has been around since the 1960s, and if you've ever been on a Las Vegas casino floor there's a good chance you've played on a Bally machine. More recently that moved into the online realm, where their most popular slot games are Moneywheel, Cash Spin, Golden Pharaoh, and Playboy Hot Zone.
All too often Canadian players skim past who actually makes the games they are going to play, and end up at a casino with sub-par games at a result.
One of the most underrated factors of a great online gaming site is its casino games software. When you are looking for a new casino, it's very easy to get caught up on things like bonuses, special promotions, brand names, and security (which are all important on their own right). But too often Canadian players skim past who actually makes the games they are going to play, and end up at a site with sub-par games at a result.
Taking the time to learn who the industry's gold standards in gaming are will make your new casino-hunting experience that much simpler. Stick to our shortlist of recommended companies and you'll be playing on only the latest and greatest platforms and games that 2024 has to offer for Canadian players.
Not all online casino software providers are created equal, and they all have their own unique perks.
However, the five we recommend most (listed on this page) tend to have higher payouts (especially Microgaming and NetEnt), the largest varieties of real cash games (Microgaming and Playtech), the most beautiful looking software casino games (NetEnt and IGT), or a combination of all those factors. One thing they all also have is partnerships with some of the biggest names in the world, making them true industry leaders.
It depends who you ask! Microgaming, for instance, has been around since 1994 and with over 800 games, their own poker platform, and even a recent push into VR, many would call them the industry leader.
Others might nominate Playtech. The Isle of Man-based company claims it is the world’s largest casino games software and services provider and with over 5,000 employees, it’s hard to argue otherwise. In recent years, it’s been buying up its competitors and may offer more of games than even Microgaming.
While choosing a casino site that uses a trusted software provider is definitely important, there are other things you should look at before joining.
First, you need to see that the site is accredited and proven safe. All the top sites we recommend here are registered with a national governing gambling commission (if not Canada, then a place like Malta, Gibraltar, Cyprus, etc.). They all also have a license from a third-party testing organization (like eCOGRA) which ensures that the casino runs fair real cash games and follows good, safe business practices.
Beyond that, new Canadian players should also look for generous welcome bonuses, a wide variety of games that they enjoy playing, and a variety of options for depositing and withdrawing Canadian dollars.
The biggest jackpots in online casino gaming history have consistently come from the slot game Mega Moolah by Microgaming. Since 2008, the game has made a good number of lucky players instant millionaires, several of them winning in excess of $5 million dollars and at least one of them being from Canada (in 2015, a Canadian player won $7.5 million in real cash!)
Other games, like Playtech’s Jackpot Giant, Net Ent’s Mega Fortune, and RTG’s Shopping Spree have also produced some million-dollar winners, but none at the rate that Mega Moolah has over the years.
You will find gaming sites that only carry the games of one particular provider; however, these sites will still bear their own brand name and not that of the developers.
Some online casino software providers do have versions of some of their top games that you can play for free on their company sites.
Chances are if a big-name online casino has a partnership with a particular software brand, it can be considered highly trustworthy.
These sites have too much at stake to allow just any developer, but only the very best feature their games on their sites. With smaller casinos and lesser-known providers, caution should be used and you should always look for Canada-focused reviews before playing on a site for real money.
