When it comes to creating engaging content, the ideas used are not always entirely original. While we’re not saying that one genre borrows specifically from another, they often draw from the same well of inspiration.

Frequently, this is a specific period in history: famous characters, historical happenings, myth and legend. The Viking era is a prime example. Defined by its dramatic clashes and incredible mythos, it has inspired innumerable pieces of content over the years, from books and TV shows to films and comics.

Among the types of media that have borrowed from the Viking lore and aesthetic are slots, and there are certain titles we’d love to see adapted – this time into video games. Here are three that would work well.

Valhalla

In recent years, online gambling has become increasingly popular. With the industry now worth an estimated $59 million, it’s an entertainment that appeals to players from across the globe. So popular has it become that an entire secondary industry has grown up around it, dedicated to sharing the many bonuses available online.    

One of the casinos frequently featured is LeoVegas, which offers the first title on this list: the fantastic Valhalla. Setting itself apart from other Scandinavian-themed slots, this is a game that really commits to getting its history and mythos right.

Featuring a cast of Valkyries and warriors, Valhalla takes players on a Viking-inspired adventure that would no doubt work equally well in video game format. Offering not only compelling characters but an insight into the famed hall where the brave dead would feast forever, it has an awful lot of material that could be adapted.

Nordic Heroes

Another popular title is Nordic Heroes. This one is animated beautifully, and there’s a lot more to it than your basic arcade-style offerings. Taking the player into battle alongside a host of heroes, it challenges them to defend their village against dangerous and determined raiders.

The reels are interesting in that they don’t feature stereotypically Viking iconography, but are instead filled with gorgeously drawn plants and animals and abundant riches. Players have the option of competing as one of two characters, adding an extra level of complexity: either Thor or Thora.

With a complex backstory and surprisingly well-fleshed out protagonists, this is a game that has boundless potential for being adapted.   

Valkyrie Queen

If there’s one thing we really enjoy about Viking mythology, it’s that it has compelling characters and incredible heroes, and that females are well-represented within this ancient world. A case in point is the unearthly Valkyries, and it’s their mythos that this game draws upon.

Beautifully drawn and animated, it has a complex and engaging protagonist at its core, and we’d love to see her transformed into a kick-ass video game character too. What’s more, the Valkyrie Queen’s chosen mount is a winged horse, which would translate incredibly well in an adaptation.

Brave, heroic, and compelling, the Viking world is filled with characters who we’d love to see featured in a new series of video games. Not only this, but it has some incredible and already fully-fleshed stories to tell, all of them set against a backdrop of blood and battle, victory and defeat. If that doesn’t make for good gaming material, we don’t know what does.