Home /
News /
NetEnt Vs Microgaming – Which Is The Best Provider? /

NetEnt Vs Microgaming – Which Is The Best Provider?

Both Microgaming and NetEnt started producing games for casinos in the early 1990s. But Microgaming has slightly stolen the lead with both the number of games in its catalogue as well as the overall quality. That's not to imply that NetEnt has been slumming it. They have massive progressive slots that routinely payout monster, life-altering sums. Microgaming also has its own progressive slots with huge jackpots. On the face of it, there's little to choose between these two veteran producers.

Rate this news

Introduction: NetEnt vs Microgaming – Which Should You Play?

You don’t have to be an expert in any financial matters to know that the iGaming market in the UK is a huge business. For the year ending in 2019, we can see this thriving sector managed to generate a total of £5.3 billion and accounts for over 40% of the gambling industry as a whole.

When the public thinks of gambling, the mind naturally turns to sportsbooks and casinos whether online or off. But the truth of the matter is that casinos act as hosts for games that are developed by several market-leading games developers. Two of the biggest names in this game developer space are Microgaming and NetEnt. Way back in 1994, Microgaming was the first such developer to launch an online casino. NetEnt also started its journey in the early 1990s.

If you’ve been following or playing online casino games since that time, then you’ll be well aware that both of these developers have experienced exponential growth in their businesses. In fact, there’s a very good chance that you have already visited casinos to win the jackpot and taken some no deposit bonuses and free spins from both Microgaming and NetEnt. Many gamblers ask, which of these two rivals are the better software provider? Also, as an online gambling platform, should you care whether the games come from one company or the other? With that in mind let’s have a deeper look.

Quantity vs Quality

It’s true that Microgaming was the first games production company to enter the online casino space. Essentially they had a two-year head-start over NetEnt, who started business in 1996. Microgaming was able to use those two years to steal a march ahead of all other producers in the iGaming marketplace. The casino games market is dominated by slots, which account for nearly two-thirds of the total games available. Of these, over 850 unique casino games were developed by Microgaming, and you can find them in all contemporary casinos.

All in all, Microgaming has produced around 1,200 variations of games for casinos, including various versions of blackjack, roulette, and backgammon. On the list of slots, there are many iconic titles and cult classics. These include familiar names such as Immortal Romance, Jurassic Park, and Thunderstruck. All these games provide an exciting and fully immersive gaming experience and offer the player a very competitive RTP rate.

On the other side of the coin, NetEnt has around 500 unique casino games and these include around 300 slot titles. Some of these slots include such well-known titles as Gonzo’s Quest, Dracula, and Starburst. In fact, Starburst is the most commonly used slot by any online casino in the world, as NetEnt uses this slot for their welcome bonus. In spite of the fact that Microgaming appears to dominate the marketplace in terms of numbers, many players would argue that NetEnt offers a much better quality of game and gameplay, as opposed to just offering a larger number of them.

For us the difference between the games from either company is negligible and we consider that the number of available titles coming from Microgaming puts them ahead. You can try your hand at Microgaming games with Omni Slot Casino. They have many gaming options, as well as a huge welcome bonus of 150% Up to €500 Plus 70 free spins!

RTP And Variance

As you know the Return To Player Rate (RTP) must be published on every casino game. Essentially this tells the player how much the machine will pay out for every 100 units of currency paid into the slot machine. On the whole, a slot with low variance will be more popular for occasional players. These all have high RTP rates, often in excess of 96%. This enables the casual gamer to manage their bankroll better and stretch out the funds so that they are able to have a great time playing over a longer period. This is a means of increasing your jackpot winning chances.

Ask any player in the casino or who has been playing online, and many will consider that NetEnt is by far the best provider of low variance or volatility games. We find this slightly misleading and believe it’s more to do with how popular a specific title might be or how the developer focuses on creating multiple bonus rounds, which, it goes without saying, the players are more likely to flock to. Truth be told, most of NetEnt’s games are in fact mid variance, whereas Microgaming is offering a much larger number of games that are truly low variance.

Casino Bonuses for Every Day - Check out OmniSlots' Monthly Calendar

Looking For Low Variance

Over the last few years, Microgaming has launched a range of new low variance slots and many of these are proving very popular throughout online casinos in the UK and the rest of the world. A good example would be Take Cool Buck, which can be played for the tiny amount of £0.09 per spin. The jackpot prize here is rather impressive at 10,000 times the initial bet. The gameplay is classic Microgaming and offers a massive bonus round that can be unlocked in a couple of ways. Either by collecting a specific number of pink stars or by landing on some Take Cool Buck scatter symbols.

If you’re searching for low variance games then we would have to say that Microgaming is by far your best option. The RTP rates are optimal. We always suggest that you always compare what’s on offer and then look for the title that suits your playing style and your bankroll. So we guess the next question is, who offers the best progressive jackpot games?

Progressive Jackpots

Both these companies offer a major jackpot prize that is tied to a progressive jackpot game. Microgaming have Mega Moolah and NetEnt has Mega Fortune. Both of these games have dominated the progressive jackpot space at casinos all over the world, and both have produced some truly staggering jackpot amounts in recent years.

For example, in 2017, one lucky player managed to score £7 million after playing NetEnt’s fantastic Hall of Gods title. Just twelve months later and Microgaming’s Mega-Moolah managed to break its own record for online payments, by delivering a massive $21.7 million. Although on the face of it, it appears that each developer has plenty of progressive jackpot slots to their name, many players suggest that Microgaming manages to offer a wider choice of titles and give a bigger jackpot for the lucky winners.

Since its inception in the early 1990s, Microgaming has paid out more than $600 million in jackpots during this period. You can play Mega-Moolah with Omni Slots Casino, as well as a huge number of other Microgaming titles.

Conclusion: NetEnt vs Microgaming

To be truthful, after looking at both companies with a magnifying glass, we can find very little that separates Microgaming from NetEnt. Though Microgaming may have more games, in reality, it means nothing as both companies managed to offer equally excellent games and equally good payouts. Some gamblers might argue that NetEnt has an advantage in that it offers better real-time live dealer games. Recently they have brought to market an advanced Mobile Live Casino which has proved very popular in all online casinos. This looks like this will put NetEnt ahead of its main live dealer rival, Evolution Gaming.

But when it comes to market dominance, probably the crown should go to Microgaming. They appear to be able to effortlessly push out new games for an ever-hungry iGaming marketplace and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.