Much like in a casino, success is always on the line in video games. Players and protagonists strive to reach their goals and make it to the next area. Even with the possibility of failure, they stake their time, items, and lives on the feeling of victory. While many stages can emphasize a protagonist or player’s gambles, few do it with the style and clarity of casino levels.
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With slot machines, roulette wheels, poker chips, card games, and other gambling classics, casino levels draw attention like little else. However, among casino stages, these areas won the gamble for popularity.
10Shamal Casino - Hitman: Blood Money
In the 10th story mission ofHitman: Blood Money, the assassin Agent 47 visits the Shamal Casino in Las Vegas to take out three targets with connections to an illegal drug trade. Due to the casino’s security staff and specialized key cards, Agent 47 maneuvers around the hotel in various disguises to set up andexecute perfect kills.
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As one of the final missions inHitman: Blood Money, the skill needed to complete the mission and the importance of its targets become more apparent in the flashy and well-guarded Shamal Casino.
9Calypso Casino - Rainbow Six Vegas
TheRainbow Sixseries follows an international anti-terrorist organizationknown as Rainbowand its mission to make the world a safer place. As the second mission inRainbow Six Vegas,Calypso Casino introduces a new unit of Rainbow, using the casino’s high-pressure hostage situation to emphasize the importance of teamwork within the organization.
While the stage is essential in the plot, it also became a fan favorite for its ambiance and well-balanced level design with plenty of advantageous locations to strike. For its popularity, Calypso Casino was a multiplayer map inRainbow Six Vegas’sequel.
8Gilded 7 Casino - Professor Layton And The Unwound Future
Rather than being broken into traditional levels or quests, theProfessor Laytonseries tells a story through puzzles.In the series’ third entry, Professor Layton and his self-proclaimed apprentice, Luke, travel into the future to break up gang activity terrorizing London. Once in the future, a handful of iconic puzzles take place back to back in the Gilded 7 Casino, including the series’ first puzzle battles and a puzzle where Professor Layton builds a coin gun out of slot machine pieces.
The Gilded 7 Casino introduces some of the most central characters inProfessor Layton and the Unwound Futurewhile reaffirming the value of the Professor’s critical thinking in one of the most awe-inspiring ways possible.
7The Strip - Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout: New Vegasis one of the most well-knownFalloutgames. It takes place in the Mojave Wasteland years after a nuclear apocalypse seemed to destroy the world, following a courier on a quest to retrieve a valuable package from a mysterious figure who tried to murder and bury them alive.
Several of the main quests inFallout: New Vegasoccur at the Strip, a restoration of Las Vegas with casinos, hotels, anda former Vault-Tec vault.Since the Gomorrah, Tops, and Lucky 38 casinos on the Strip play a central role in both the main quest and various side quests, the Strip, as a whole, deserves recognition as a notable casino location.
6Casino Palace - F-Zero GX
F-Zero GXis notorious for itshigh-speed races and unforgiving tracks, and Casino Palace maintains this legacy by challenging players with complex turns on a double-branch course. Alongside other famous levels, Casino Palace has a place inF-Zero GX’sstoryline, giving it an unavoidable prominence in the game.
Initially, Casino Palace may not seem as gaudy as many other casino stages for its less vibrant color scheme and clown motifs. However, its soundtrack and difficult turns add the high stakes that the background tries to establish as racers rush past.
5Waluigi Pinball - Mario Kart DS
Waluigi Pinball first appeared inMario Kart DS,but it has since appeared in three otherMario Kartgames.The memorable stageprimarily features a giant pinball machine with balls that roll across the level. Although pinballs are not generally associated with gambling as some other games, a slot machine with flashing lights above the most challenging portion of the stage gives it the feeling of a casino.
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Since its appearance inMario Kart DS,the popular level has doubled down on its casino imagery by adding coins, palm trees, and a vibrant nighttime city around the slot machine.
4Hollis’ Hot Streak - Psychonauts 2
InPsychonauts 2,each level visualizes a character’s thought processes, trauma, and core beliefs. Hollis’ Hot Streak, in particular, represents the mind of one of Raz’s mentors after he manipulates her thoughts to let him and the other interns on a dangerous casino mission.
Although Raz’s efforts succeeded, manipulating Hollis’ thoughts made her act irrationally, turning the inside of her mind into a casino with rigged games with titles that begin to unravel her past as a medical student. In traditionalPsychonautsfashion, the level hasan exquisite design, giving the game a memorable start.
3Inkwell Hell - Cuphead
Cupheadbegins with a winning streak while Cuphead and Mugman are playing Craps at the Devil’s Casino. However, after theywager their soulsto the Devil and lose, they plead for another way to pay off their debts. Tasked with collecting the souls of others, they travel across the world, overcoming complex battles until their journey comes full circle.
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As the final overworld inCuphead,the battles in Inkwell Hell take place in the Devil’s Casino. Everything the brothers have accomplished is on the line once again, and the final stages beautifully capture the game’s gambles.
2Casino Of Envy - Persona 5
Similar toCuphead,Persona 5starts with the leader of the Phantom Thieves trying to escape from a casino pursued by security and police. He battles and sneaks his way to an exit. Ultimately, the police catch him and question him, and he explains how the Phantom Thieves began to steal hearts.
By beginning in a casino,Persona 5shows how willing the team is to put everything on the line for their beliefs. Reentering the Casino of Envy toward the end of the game andconfronting its owneris an intense moment because players know what happens next without knowing how the story ends.
1Casino Night Zone - Sonic The Hedgehog 2
TheSonic the Hedgehogfranchise has multiple casino levels, from Casinopolis inSonic Adventureto Casino Forest inSonic Forces.With so many memorable casino stages, the series gives fans of casino levels much to enjoy.
However, Casino Night Zone fromSonic the Hedgehog 2stands out from the rest as the franchise’s first casino level. Its aesthetic, slot machine minigame, andhigh-pressure level designhelped Casino Night Zone gain popularity and notoriety. The stage’s success and well-known successors show that casino levels have a niche place in the series.
