Casino Game Providers: Who Makes the Games and Who Owns Them

Casino game providers are the studios that make the slots, table games and live dealer games you play at an online casino. The casino chooses which studios to carry and which RTP setting to run; the studio builds the game, gets it certified and holds a supplier licence in each regulated market. This hub lists the 17 studios we cover with their parent company as of October 2026, explains what changed at the big names (NetEnt is part of Evolution, Microgaming’s catalogue is supplied by Games Global), and gives a short, current note on ten smaller or legacy studios whose separate pages we have merged here.

We checked ownership and licence facts on 8 October 2026 against each studio’s own site and the relevant company announcements. Where a fact could not be confirmed from a primary source, we leave it out.

The studios we cover

Ownership matters for players in one practical way: groups tend to share technology and distribution. A casino that signs with Evolution, for example, usually gets NetEnt, Red Tiger, Big Time Gaming and Nolimit City in the same deal, which is why these studios often appear together in a lobby.

The big groups at a glance

Evolution

Evolution AB, listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and founded in 2006, is the live casino leader. It bought Ezugi, then Red Tiger in 2019, NetEnt in 2020, Big Time Gaming in 2021 and Nolimit City in 2022, so it now owns some of the best-known slot brands too. Our Evolution page covers its live games and the NetEnt page its slots.

Playtech

Playtech plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and supplies slots, live casino and the casino platform itself to many operators. It owns the Swedish studio Quickspin. See our pages on Playtech and Quickspin.

Light & Wonder

Light & Wonder is the former Scientific Games, renamed in 2022. It owns the WMS and NYX businesses described below, along with other land-based and online brands.

IGT

IGT’s gaming and digital business, including iSoftBet, has been privately owned by funds managed by Apollo since 1 July 2025, combined with Everi and run from Las Vegas. The lottery business it was separated from now trades as Brightstar Lottery.

Games Global

Games Global supplies the former Microgaming catalogue and its studio network, plus the Mega Moolah jackpots. Our Microgaming page explains the change.

How the industry is structured in 2026

Three kinds of company sit behind the games you see:

• Content studios design games: Play’n GO, Push Gaming, Thunderkick, ELK and Yggdrasil are examples.
• Groups own several studios and distribute them together: Evolution (Evolution, NetEnt, Red Tiger, Big Time Gaming, Nolimit City), Playtech (including Quickspin), Light & Wonder (WMS, NYX and others) and IGT.
• Aggregators and distributors deliver many studios’ games to a casino through one integration. Games Global plays this role for the former Microgaming network; many casinos also use third-party aggregators, which is why a game’s rules may name a different company from the one on the lobby tile.

Modern software features

Most games now run in HTML5 in the browser, so the same game works on desktop and mobile without a download. Common features across studios include tumbling or cascading reels, pay-anywhere grids, cluster pays, Megaways (a mechanic created by Big Time Gaming and licensed to other studios), multiplier ladders and, in some markets, feature buys. Live casino games add real dealers streamed from studios, often with RNG elements such as Evolution’s Lightning multipliers.

The feature that matters most for your money is not visible on the reels: the RTP setting. Most large studios supply several return settings for the same game, and the casino picks one. The rules screen shows which setting is running, as we explain on each studio page. Our slots guide covers the basics and our progressive slots explainer covers jackpot games.

Types of casino software

Classic slots

Three-reel or simple five-reel games with fruit symbols and few features. Novomatic, Amatic and Merkur built their names on this style in land-based halls before moving online. These games are usually easy to follow and often low to medium volatility.

Video and 3D slots

Five or more reels, bonus rounds, animated characters and, in Betsoft’s case, cinematic 3D presentation. Almost every modern studio works here; the differences are in maths (volatility, RTP settings, maximum win) and mechanics.

Live dealer games

Real dealers stream roulette, blackjack, baccarat and game shows from studios. Evolution is the market leader, with Pragmatic Play Live and Playtech among the competitors. See our live dealer casinos page.

Table games and video poker

RNG blackjack, roulette and video poker remain in most lobbies. They often have lower house edges than slots when played with good strategy; our guides to blackjack and video poker explain the rules.

Which studios publish their RTP figures

Studios differ a lot in how openly they publish game maths. This matters because the public figure is your benchmark when you check the setting a casino runs. Here is what we found on each studio’s own site on 8 October 2026:

Push Gaming stands out for listing both RTP settings on each game page and saying where the active one appears in the game. Where a studio publishes nothing, the in-game rules are the only reliable source.

What licences a game studio needs

A studio cannot simply sell games to any casino. In most regulated markets it needs its own supplier licence or approval, separate from the casino’s operating licence:

• Malta: the Malta Gaming Authority issues B2B critical gaming supply licences. Push Gaming Malta Limited (MGA/B2B/779/2020), Play’n GO (MGA/B2B/225/2012) and Yggdrasil (MGA/B2B/230/2012) publish theirs.
• Great Britain: studios supplying UK casinos must be licensed by the UK Gambling Commission; Thunderkick, for example, lists account numbers 40165 and 41752 and Push Gaming account 54984.
• Sweden: a licence for gambling software has been required since 1 July 2023, which is why studios such as Yggdrasil list a Swedish software licence.
• Ontario and US states: suppliers must register with the AGCO in Ontario or the gaming regulator of each US state before their games can go live there.

The studio licence protects the integrity of the game. It does not make the casino safe; that depends on the casino’s own licence and how it treats players.

Choosing a casino by its studios

If you have favourite games, the studio list is a quick filter. A casino that names Evolution, NetEnt and Pragmatic Play will have a broad lobby and the major live tables. A casino that leans on smaller or unfamiliar studios may still be fine, but check that the games have published RTP figures and that the studio holds a licence you can verify. Be cautious with casinos that show famous studio logos but whose games will not load, or whose rules screens are missing: legitimate studios supply licensed operators only, and copied or unlicensed games are a known problem at some offshore sites.

A useful habit is to compare one game you know across two casinos. Load the same title at both, open the rules and read the RTP. If one casino runs the top setting and the other a reduced one, that tells you something about how each casino prices its games, and it usually applies across its whole lobby rather than to one slot.

Finally, remember that the studio sets the rules of the game but not the terms of the casino. Bonus wagering, withdrawal limits and verification rules come from the casino, and those decide more about your experience than any slot mechanic.

Smaller and legacy studios: where they stand now

We used to keep separate pages for the studios below. Most are small in today’s market or have been absorbed by larger groups, so we have merged their pages into this section with a short, current note on each.

Williams Interactive (WMS)

Williams Interactive was the online arm of WMS Industries, the maker of land-based hits such as Raging Rhino and Zeus. Scientific Games bought WMS in 2013, and Scientific Games renamed itself Light & Wonder in 2022. The WMS titles are now part of Light & Wonder’s online catalogue rather than a separate supplier.

iSoftBet

iSoftBet, a slot developer and aggregator, was bought by IGT in 2022 for EUR 160 million. On 1 July 2025 funds managed by Apollo completed the purchase of IGT’s gaming and digital business together with Everi, and the combined company operates under the IGT name from Las Vegas. iSoftBet’s games therefore now sit inside the Apollo-owned IGT.

Endorphina

Endorphina is a slot studio based in Prague, founded in 2012. It remains an independent supplier, mainly to European and international online casinos.

Amatic

Amatic Industries is an Austrian manufacturer of land-based gaming machines that also supplies online versions of its classic slots. It remains privately held.

Merkur

Merkur is the gaming brand of the German Gauselmann family group, which now trades as the MERKUR Group. Its slots are best known in German-speaking markets, where online slots are regulated under the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021.

Platipus

Platipus Gaming is a smaller online slot studio founded in 2014. It is independent and supplies mainly international online casinos.

Aristocrat

Aristocrat Leisure is an Australian company listed on the ASX, known for land-based series such as Buffalo and Lightning Link. Its real-money online business is Aristocrat Interactive, formed after Aristocrat completed its purchase of NeoGames in April 2024.

Rival Gaming

Rival Gaming (Rival Powered) is an older independent supplier known for its “iSlots” interactive slots. Its games appear mainly at offshore casinos, including some that accept US players; we do not list such casinos.

NYX Gaming

NYX Gaming Group, which ran the OpenGaming aggregation platform, was bought by Scientific Games in January 2018. It is now part of Light & Wonder (the renamed Scientific Games), and NYX no longer trades as a separate company.

CryptoLogic

CryptoLogic was one of the first online casino software companies. Its assets were bought by Amaya Gaming in 2012, and the brand is no longer an active supplier. Any “CryptoLogic casino” list today is out of date.

How to check a studio and its games

1. Look for the studio’s licence statement in its site footer, with a licence or account number.
2. Check that number on the regulator’s register: the Malta Gaming Authority’s licensee search, the UK Gambling Commission’s public register, or the register of the regulator named.
3. Open the game at your casino and read the rules for the RTP of the running setting.
4. Compare it with the studio’s own game page where one exists (NetEnt, Push Gaming, Thunderkick and Yggdrasil publish their figures; Pragmatic Play lists RTP only).
5. Check the casino’s own licence too. A certified game at an unlicensed or poorly regulated casino still leaves you exposed if a withdrawal is refused.

Our rating method explains how game range and studio quality feed into our casino scores, and the safe casinos guide shows how to read a licence footer.

Software and studios by the numbers

UK players

Only operators licensed by the UK Gambling Commission may offer gambling to people in Great Britain (Gambling Act 2005), and GAMSTOP self-exclusion covers UKGC-licensed sites only. Before you play any studio’s games at a casino, check the operator on the Commission’s public register if you live in Great Britain, or with the regulator named in the casino footer anywhere else.

Play safely

18+ only (21+ in some countries). Slots and live games are entertainment with a built-in house edge, not a way to make money. Set a deposit limit before your first session, use the reality-check and time-out tools in the casino account, and stop when the budget is gone. Free, confidential help is available from GamCare (National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133) and BeGambleAware.org. Our responsible gambling guide lists self-exclusion options by country.

Frequently asked questions

What is a casino software provider?

A casino software provider (or game studio) designs and certifies the slots, table games or live dealer games that casinos offer. The casino licenses the games; the studio hosts them, supplies the random number generator or live studio, and must hold a supplier licence in each regulated market.

Who are the biggest casino game providers?

By reach, the best-known groups include Evolution (which also owns NetEnt, Red Tiger, Big Time Gaming and Nolimit City), Pragmatic Play, Play’n GO, Playtech, Light & Wonder, IGT and Games Global, the supplier of the former Microgaming catalogue.

Does the software provider decide my chances of winning?

The studio sets the game maths and offers one or more RTP settings. The casino chooses which setting to run. That is why the same slot can pay back differently at two casinos, and why you should read the RTP in the game rules.

How do I know a game provider is licensed?

Reputable studios print their licences in their site footer, with numbers you can check on the regulator’s register, for example the Malta Gaming Authority’s licensee search or the UK Gambling Commission’s public register.

What happened to Microgaming?

In 2022 Games Global bought Microgaming’s online game portfolio, intellectual property, distribution business and progressive jackpot network, including Mega Moolah. The games are now supplied by Games Global.

Is NetEnt still a separate company?

No. Evolution bought NetEnt in 2020 and the two have operated as one group since 1 December 2020. NetEnt remains a slot brand within Evolution.