There’s something about Las Vegas and Egypt. Is the sun and sand, the lure of exotic riches? Don’t ask me, I’m just a guy who loves slots. But I’ve been seeing little references to Egypt ever since I first came to Vegas. The most obvious one is The Luxor (hard to miss a giant pyramid all lit up at one end of The Strip), but the one you’ll probably spend most of your time staring at is a classic beauty named Cleopatra.

Cleopatra Slots, of course. The number of US Casinos that have Cleopatra Slots? Probably somewhere right around “all of them”.

Cleo and I go way back. In fact, I met Cleopatra before I met my first wife…and Cleo, at least, is still with me. When I call Cleopatra a classic beauty, I mean it — whether you’re talking about the Elizabeth Taylor face or the mechanical-reel authenticity. I’m a guy who likes to pull the handle and feel the gears and reels spring to life.

The video slot versions are definitely becoming easier to find, and they add some great animations and maybe even more payouts. Cleopatra II is probably the best of those; I gravitate towards them once I’ve had my fill of classic reel slot action. The free spins and multipliers are impossible to resist, and I’d tell you some of the amounts that I’ve won but I don’t want you to feel bad (or ask me for a loan).

My wife prefers the progressive Cleopatra…sorry, “Megajackpots Cleopatra”. She’s also more likely to brave the multi-screen version (I can barely keep track of one at a time!). She also swears that Cleopatra’s Gold at Winpalace is just as good as the original.