Interviews
The complete package
Edgar Pau, Head of Studio at Red Desert Games, says mechanics are important to the success of a slot game but all components must come together in harmony for it to be a chart-topping success.
Are game mechanics the most important thing for studios to get right?
For a game to succeed, studios must get the whole package right and while mechanics are a core part of this, they must also nail the maths, theme, art, sound and UX, and then bring all these factors together in a way that immerses players in the action. No one thing on its own will be enough to make the game a hit with players. When it comes to mechanics, you need to have a clear goal of what it is, how it brings differentiation to the game and what makes it exciting for the player. The mechanic must also fit with the maths – if the math model makes the mechanic appear too frequently (or infrequently) it can dilute the influence and value of the mechanic and lead to different reactions from players.
Do mechanics offer studios the greatest room in which to innovate and stand out from their rivals?
The online slot market is fiercely competitive with more studios getting in on the action every month. Studios must differentiate, and in the absence of having well-recognised land-based games, mechanics offer the easiest route for standing out and connecting with players online. Some studios have turned to things like hybrid themes and licenses to launch branded slots to help them get ahead of their rivals, but for me, mechanics are the best way of doing this as they help the studio create its own identity and hallmark. If you look at both the land-based and online slot markets, it’s mechanics that have been the game-changers in recent times in the form of Lightning Link from Aristocrat and of course Megaways from Big Time Gaming. This is why so many studios are dedicating significant resources to developing proprietary mechanics and then filing to trademark their IP.
Is this a challenging area for studios to get right?
Very much so. There is absolutely no science behind it and it’s often the case that a mechanic you think is great and will hit the mark with players falls short. It’s also hard to come up with a new mechanic and how far to go with it – do you bring something entirely new to the table or look to incrementally improve something tried and tested in the market? Some of the mechanics I have seen are far too ambitious and make light-years leaps forward. While the studio should be commended for being bold and brave, players ultimately like familiarity and are reluctant to spend time and money learning an overly complex mechanic or stick with one that initially seems to be familiar but as they play it, moves too far away from the core experience they like. That’s why studios need to carry out comprehensive market research, understand what players are looking for and keep asking themselves if the mechanic they are developing is something they will actually want to play or not.
How is Red Desert Games approaching mechanics? How do you ensure your games deliver what players are looking for?
Most of the team at Red Desert Games are slot players, and this really helps in building our understanding of what players are looking for from the next generation of slot games they play. We always have open discussions or share videos and pictures of games or mechanics we have played and liked. We are also careful not to take things too far – our approach is to do something that incrementally innovates on what is out there, whether it’s a symbol, reel strip, reel structure, gameplay or some other variable rather than reinventing the wheel. This is why our definition of a mechanic is pretty broad.
In terms of delivering what players are looking for, I think it’s important to first identify what segment of the player base you are trying to target. You can’t be everything to everyone as some of the things different player groups want are mutually exclusive. Once we’ve done this, we run our initial math model through our proprietary simulator where we can adjust parameters and run simulations over tens of millions of spins and sessions which gives us insights into what an individual session looks like from a player’s point of view.
We’re also very self-critical of our games and are always asking ourselves if we were playing this game, what’s good and what’s bad about it. We’ve even had games where we’ve gone 90% down the production path and completely shelved it or reworked it. Of course, those were our learning experiences and we’ve put in processes and stop checks to ensure that this doesn’t happen anymore as it’s a very inefficient way to develop.
Does online provide a studio with more opportunities to push the boundaries than when developing for land-based? You develop for both so how does this impact your approach to mechanics?
100%. There is more flexibility when developing online games versus land-based games, especially in markets outside of North America. As an example, in the Australian land-based market, metamorphic games are not permitted and many of our online games would never be allowed in retail casinos. In the United States, they are less restrictive, but they still have requirements that limit what studios can do. In Michigan, for example, the maximum advertised win must land once every fifty million spins. And those land-based requirements usually carry into the iGaming regulations as well. Now go to Europe, Asia or Latin America and you won’t find these sorts of restrictions. In terms of how this impacts our approach to mechanics, we actually have teams making games for both online and land-based. So being the more flexible market, it doesn’t affect us on the online side. In markets such as the U.S., having a land-based business gives our team an advantage as some of our designers have been making land-based games for almost 30 years and they’re familiar with the regulations and restrictions and how to work around them. As the same restrictions are typically present in both online and land-based, we can easily adjust the online games to satisfy the regulations.
How do mechanics differ from market to market in terms of player preferences? Where are the greatest differences?
It really varies from market to market. Not just the popularity of certain mechanics, but also in the type of games, the themes and the math preferences. If I look at the U.S. market, it’s clear that some of the popular land-based mechanics are also performing well online, such as hold and spin/cash on reels. Megaways has also been popular in the U.S. But then if you go to markets in Latin America, you see things such as crash games being popular or Dragon Tiger from PG Soft in Brazil, which is a simple but well put together game. I’ve also seen markets where a segment of the player base doesn’t even play the base game and goes straight to the buy feature. In Europe, it’s a real melting pot with the greatest variety of mechanics and game types. This is why developing mechanics is not for the faint-hearted, and why those who enjoy international success such as Megaways should be applauded. But given the runaway success of Megaways, it’s no wonder other studios are looking to bring their own unique, trademarked mechanics to the market.
The post The complete package appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Match Hype has just won two industry competitions. Talk us through your product.
Match Hype brings engagement from social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram into the sportsbook. Our technology automatically turns raw sports data into short videos full of sports and betting insights. We have the capacity to create up to a million videos daily in more than 30 languages. We also provide hosting and streaming of the videos, and we track everything in the video thanks to our own player. The high level of video experience and the scale make us unique in the market, and we believe that this innovation is extremely needed in the industry—and the judges in the competitions probably agree with us.
What technologies are you leveraging to deliver such a cutting-edge tool/product?
We have more than six years’ experience in developing dynamic video solutions for clients like Microsoft, HBO, and SAP, and a decade in high-end video production for similarly well-known clients. Match Hype is the essence of this. We have developed our own robust cloud infrastructure that enables us to work on a huge scale. We can also leverage the integration of third-party solutions that help us make the video content rich and engaging. The AI boom came at the right time to help us make the experience for the viewer even better.
Who is Match Hype aimed at?
We focus mostly on sportsbook operators, where we think we can bring the biggest value. But we also have clients on the affiliate and media side. Our “competition” at the moment are creative professionals who are able to create one video at a time. To cover hundreds or thousands of events daily, you need huge manpower. With Match Hype, you don’t need that—it’s all automated. Anybody who appreciates this level of efficiency will benefit.
The end users are any sports fans who enjoy engaging videos. So basically everybody.
Has this industry been slow to embrace video content and unlock the potential it offers? If so, why?
It’s hard for us to talk about the whole industry, as we haven’t been part of it for that long. But iGaming feels like a conservative industry where only truly meaningful innovations make it. Fingers crossed for Match Hype being one of them. We are confident because of our track record in other industries, and mostly thanks to the results of our dynamic videos that are already used by significant igaming industry players.
What makes video content so effective at customer acquisition? How can Match Hype be used in this regard?
People just love video content. In the last review, TikTok said that the average user spends around 90 minutes a day on their platform. Platforms like Spotify used to be music and podcasts only; now they are full of videos. You just can’t ignore that. Video killed the radio star, and a static sportsbook is next to die.
And what about retention? How can it be used to keep players engaged and coming back for more?
Imagine that a 30-second video gives you the exact insights to help you make a betting decision without spending dozens of minutes on different resources to gather all the information. People don’t want to read anymore. This is probably an even bigger strength of Match Hype than user acquisition.
What can we expect from Match Hype in the coming months?
We will establish Match Hype as an industry standard for dynamic video content. We’ll bring many more sports like tennis, basketball horse racing and. We are preparing real-time video use cases—for example, half-time updates in football—and new distribution channels like integration directly into streams. The potential is huge. Stay tuned.
Any final thoughts?
For the last year, we have talked with literally hundreds of iGaming experts, investors, and executives. Almost every one of them sees fan engagement as a huge topic in the upcoming months and years. And video will definitely play a key part in it.
Video says more than a thousand words. Give it a go—watch one of our 30-second videos and see for yourself.
The post Exclusive Q&A w/ Radek Pšurný, CEO at Match Hype appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
For those that might not know, can you give us a brief overview of Pick’Em Player Props?
In simple terms, the new Pick’Em Player Props product from WA.Technology is almost like a hybrid between fantasy sports and sports betting. In the same vein as traditional player props products that you see in traditional sports, players can select markets on individual players – we have just taken that model and elevated it.
During the game, players can make between two and six bet selections. For example, will Erling Haaland score more or less than 2.5 shots? The number of bet selections the player makes then determines their multiplier. By allowing bettors to unleash their sporting knowledge and provide engaging games for them to play, we are helping our operator partners to not only engage with a wider player base but also to fuel long-term retention. It really is a one-of-a-kind product and one we’re incredibly excited about. It’s already proving to be a top performer in LatAm.
Why has now been the right time to unveil Pick’Em Player Props?
Over the last few years, we’ve seen significant growth in the number of player proposition products. There are several reasons for that. Sports fans have shown a growing affinity for individual players rather than a team. They follow players on social media and engage with content featuring that player.
This reflects the wider trend we’re seeing: the new generation of fans is more in love with the players than the team itself. A great example of this is both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Bettors worldwide would wager on either of those players and engage with their content regardless of which team they played for or what club they supported.
The appetite for player-driven betting is increasing dramatically, resulting in a greater demand for products specifically tailored to individual athletes.
With more traditional sportsbooks, however, we’ve found that there isn’t as much depth of product regarding player propositions – aside from goal scorer markets. We wanted to change that – we wanted to deliver a fun, engaging product that helps build a sense of community among players.
Since Pick’Em Player Props is also a hybrid of fantasy and sports, it can act as an attractive tool to facilitate new market entries, as fantasy sports are not regulated like sportsbooks or iGaming. Take the US for example. In most states, operators do not need a licence to offer a fantasy sports product. This is the case for many markets around the world, too. I believe this will be an attractive proposition for operators looking to expand their international footprint, and as a truly global provider, we’re here to make that happen.
In your view, what differentiates WA.Technology’s Pick’Em Player Props from other player props products on the market?
Currently, we are the only B2B provider to offer a player propositions product that combines sports and fantasy. A handful of companies in the US offer something similar, but they are all B2C companies – we are bringing something totally unique to the B2B space.
Fantasy Sports have always been popular in the US. But over the last 18 months, we’ve seen a meteoric rise in the demand for player proposition markets; we wanted to develop a product that caters to that growth in demand and delivers something unique for our partners.
For other player props products on the market, something that is worth noting is that the design and UX are doing little to engage Millennial/Gen Z bettors. This audience demands a streamlined UX that is easy to use. Our Pick’Em version has been specifically designed with this demographic in mind, although we have been careful not to disenfranchise other age groups. We have kept the design sleek, streamlined and easy to use to deliver that. It’s extremely well-designed compared to what you might see in a more traditional sportsbook.
The game is straightforward to understand because we have fixed multipliers. This decision differentiates us from more traditional products, where the multipliers vary depending on how many bets you place. It also makes the product much more accessible for players who might otherwise not be familiar with fantasy or player props.
Another major defining factor is that we have ensured players can add multiple bets from different markets together. On most sports betting sites out there, you cannot combine player props markets. You couldn’t, for example, have a bet slip combining Erling Haaland’s Over/Under Shots and Kevin De Bruyne’s Shots on Target. We know this is frustrating for many bettors. We wanted to eliminate that barrier and elevate sports fans’ experience.
How does the level of data granularity influence the design and effectiveness of player proposition betting products, particularly in terms of player engagement and personalised betting options?
We are very fortunate that the data feed we use for our player props markets is the best. We have a wide range of insights and data analytics available, giving us an edge over other companies within the space – this is a serious differentiator.
The enhanced data range means we can deliver many more bespoke, personalised betting options to players while also getting more granular with the markets we can offer.
Our Managed Services Team, which oversees all things trading, also closely monitors the markets that are most popular with players. For example, if we see an influx in bets on ‘shots on target’, we know how to create more promotions around this particular market. We can tailor the CMS to engage better with players and create a more personalised experience.
Players can also ‘favourite’ particular players and clubs. Any market featuring that player will automatically appear when the Pick’Em Player Props application loads up.
Are there any markets where you believe Pick’Em Player Props will prove to be particularly popular? If so, why?
In all honesty, I can’t think of a market where this won’t be popular! Regions such as LatAm present an enormous opportunity for the growth of player proposition markets. I believe we can really plug a gap in the products currently offered to bettors.
Across the continent, we’ve seen players show a real passion for player-focused markets, and we’re here to capitalise on that. In Brazil, for example, if we were to create markets on Neymar, I’d anticipate this would gain much traction!
The real selling point for Pick’Em Player Props here is that we offer an extensive range of sports and markets that cater to a broad audience – but within that, we can personalise sports and bet selections not to overwhelm the player. I’d expect that markets on football will perform exceptionally well across Africa and LatAm, while countries such as South Africa may have a stronger preference for Rugby or Cricket.
Ultimately, it’s about understanding the unique preferences of players within each jurisdiction our partners operate in and tailoring the product accordingly. With teams based in various markets worldwide, we can get to grips with the local knowledge and fully understand what resonates with bettors.
In your view, what are some of the factors behind the growth of player props products in the last 12 months?
Most definitely shows how sports media companies are incorporating more player-specific content into their roster. This already has a huge impact, and I can’t see it changing anytime soon.
Whether it’s interviews with specific players, post-match analytics on performance or even the inherent growth of social media, the balance is undoubtedly tipping more towards the player rather than the team.
Personalisation will also have a considerable knock-on effect on the growth of player propositions. Bettors want more bespoke offers, specific bet suggestions and more instant content tailored to their unique playing habits. With a product like Pick’Em Player Props, you can personalise that betting experience to your heart’s content.
It also becomes much easier for sportsbooks to align with a specific user’s interests when we deliver unmatched data analytics and levels of personalisation that are available via WA.Technology’s product suite.
In short, Pick’Em Player Props gives operators the tools they need to create wide-ranging engagement opportunities without sticking to the rigid sporting calendar, where sometimes you might have to wait several days between a game. By incorporating fantasy sports, we can deliver round-the-clock content much faster, therefore meeting the demands of players. If you want to find out more – make sure to stop by Stand 1095 at SiGMA!
Behind every stellar online slot is an equally stellar maths model. These are becoming more experimental as the industry flirts with an increasing array of innovative new mechanics. We spoke to Pablo Martinez, Math/Design Lead and Founder at maverick game studio Peter & Sons to find out more.
Do you have to be a maths genius to build a slot machine?
Nah, you don’t need to be a maths genius. It’s more about having the right mix of skills and loving what you do. You need to play a lot of games, see what’s working out there, and understand what makes them fun. Knowing maths helps, sure, but it’s more about creating something players want to keep coming back to.
Peter & Sons is known for making games that dare to be different, visually and thematically. Is the underlying math equally experimental?
Definitely! We love pushing boundaries, both in how our games look and how they play. Sure, it’s a bit of a gamble to have a bunch of games with unique mechanics, but we’re all about trying new things. Games like Peter Hunter and our upcoming Muddy Waters are great examples — they bring fresh gameplay and new experiences to the table. Each year, we try to put out at least one or two experimental titles, keeping things interesting while mixing them with more familiar styles.
Do you come up with the maths model first and then build the game around that? Take us through the process of building the game from start to finish.
We usually start with an idea for the mechanics first. We make a quick prototype to see if the concept can work with the maths. Then we bring in the art team to brainstorm themes that will fit well. Once we have a basic prototype, we go through a bunch of tweaks and changes until the art, mechanics, and maths all feel right together. It’s a back-and-forth process where we’re constantly finetuning everything to get the best balance.
Why do you think a mechanic like Megaways was so successful?
Megaways took off because it’s a fun, exciting mechanic that gave players something fresh, but smart brand marketing really helped it catch on.
Is there pressure as a slots developer to come up with the ‘next’ Megaways?
Not really. Coming up with new mechanics is always fun, but it’s not the only way to make a hit. Plenty of top games are just clever twists on classic mechanics. It’s more about creating a great experience that keeps players coming back, whether it’s something brand new or just a fresh spin on something more familiar.
Which slots are more popular, high or low volatility, and why do you think that is?
It depends on the market, but in some unregulated markets — and especially with some operators — high-volatility slots are really popular. A big reason for this is streamers. High-volatility games make for exciting content, so they get a lot of attention and hype online. That thrill factor really draws players in.
Which is your favorite Peter & Sons mechanic and why?
Right now, I’d say the fishing mechanic in our upcoming game Muddy Waters. It’s a new twist on the fishing genre that really brings something fresh to the gameplay. It’s exciting to take a familiar theme and make it feel totally different.
Tell us about the mechanics in your latest release, Barbarossa Revenge.
Barbarossa Revenge is a pirate-themed, high-volatility game with 243 ways to win. It’s a DoubleMax game, meaning the multiplier doubles with each cascade. You’ve also got Multiplier Jumps and a Cashout feature that guarantees wins. During Free Spins, the multipliers don’t reset and can keep growing unlimited. With a max win potential of 30,000x the bet, this game is a real thrill!
Week 46/2024 slot games releases
AGREEMENT BETWEEN ZITRO AND GRUPO OSGA TO PROMOTE THE LABOT INTEGRATION OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
EGT Digital’s iGaming platform X-Nave and successful titles to deliver high-quality experience to BetHub’s customers
Bragg Gaming Group Announces Record Third Quarter 2024 Revenue of Eur 26.2 Million (USD 29.3 Million)
BetMGM and Vegas Golden Knights Announce Multi-Year Partnership Extension
Spinomenal celebrates Halloween with Book of the Cursed release
Evoplay enters Czech market with exclusive Fortuna collaboration
QiH Group completes C-suite hiring spree with new CFO appointment
Peter & Sons- Maths and Mechanics
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Exclusive Interview with Miklos Handa (Founder of the email marketing solutions, “MailMike.net”), speaker at Vienna International Gaming Expo 2018
