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Pocket Gamer Awards 2021

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PocketGamer.com – the leading and longest-running site for mobile gamers – revealed the winners of this year’s Pocket Gamer Awards.

The top game of the year prize went to Genshin Impact, whilst Rovio’s seminal Angry Birds picked up the prestigious Hall Of Fame gong.

Other winners across the 16 categories included platform games like Little Orpheus, hypercasual titles like Clusterduck, big-name RPGs like Knighthood and AAA franchises like Pokemon and Call Of Duty. Riot Games, famous for League Of Legends, picked up the best developer category. The full list of winners is below. This year, the Pocket Gamer Awards are sponsored by RedMagic.

The Pocket Gamer Awards are a celebration of the best in mobile games. Organised and hosted by industry experts but voted on by gamers themselves, the Pocket Gamer Awards reward the passion and effort that developers pour into making games. Over 350,000 votes were cast in the last two months, a phenomenal outpouring of love for the best iOS and Android games of the last 12 months.

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A new Hall Of Fame category celebrates landmark titles that have had a major impact on the mobile games industry over the years. It’s the only category picked by the editorial experts rather than put to a public vote. Angry Birds, Rovio’s classic franchise first launched in 2009, is the first recipient. Editor of PocketGamer.com, Dann Sullivan, said of Angry Birds: “No IP has done more for mobile games than Angry Birds, and while we might remember it as a lightning-strike for touch controls, over the years Rovio’s flagship franchise forged the way into social gaming and was one of the first mobile games to pioneer major licensing deals in the mobile space. The birds have also had more movies and TV episodes than Mario and Sonic combined.”

Sullivan continued: “While some of these milestones might not have anything to do with the small touchscreen, it’s impossible to deny that Rovio’s Red & Co managed to become a cultural powerhouse, and played a critical role in getting mobile gaming to where it is today.”

The award ceremony itself took place this evening, March 16, on Twitch and PocketGamer.com and broadcast across YouTube and the Enthusiast Gaming network of sites.

Launched by Steel Media, Pocket Gamer has been delivering news, reviews, tips, guides and features that inform and entertain mobile and handheld gamers since 2006.

Enthusiast Gaming, the largest gaming network in North America, has owned Steel Media and Pocket Gamer since 2019. Since 2020, Pocket Gamer has hosted quarterly LaunchPad online events celebrating new and updated mobile games to an audience of three million viewers on Twitch.

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For more information, visit https://www.pocketgamer.com/pgawards2021/ now. A recording of the Pocket Gamer Awards ceremony will be available soon on the site and also on the official YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/PocketGamerVideo/videos.

 

Winners

Best Platform Game: Little Orpheus

Best Simulation Game: Transport City: Truck Tycoon

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Best Sports Game: Retro Bowl

Best Game Narrative: There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension

Best ‘Quick Play’ Game: Clusterduck

Best Mobile Conversion: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Best Apple Arcade Game: Alba: a Wildlife Adventure

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Best Educational Game: Dish Life: The Game

Best Strategy Game: Company of Heroes

Best RPG: Knighthood

Most Innovative Game: HoloVista

Best Gaming Accessory: Razer Kishi Controller

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Best Gaming Tablet: Apple iPad Pro

Best Battle Royale Game: Garena Free Fire

Best AR Game: LEGO Hidden Side

Best Puzzle Game: Pokemon Cafe Mix

Best Racing Game: Dirt Bike Unchained

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Best Google Play Pass Game: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

Best Mobile Publisher: Garena

Best Action Game: Pascal’s Wager

Best Digital Board Game: The Game of Life 2

Best Gaming Phone: Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max

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Best Multiplayer Game: EVE Echoes

Best Shooter: Warface: Global Operations

Best Game We’re Still Playing: Call of Duty Mobile

Best Mobile Developer: Riot Games

Hall Of Fame: Angry Birds

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Mobile Game of the Year: Genshin Impact

 

Additional Quotes

Editor of PocketGamer.com, Dann Sullivan, added: “We’re overjoyed with the reaction from the fans in the voting process. Just looking at the sheer variety of games that have been championed by their players and communities really cements how diverse and rapidly-evolving the mobile games sphere is. The development speed and growth of the mobile games industry is truly amazing – every year is a milestone year, as can be seen from the amazing selection of winners.”

Chris James, CEO of Steel Media, said: “We’re genuinely thrilled by how many people voted in this year’s awards, and how many tuned in to watch the ceremony streamed live. When we launched Pocket Gamer 15 years ago, mobile gaming was still niche. But now – thanks to the success of games like Hall Of Fame inductee Angry Birds – mobile is THE dominant force in the games industry. Over the last 12 months, iOS and Android titles saw further huge surges in popularity as people hunted for experiences to keep them occupied during lockdown. And the quality has never been higher. Games like Genshin Impact prove that the device in your pocket can match the addictiveness and playability of the best consoles have to offer.”

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James added: “As well as celebrating the best of the current crop of games, we’re always on the lookout for the next generation of blockbuster mobile titles. That’s why we’ve invented activities like the Big Indie Pitch and Pocket Gamer LaunchPad to champion new arrivals. So if you want to get an inside track on the next hidden gaming gem in 2021, there’s really nowhere else to go!”

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Endorphina Press Releases

Endorphina releases its newest title – Jolly Queen!

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One of the top casino game providers, Endorphina, has announced the release of its brand-new title, Jolly Queen, which will join its portfolio on April 27th. Jolly Queen is a 5-reel, 5-row fruit slot with 50 fixed paylines, introducing players to the lifestyle of the nobles.

On top of the aristocratic ambiance, Jolly Queen provides players with Free Games, allowing them to master the reels. During the Free Games, at least one Expanding Wild Joker is guaranteed to appear on the screen.

Furthermore, Jolly Queen also features the Royal Treasures Pick Game, enabling players to get a taste of the noble lifestyle. In the Bonus Game, players can choose from three gold-filled treasure chests, containing prizes of 10x, 30x, and 50x their total bets.

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Latest News

Kambi Group’s AI-powered trading division Tzeract enters into Bet Builder partnership with European operator kwiff

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Tzeract to provide its leading Bet Builder product in the cutting-edge supplier’s first commercial partnership

Kambi Group plc, the world’s trusted sports betting partner, today announced its AI-powered trading division Tzeract has partnered with kwiff to provide its powerful Bet Builder product to the innovative sports betting operator.

The partnership represents the first commercial deal for Tzeract since it was officially launched as a standalone division earlier this year, marking a significant step forward for Kambi as it continues to expand its range of modular services.

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Tzeract will initially provide kwiff with its industry-leading Bet Builder football product ahead of the highly anticipated Euro 2024 football tournament, ensuring kwiff customers enjoy an unparalleled betting experience throughout the competition. Additional sports will be added during the course of the partnership.

Unlike other third-party products, Tzeract’s Bet Builder has been designed to seamlessly integrate into an operator’s existing sportsbook and can utilise either the operator’s existing pricing or leverage Tzeract’s AI-generated odds. Working with kwiff, the super-charged betting operator, known for its proprietary platform, sportsbook and innovative modular tech stack, presented Tzeract both of these opportunities.

Having powered football pricing for the Kambi network since 2022, Tzeract is on a mission to establish a new standard in sports betting by providing an indispensable service which empowers operator innovation and makes it possible to bet on anything, at any time.

As part of the Kambi Group, Tzeract benefits from Kambi’s vast network data to inform its state-of-the-art AI-powered algorithmic trading capabilities in combination with increasingly rich sports data.

David Jacquet, Interim Managing Director at Tzeract, commented: “I am thrilled to announce Tzeract’s inaugural commercial partnership which will enable us to demonstrate the full power of Tzeract outside of the Kambi network for the first time. To work with such an innovative sportsbook like kwiff will provide the opportunities to build the world’s most exciting and intuitive betting experiences together.”

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Niklas Fallsjo, Head of Sportsbook Innovation at kwiff, added: “We are delighted to partner with Tzeract and integrate their market-leading Bet Builder product into our proprietary sportsbook. This innovative solution perfectly aligns with our commitment to providing our customers with an unrivalled and entertaining betting experience. We are confident that the addition of Bet Builder will be a hit with our players.”

The post Kambi Group’s AI-powered trading division Tzeract enters into Bet Builder partnership with European operator kwiff appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Interviews

Exclusive Q&A w/ Steven Paton, Commercial Director at Wise Gaming

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Could you describe the range of products and services that Wise Gaming offers? What makes them unique or appealing to potential clients?

Wise Gaming is the fastest-growing, Complete platform offering both White-Label & Turnkey Solutions. The Wise Gaming solutions are built from our team’s extensive experience: 15 years B2C and 10 years B2B. We know the importance of a truly modular approach, allowing our partner the ability to obtain our entire solution or individual components to enhance what they already have.

In what regions or markets does Wise Gaming primarily operate? Are there any plans for expansion into new territories?

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Our focus has been on both the European & LatAm Continents. With enormous success in our B2C operations, we are relying on our extensive experience. We believe the balance between established & emerging markets brings both knowledge and the ability to learn and adapt, truly focusing on our partners needs without limitations.

2025 will be Wise Gaming’s year of expansion! 2024‘s goal is about building on our success in EU & LatAm whilst planning next years’ growth in both Africa & Asia.

What technologies does Wise Gaming employ to deliver its iGaming solutions? Can you highlight any proprietary technologies or platforms that differentiate your offerings?

From our 15 years of B2C success, we felt that we understood both the pleasure points and pain points that most operators face on a daily & weekly basis. Therefore, we build our Wise Gaming solutions with a customer-centric approach, How can we support our partners to support their customers. We diligently sourced the industry’s best-in-class providers for both our Sportsbook & Casino content, utilizing Enterprise software to provide the most robust offering in the iGaming industry.

Our dedicated in-house teams visualize, build and enhance our Proprietary systems for each of our Partner’s needs, making each of our partners brands Unique.

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In what ways does Wise Gaming prioritise security and data protection within its technology infrastructure?

As previously mentioned, our customer-centric approach is vitally important to Wise Gaming and our Partners! Providing the correct technology and experience to our partners is key to having a successful KYC, AML, Due Diligence and Data Protection process. We opted for Amazon AWS solutioning to provide market-leading security, Encrypted databases & data storage, penetration resilience, DDoS attack elimination, dedicated Back-Office segmentation and User-based access, protecting player data while safeguarding our partners operations.

What are the current trends or challenges you’re seeing in the iGaming market? How is Wise Gaming adapting to these changes?

The speed in which technology advances is always a challenge for any provider. The key is to know your markets, the players, the accessibility of online entertainment such a sports betting & casinos and implement the technology that meets these variables. Everyone is talking about AI & Machine learning, and rightly so! With such advancements AI & Machine Learning models, it would be irresponsible not to utilize them. Whether it’s for Player customisation, Events based recommendation or supporting operational needs such as RG, KYC & AML, AI & machine Learning should be used to ENHANCE human interaction, not replace. At Wise Gaming, we have already implemented AI & Machine Learning models to provide the unique edge to our partners.

Also localized content is important. Every market is its own unique playground with their own specific cultural identities. Knowing these identities and becoming an expert in these will not only assist in the acquisition of players, it signifies a brand’s genuineness and authenticity to that market and allows greater player retention. At Wise Gaming we have already implemented A.I & Machine Learning models

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How does Wise Gaming ensure compliance with regulations in various jurisdictions? How important is regulatory adherence in your sales approach?

I will answer these 2 questions together. The market is experiencing a shift in regulation, and compliance. MGA & CGA license domination has been challenged, with more and more markets opting for tighter safety measures and implementing their own self-regulated approach. This brings safety to players and trust.

Working alongside regulators will always help, and more importantly, we can learn from each other. Adhering to regulation is ultimately for a player’s safety and that is paramount for the industry’s longevity. Wise Gaming continuously enhances its platform to conform with regulations, making it safe and reliable for our partners.

What are the key factors potential clients considering when choosing an iGaming provider, and how does Wise Gaming address these factors in its offerings?

As previously mentioned, experience and knowledge are key attributes from both an operational and technical aspect. “You can’t plant apple trees and expect to get oranges!” Wise Gaming’s experience & knowledge puts us, and our partners, at the forefront of each market, allowing substantial growth and higher ROI.

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Time to market should also be a priority. Whilst most Providers offer 2-4 months implementation time, Wise Gaming can deploy your platform within 2-4 weeks, giving us the competitive edge in a highly competitive space.

How does Wise Gaming incorporate feedback from clients into product development and improvement?

Experience and knowledge are simply 1’s learning over time. Our approach at Wise Gaming is that of a learning mentality, “you are never too old to learn!” iGaming is rich in experts – We trust our Partners, and they trust us, it’s the unification that builds long-term partnerships. We have 2 ears and 1 mouth, use them in that order!

What are the future goals and plans for Wise Gaming? Any upcoming innovations or developments you can share?

Our goal is to continue providing a reliable and robust platform, listening and delivering an innovative and unique solution for each of our Partners.

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Innovative Developments – If we tell everyone, they won’t be innovative 😉 However, what I can say is that we are focused on “advanced”, real-time localised AI recommended content both Casino & Sportsbook.

 

The post Exclusive Q&A w/ Steven Paton, Commercial Director at Wise Gaming appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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