

Latest News
Revealed: The emotional, social, and developmental benefits of gaming
- 28% of internet users play games to meet new people
- A third of gamers say they play because they like to challenge themselves.
- There are 20,000 gaming jobs in the UK, providing plenty of opportunity for a career in the industry
- We spoke to three experts in the field who gave their insights into the gaming industry
There are lots of negative misconceptions about gaming, many of which are far from the truth. A new study turns stereotypes on their heads and reveals the emotional, social, and developmental benefits of gaming. Dr Rachel Kowert, Research Director of Take This – a mental health non-profit; Dr Matthew Barr, a lecturer of Game Studies at the University of Glasgow; and Noel McDermott, a psychotherapist and presenter of The Well-Being Show podcast, provide their thoughts and insights. Here are some of the highlights:
Gaming can boost mental wellbeing and help with feelings of loneliness
- Thanks to well-crafted storylines and lifelike graphics, games are the perfect form of escapism
- 34% of gamers identify the feeling of being immersed in a game as a key motivation to play
- The global gaming population is likely to have increased by 4% since the outbreak of Covid-19
Especially in challenging times, activities that provide a positive distraction and allow an individual to put their worries to the back of their mind can have a beneficial impact on mental wellbeing. Gaming is an excellent example of this, offering an immersive experience that can mentally transport you to another world.
Barr says, “Video games are good at getting players into the state of optimal experience that psychologists call ‘flow’, by offering an appropriate balance of challenge versus achievement. It’s that feeling of being ‘in the zone’, where you’re totally absorbed in the task at hand, and you’re operating at the top of your game. In turn, this has a positive impact on how players feel.”
This is because the sense of reward releases feel-good hormones called dopamine that boost the player’s mood. What’s more, gaming can offer meditative benefits by fully occupying your mind with the objectives of the game.
Kowert adds that, “Gameplay can also teach skills that have long been associated with increased happiness and prolonged life satisfaction, including openness to experience, self-care, a growth mindset, solution-focused thinking, mindfulness, persistence, self-discovery, and resilience.”
Gaming can maintain and build new relationships
- Half of gamers play with their real-life friends
- 28% of internet users play games to meet new people
- 1 in 3 internet users in the UK say the main reason they game is to have fun with people they know
Contrary to popular belief, gaming can be a sociable activity. Many games offer multiplayer modes or are designed to be played in teams, providing the opportunity for individuals to join forces with their existing friends or virtually meet new people – located anywhere in the world.
McDermott says, “Gaming, especially online, can provide immeasurable benefits to those who are lonely and isolated. It provides safe social contact and a place where skills can be developed. These skills can provide a much-needed boost to self-esteem.”
Research found that 60% of gamers report playing more games with social elements since the beginning of the pandemic, suggesting gaming can play a positive and pivotal role in connecting people at a time when face-to-face contact isn’t always possible.
Kowert explains, “Shared experiences, like playing games together, have been linked to increased self-esteem and a sense of belonging, as well as decreased feelings of depression, anxiety, and isolation.”
Gaming can teach life skills and cognitive abilities
- There are 20,000 gaming jobs in the UK, providing plenty of opportunity for a career in gaming
- Minecraft: Education Edition, for example, has applications in geography, history, engineering, and physics
- A third of gamers say they play because they like to challenge themselves.
While gaming can provide a fun form of entertainment, it can also contribute to the player’s cognitive development. For example, many titles involve problem solving, strategy and multi-tasking, among other skills.
Kowert explains, “Games are fantastic learning tools, particularly for children, because they are so engaging. Video games are also great vehicles for sharpening cognitive skills because they provide a range of different challenges within a single space. Gameplay has been associated with the improvement of a range of cognitive skills, including:
- improved creative thinking
- problem solving
- time management
- leadership skills
- goal setting
- initiative taking
- decision making
- persistence in the face of difficult challenges.”
It’s estimated that children aged 12-15 years old spend an average of 11.6 hours a week gaming. So, with gaming being such a widely enjoyed hobby, it’s encouraging to note that it could be effectively harnessed as an educational tool to teach numerous skills and knowledge. What’s more, with the gaming industry growing year-on-year (and estimated to be worth £3.86 billion in 2020), it could also open doors for careers in the industry.
Barr explains, “We all learn new skills through practice, whether that’s learning how to play an instrument or training to play sports more proficiently. Learning from a video game is no different – you’re exercising skills all the time, whether it’s figuring out puzzles or using your communication and language skills to talk to and strategize with your fellow players.”
Gaming myths debunked
- 52% of Brits play video games, demonstrating its popularity and prevalence in daily life
- Gaming is the nation’s second favourite pastime, after watching TV
- Brits spend an average of 7 hours a week gaming, which is just a third of the time spent watching TV (22.5 hrs)
Over the years, gaming has been associated with negative stereotypes and behaviours, such as laziness, violence, and isolation. There is little evidence to prove any of these correct. Instead, in many cases, gaming can be more beneficial for the player’s health, development, and social abilities than it is detrimental. In fact, with over half of Brits playing games, it’s apparent that gaming is just a part of modern life for many.
Kowert explains, “There is no evidence to suggest that playing games online has a negative impact on our ability to socialise. However, research has found that playing games with our friends online can strengthen our offline friendships and relationships.”
Another concern that often arises is the amount of time people spend gaming and whether gaming has addictive qualities. Talking on the topic, Barr explains that, “People talk about players becoming ‘addicted’ to games, without really considering what that word means, in a clinical sense. We don’t bat an eyelid when someone becomes so engrossed in a book that they sit there reading for hours on end, but somehow this sort of behaviour is perceived as problematic when it comes to games.”
Latest News
Stake unveils new Stake Engine: Build. Launch. Earn. The Engine Is Yours

Stake, the world’s largest online casino, today announced the launch of Stake Engine — a next-generation Remote Gaming Server (RGS) built to give developers the tools, infrastructure, and audience they need to succeed on their terms.
Backed by the technology behind 300 billion bets and a global community of over 20 million players, Stake Engine offers an instant path to revenue with full end-to-end game development tools and the most developer-friendly commercial model in iGaming: 10% GGR (Gross Gaming Revenue), paid monthly.
Whether you’re an indie creator or a full-scale studio, Stake Engine offers everything you need to build, deploy, and grow games on your terms.
Studios are already winning.
Over the past 12 months, games built on Stake Engine have generated $3.31 billion in turnover. In the most recent quarter, three titles ranked among Stake’s top 50 games by total bets: Massive Studio’s Jawsome at #17, Serpentina at #23, and Twist’s Samurai Dogs Unleashed at #25.
Who can build?
Any developer. From math devs and indie studios to full-stack teams, if you can design and deliver engaging games, you’re welcome here.
What can you build?
Anything your imagination allows. Slots, wheel mechanics, card-based logic, original IP, Stake Engine has no templates, no restrictions, and no gatekeeping. If it plays well and meets our standards, you can build it, launch it, and own it.
Why build on Stake Engine?
Stake Engine gives developers everything they need to launch faster, without the barriers that slow down traditional game development.
No need to build your own infrastructure, negotiate publisher deals, or spend months integrating with legacy Remote Gaming Servers (RGS). With Stake Engine, you can go from idea to live game in days.
Stake handles the infrastructure, distribution, and visibility, so you can focus on what matters: building great games. There’s no pitching, no storefront politics, and no delays.
Behind the scenes, Stake Engine powers everything with a full front-end SDK, integrated math engine, balancing toolkit, and real-time analytics dashboard — putting real performance data at your fingertips.
And once your game goes live, you get paid monthly, with 10% GGR royalties and zero lockups.
Proven at Scale
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Over 300 billion bets placed on Stake
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10 billion monthly wagers processed
- Stake is behind 4% of global Bitcoin transactions
Capable of handling 1 million+ bets per secondStake Engine: Key Features
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Stake Engine delivers unmatched scale and performance, supporting over 1 million bets per second and powered by the same infrastructure behind the world’s most popular crypto casino.
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It offers a full end-to-end developer stack, including a front-end framework, integrated math engine, and balancing toolkit — everything needed to build rich, interactive games quickly and at scale.
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Developers have complete creative freedom with no templates or restrictions. Build any game, upload it, and launch directly to Stake’s global audience.
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Instant deployment tools allow developers to upload, test, and go live in minutes, with full versioning and real-time testing capabilities.
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Stake Engine provides transparent analytics, offering real-time insights into game performance across players, markets, and engagement cohorts.
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It features an industry-leading commercial model with 10% GGR perpetual royalties — the most aggressive terms in gaming, paid monthly without delays or hidden fees.
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Stake Engine is built by developers, for developers. Created by the engineers behind some of iGaming’s top studios, it is focused on speed, control, and fixing everything broken about legacy game launch processes.
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Stake also handles all positioning, marketing, and growth — giving developers full visibility and freeing them to focus purely on building great games.
Brais Pena, Chief Strategy Officer at Easygo, the technology powerhouse behind Stake, said: “Stake Engine is built for creators, with speed, freedom, and scale baked in.”
“Stake Engine is more than just infrastructure, it’s a launchpad for the next generation of iGaming creators. We’ve taken everything we’ve learned building the world’s most popular online casino and packaged it into a platform that removes barriers, unlocks creativity, and delivers scale from day one.”
“Stake Engine is what happens when the biggest operator in iGaming builds for the builders. It’s not just a platform. It’s our commitment to the next generation of game creators.”
The post Stake unveils new Stake Engine: Build. Launch. Earn. The Engine Is Yours appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs
PENN Entertainment Announces Plans for New Land-Based Hollywood Casino to Replace Riverboat Gaming Operations in Council Bluffs, Iowa
PENN Entertainment Inc. announced plans for an expected $180–$200 million project to relocate its Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs (Ameristar) riverboat casino operations to a new, state-of-the-art land-based property to be rebranded as Hollywood Casino Council Bluffs (Hollywood Council Bluffs). The proposal is approved by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission in conjunction with a 15-year extension of Ameristar’s partnership with the nonprofit Qualified Sponsoring Organization (QSO) Iowa West Racing Association. All commercial operators in Iowa are required to have an operating agreement with a QSO licensed to conduct gaming operations.
Under the proposed plan, the new Hollywood Council Bluffs is expected to include roughly 125,000 square feet of new development with approximately 58,000 square feet of gaming space. The new facility will complement the existing ESPN BET sportsbook, 160-room hotel and dining options in the landside portion of the current infrastructure. The existing riverboat, which presently offers gaming spread out over three levels, will be vacated upon opening of the new property.
“We are pleased to add another landside relocation to our pipeline of development projects. This project will enhance the quality and efficiency of our Council Bluffs location and significantly improve the property’s competitive positioning in the greater Omaha market. PENN’s diversified portfolio of casino properties is core to our omni-channel approach to entertainment, which combines our best-in-class retail operations and a database of more than 32 million PENN Play members with our robust interactive and media footprint. We thank the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission for their approval today and are grateful for the continued collaboration with our partners at the Iowa West Racing Association,” said Todd George, Executive Vice President of Operations for PENN.
“We are thrilled with the exciting development plans for the new Hollywood Casino Council Bluffs. For nearly thirty years, the Ameristar riverboat has been providing not only dining and entertainment, but thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in support of our community. PENN’s commitment to reinvesting in Council Bluffs is laudable and we are grateful for our ongoing partnership,” said Brenda Mainwaring, President & CEO of the Iowa West Racing Association.
Construction of the new facility is expected to take approximately 18-24 months following the design and permitting approval process. The Company is entitled to obtain financing for the project from Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. (GLPI) of up to $150 million at a 7.10% cap rate, which may be structured at PENN’s option as either rent or a 5-year term loan that is pre-payable at any time without penalty.
The post PENN Entertainment Announces Plans for New Land-Based Hollywood Casino to Replace Riverboat Gaming Operations in Council Bluffs, Iowa appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Daily Fantasy Sports
PrizePicks Teams Up with San Francisco Giants as Official DFS Partner

PrizePicks, the largest daily fantasy sports operator in North America, announced that it has been named the Official Daily Fantasy Partner of the San Francisco Giants. The new partnership strengthens the DFS leader’s presence in professional baseball and features digital and in-park activations at Oracle Park.
“We are thrilled to team up with a legendary organization like the San Francisco Giants. PrizePicks is committed to bringing unique experiences to our players around the country and is excited to strengthen our connection with baseball fans in San Francisco and across the United States,” said Mike Quigley, Chief Marketing Officer at PrizePicks.
As part of the multi-year partnership, PrizePicks branding will be showcased prominently throughout Oracle Park with rotating signage behind home plate and LED signage on each baseline. PrizePicks logos will be featured across the K-Counter in right field, creating an interactive experience for fans in the ballpark. Fans seated on top of the right field wall near the strikeout counter will have the opportunity to flip over the PrizePicks branded signs, revealing a “K” for each strikeout earned by a Giants pitcher.
When Giants pitchers combine for 12 strikeouts in a home game, fans can participate in a text-to-enter promotion with the chance to win a $12,000 free PrizePicks lineup and tickets to a future Giants game at Oracle Park.
“The Giants are always looking for innovative ways to enhance the fan experience. Partnering with PrizePicks provides our fans with new ways to engage with us and deepen their connection to both the Giants and baseball,” said Jason Pearl, Chief Revenue Officer at the San Francisco Giants.
The post PrizePicks Teams Up with San Francisco Giants as Official DFS Partner appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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