Fiona Hickey
Push Gaming’s 2023 report: the US, more games and new horizons
As 2023 draws to a close, Push Gaming’s Director of New Business and Markets, Fiona Hickey, reflects on its recent progress on and off the reels and how the news of its acquisition has been received stateside, where the popular studio intends to make a splash.
With Push’s much-anticipated entry into the US market looming, has this influenced the agenda of US event attendance in 2023?
We’ve been diligently preparing for our US market entry for the past few years, gaining valuable insights and developing a comprehensive strategy as to our approach to the jurisdiction. With the potential of the US market being so great, it is worth taking our time and preparing for our launch accordingly.
During our pre-planning stage, we attended events like G2E Las Vegas among others where we met with regulators and gathered a broader understanding of the US gaming market so that we were sufficiently knowledgeable and informed of the market.
We’ve also been studying popular game concepts in both the online and the land-based market to ensure that our launch offerings will resonate with US players. By carefully considering the regulatory environment and player preferences, we have been able to develop a comprehensive plan to market that will position us for success when we begin to roll out there.
Has the recent acquisition by MGMRI/LeoVegas furthered this agenda at all? Or is it business as usual in terms of your US debut?
Our recent merger with MGM Resorts has significantly enhanced our US expansion strategy. The deal enables us to capitalise on BetMGM’s market-leading position and introduce our globally celebrated titles to American players for the first time on one of the most prominent operators’ platforms.
This will catapult our brand awareness in the US and help integrate our titles into the public zeitgeist of online slots within that market, encouraging more growth thereafter with additional operators and partners.
Your product roadmap has been boosted by an acceleration in game launches – what impact does this have on selling Push Gaming to operators?
We’ve been consistently raising the bar for our games in terms of quality and quantity over the past few years. Each new game provides an opportunity to innovate and expand our knowledge whilst delivering new features to players. With each successive release, we become a stronger provider and the recent uptick in these launches has amplified our already well-known inclination to innovate.
With over 60 direct integrations and partnerships with nearly all tier-one operators in the regulated markets that we are live in, we’re in an incredibly strong position. Adding more award-winning games to our portfolio allows us to capitalise on this position and expand even further, both with new operators and with our existing partners.
The big product news of 2023 was Razor Returns. Has this resulted in more interest in your content?
Our portfolio has always garnered significant attention from both players and operators because we’re constantly pushing the boundaries of slot development. We don’t simply replicate trends, we add our unique touch to create something truly exceptional and this is sought out by players and proves beneficial to operators. Razor Returns was a resounding success and since its launch, it has remained a top game for our partners. Players are drawn to its mix of familiar gameplay and the evolution of a fan-favourite franchise with new additions to its mechanics, the slot has proven to be a hit since release.
As we move into 2024, we’ve already crafted an impressive roadmap for Q1, featuring seven games, one of which is the highly anticipated Wild Swarm 2 which we believe has the potential to be our most successful sequel yet. We also have Retro Sweets upcoming, the long-awaited sequel to Retro Tapes, which we know our partners will love. For them and ourselves, content is king and consistently delivering high-quality entertainment experiences is key to garnering more interest in our games.
What other regions and new markets are in the pipeline for Push?
Following our entry into Greece, Italy, and Switzerland towards the end of 2023, we plan to continue our expansion and aim to be live in Spain in Q2 next year. We will also be looking to continue our growth and expansion into Latin America, along with our much-awaited entry into the US being on the horizon. We are excited to continue to grow our business, offering our innovative games to new players around the world and providing existing Push enthusiasts with new games to enjoy. There are exciting times ahead.