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Evolution of the mechanics in the slot games world
Sergey Logvynenko, Account Manager at Sigma Software
You know, I was not familiar with the world when slot machine games were only physical 3-reel mechanical machines. Actually to be honest, I do because I remember when I was a kid my father let me play one round on a one-armed bandit which was just installed in a shopping center nearby. But that was only a single case and I was not exposed to slot games until about 30 years later.
The next time I came into contact with the world of slot games was in 2008 when we started a Casino project with Boss Media company. The world of slots had changed a lot – there were mostly 5-reel games with 1, 3 or 5 fixed win lines and more importantly they were video slots for online casinos. Quite quickly they progressed to 20, 40 or more win lines and more possibilities for a player to change the number of win lines. This was rather an evolution and not a revolution.
When we started working with Play’n GO, I became aware of more evolutions in slot games such as “ways” instead of win lines (in the Sweet 27 game) and grid slots which are now called cascade slots (Reactoonz). For me it was a big step because it opened a lot of new possibilities to represent win combinations and to play slot games which originally were very simple in a nutshell.
In recent years it seems the most significant added mechanics were in Megaways from Big Time Gaming. They really affected slot production and a lot of companies created megaway games. Even whole casinos were created with only megaways slots. It really meant something. Big Time Gaming was trying to surprise the world with Megaclusters on the wave of Megaways success, but it did not have that success.
Were Megaways really so significant? I would say yes and here are at least a couple of reasons why:
- We know that in the past few days Evolution acquired Big Time Gaming for half a billion dollars. This is the first sign of recognition of BTG’s innovations which include Megaways.
- We can see that Megaways forced other suppliers to do their homework and come to the market with solutions with Megaways in mind. For example:
- Gigablox mechanic from Yggdrasil. They even wrapped it into a framework so other game studios were able to use it and they are currently doing so.
- HyperWays from GameART which adds an interesting mechanic to regular slots, has just been released.
I am sure there are many more examples of using the ideas of Megaways to bring something new to slot games which supports the evolution of the slot world. This, as well as personalized jackpots, help to evolve casinos.
At the same time, all these recent evolutions only make small steps in changing slot games and do not bring something really significant, something that will change the game itself or the ways they are played. But the more interesting questions are: what will revolutionize slots? And what will change this world of slot machines?
If we talk about the world of casino games, there is a tendency to bring more attention to table games, especially with games in the newer markets of Asia, Africa and South America. And of course live-dealer games. But that is about table games and not about slots.
In the slot world it is calm, like in the ocean before the storm and something must happen. Maybe SharedPlay with their “play-to-play” model will change the world. Maybe elements of social gaming will be added into slots or even create hyper casual slots. Maybe something else…
What do you think?
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Compliance Updates
UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024
The Gambling Commission has published further data on the gambling industry in Great Britain.
This data, sourced from operators, reflects the period between March 2020 and September 2024, inclusive, and covers online and in-person gambling covering Licensed Betting Operators (LBOs) found on Britain’s high streets.
Comparison should not be made with the industry statistics dataset, as this dataset may include free bets and bonuses and does not include data from all operators.
This release compares Quarter 2 (Q2) of financial year 2024 to 2025, with Q2 of 2023 to 2024, looking at how the market has changed in comparative periods over a year.
The latest operator data shows:
- online total Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) in Q2 (July to September) was £1.32 billion, an increase of 11 percent from Q2 the previous year. The overall number of total bets and/or spins increased 12 percent Year-on-Year (YoY), reaching a new peak for the third consecutive quarter of 25.2 billion, whilst the average monthly active accounts2 in the quarter increased 8 percent
- real event betting GGY increased by 6 percent YoY to £453 million. The number of bets decreased 10 percent, while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 9 percent
- slots GGY increased 16 percent to £680 million YoY. The number of spins increased 13 percent to 23.3 billion while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 16 percent to 4.4 million per month. Although this is a new peak for GGY in this dataset for the slots vertical, it should be noted that one operator has re-classified some of its products into the slot vertical this quarter, which has had an impact on the vertical data
- the number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour increased by 9 percent YoY to 10 million. The average session length remained at 17 minutes. Approximately 6.1 percent of all sessions lasted more than one hour compared to 6.6 percent in Q2 the previous year. The number of spins per session has fallen from 147 to 142 YOY, whilst the GGY per session has fallen from £4.20 to £4.13 in the equivalent timeframe
- LBO GGY decreased by 1 percent to £533 million in Q2 2024 to 2025, compared to the same quarter last year, while the number of total bets and spins decreased by 0.1 percent to 3.1 billion.
The post UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Latest News
Betano introduces a new immersive way of NBA betting
Betano, Kaizen Gaming’s premium sports betting and gaming brand announces the launch of its innovative in-game visualisation tool for National Basketball Association (NBA) games. Starting this season, Betano customers will be able to watch and interact with live games as if they were playing a video game.
Powered by computer vision and AI technology, the new feature takes real-time data points and turns it into 3D visualisations that are delivered in a hyper-personalised stream, allowing fans to select their viewing angle and enjoy every block, shot, and point scored from their preferred vantage point. Launched in partnership with Sportradar, Betano’s new gaming feature continues its commitment and passion for creating unique and unrivalled fan experiences in every sport.
George Kourakos, Kaizen Gaming Director of Innovation, said: “The arrival of AI technology and particularly computer vision is helping revolutionise the fan experience for leading sporting competitions. Increasingly, fans want to take control of how they watch and engage with sports, so they can create their own personalised experiences. We’re excited to introduce a whole new way of enjoying matches, allowing fans to choose their favourite angles to view the action. We remain dedicated to keep delivering innovations that enable our users to engage in new ways with all their favourite sports, always in a responsible manner”.
The new feature technology of the Betano platform arrives at the start of what is set to be another enthralling NBA season. Besides offering the competition’s matches through its platform, Betano has engaged with the world’s best basketball league by supporting Giannis Antetokoummpo. The two-time NBA MVP and 2021 NBA Champion has been Betano’s Global Brand Ambassador since 2023.
The post Betano introduces a new immersive way of NBA betting appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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EGT Digital’s games are live on the top Italian betting sites Lottomatica and Goldbet
EGT Digital keeps on achieving milestones in Italy. Thanks to the partnership with the popular aggregator Microgame the Bulgarian provider’s slot games from the jackpot bestsellers Clover Chance and High Cash are already at the disposal of the clients of Lottomatica and Goldbet. Both websites are part of the market-leading Lottomatica Group.
Zornitsa Boncheva, Regional manager for Italy at EGT, commented: “The collaboration with Lottomatica Group in the online sector is a logical continuation of our fruitful collaboration with them in the land-based and VLT niches and is a great success for us. Our casino content is now available to visitors to some of the most prominent gaming platforms in Italy and I am happy to say that since their debut our titles, especially 10 Shining Diamond, have made a deep impression on players who highly appreciated their attractive design, many bonuses and high chances to win. I believe that this cooperation will give a big boost to our market entry in the near future.”
The post EGT Digital’s games are live on the top Italian betting sites Lottomatica and Goldbet appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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