Latest News

Opera buys owner of GameMaker and starts a Gaming division

Published

5 years ago

January 22, 2021

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Opera, the browser developer and consumer internet brand, announced its acquisition of YoYo Games, creator of the world’s leading 2D game engine, GameMaker Studio 2, for approximately $10 million. The tuck-in acquisition represents the second building block in the foundation of Opera Gaming, a new division within Opera with global ambitions and follows the creation and rapid growth of Opera’s innovative Opera GX browser, the world’s first browser built specifically for gamers.

Krystian Kolondra, EVP Browsers at Opera, said: “With Opera GX, Opera had adapted its proven, innovative browser tech platform to dramatically expand its footprint in gaming. We’re at the brink of a shift, when more and more people start not only playing, but also creating and publishing games. GameMaker Studio2 is best-in-class game development software, and lowers the barrier to entry for anyone to start making their games and offer them across a wide range of web-supported platforms, from PCs, to, mobile iOS/Android devices, to consoles.

Annette De Freitas, Head of Business Development & Strategic Partnerships, Opera Gaming, added: “Gaming is a growth area for Opera and the acquisition of YoYo Games reflects significant, sustained momentum across both of our businesses over the past year. Our new Opera GX browser hit 7 million MAUs in December, 2020, up 350% year over year, while YoYo Games’ GameMaker engine achieved 400K new registered creators in 2020. We’re tremendously excited by the opportunities the combination creates not only for our combined users, but also for the expansion of Opera’s gaming community.”

Stuart Poole, GM at YoYo Games who will remain with the business alongside technical lead Russell Kay stated, “For over twenty years, the vision behind the GameMaker engine was to not just create more games, but expand development within and beyond the game studio. We think the transaction with Opera – whose products are known, trusted and used worldwide by millions of people every month- represents a massive opportunity to accelerate fulfilment of that founding vision, during a period of exceptional growth for both companies.”

“We are very excited to start working with the team at YoYo Games,” said Krystian Kolondra, EVP Browsers at Opera. “We see the Game Maker Studio platform as being an ideal acquisition to complement our global ambitions in gaming, and to help drive awareness and traffic to our Opera GX gaming browser.”

Opera GX, YoYo Games and GameMaker will unite under Opera Gaming, focusing on innovating across the gaming, game development, and browser experience. “We look forward to further growing Opera GX and driving the growth of GameMaker as part of a broader ecosystem, making it more accessible to novice users and developing it into the world’s leading 2D game engine used by commercial studios,” continued Krystian Kolondra. “Opera Gaming will be focusing on accelerating the growth of this emerging ecosystem, combining the 7+ million highly engaged gamers using Opera GX with millions of GameMaker creators. We are also thrilled to continue realizing synergies between YoYo Games’ products and Opera GX.”

GameMakerStudio is an integrated game development software, performance-tuned 2/2.5D engine that fuels many games, including multi-million hits like Risk of Rain, Undertale, or Hyper Light Drifter on an extensive range of mainstream platforms. Starting to build games with Game Maker Studio requires little to zero coding skills. Due to its extensive functionalities and ease of use Game Maker Studio lowers the barriers to entry and empowers a variety of creative people to make their games come alive and share them with the world.

Kolondra explained further: “Performance is essential to even 2D gaming, and sustaining that performance across mobile devices and laptops as well as variable bandwidth and connectivity requires thinking outside of traditional application silos. The line between building good games and good browsers has been eroding for years – with gaming interactivity across internet connections ramping up and browsers growing more multi-function and sophisticated. Traditionally the two types of technology compete for hardware and bandwidth resources. But as Opera GX proved, there was a better way to address that competition and improve the experience across both functionalities. YoYo Games’ team, development expertise and studio relationships lay the groundwork for turning the Opera GX vertical into a new kind of horizontal. This horizontal opportunity is why we’re building Opera Gaming and its infrastructure – so that we can further integrate gaming and browsing in ways beneficial to both in terms of not only monetization, but also experience.”

BGaming

Weekend Reels | Week 29: Slot Drops & Trends

Published

9 minutes ago

July 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

weekend-reels-|-week-29:-slot-drops-&-trends

Here are this weeks latest slots releases compiled by Eastern European Gaming

EveryMatrix-owned studio Fantasma Games has launched Bonus Bullets, expanding EveryMatrix’s exclusive games portfolio with a new three-reel slot featuring modern bonus mechanics. The game introduces a Bullet Prize mechanic that awards instant cash prizes or one of four jackpots when Bullet symbols align across all three reels.

High 5 Games is marking the 25th anniversary of its Green Machine franchise with a new title, Green Machine Blitz. The company said the game will include a “fast-paced duplication mechanic,” activated collection features, four jackpots, and a LootLink bonus. According to High 5 Games, special symbols can duplicate across the reels to create chain reactions.

BGaming has launched The Godfather: 3 Pillars of Power, a new slot title built on The Godfather film franchise. According to the supplier, the game includes the likeness of Vito Corleone, portrayed by Marlon Brando, alongside the film’s voice and musical score.

Evoplay has launched Flame of Ra, a new ancient Egypt-themed online slot featuring scatter-triggered free spins and a bonus buy option. The game is played on a 5×4 grid. Wild symbols substitute for all regular symbols, while landing three or more scatter symbols anywhere on the reels activates the free spins feature.

Playson has launched 4 Chili Pots: Hold and Win, a new slot built around Hold and Win and Pots mechanics with two bonus modes and jackpots reaching 10,000x. The game runs on a 5×3 grid and triggers a Hold and Win Bonus Game with Chili Features when red, orange or green Chili Bonus symbols land, combining with enlarged matching chilis above the reels

Blueprint Gaming has released a new slot, Wolf Fury Fire Blitz, built around an “evolving Fire Blitz mechanic” and two bonus paths: Fire Spins and Blitz Spins. The game uses a Fire Blitz logo above the reels as a meter. In the base game and Power Play, the supplier said every Cash and Wolf symbol contributes to the meter, with boosts able to add extra symbols.

Wazdan has launched 16 Coins Betsson, a bespoke branded version of its 16 Coins title, in partnership with Betsson. The release adapts Wazdan’s Coins series format for Betsson players, combining the original game’s mechanics with operator-specific branding. The game is played across 16 independent reels in a 4×4 layout.

Booming Games has launched Tasty Bonanza Max Scatter, a new online slot released on 16 July 2026 from the supplier’s Malta base. The title is the second game in its Max Scatter series and uses a 6×4 grid with Scatter Pays, cascading wins and a stated maximum win potential of 15,000x.

The post Weekend Reels | Week 29: Slot Drops & Trends appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Las Vegas

WSOP 2026 wraps in Las Vegas with record 251,899 entries and $469.98m paid out

Published

9 minutes ago

July 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

wsop-2026-wraps-in-las-vegas-with-record-251,899-entries-and-$469.98m-paid-out

The 57th annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) concluded its summer tournament schedule on July 15, 2026, after 51 days at Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas. WSOP said the series ran 100 live gold bracelet events and finished with a record 251,899 total entries and $469,975,059 paid out across gold bracelet events.

WSOP reported the $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em World Championship (Main Event) attracted 9,208 entrants, with the final nine set to return to Las Vegas from August 3 to 5, 2026, to play down to a champion live on ESPN. “The 57th annual World Series of Poker proved that Las Vegas remains the undisputed epicenter of the poker universe,” said Ty Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of the WSOP. “What is truly remarkable this year is how our community expanded far beyond the physical walls of the casino floor… we are incredibly proud of this summer’s success and cannot wait to witness the Final Nine battle for the World Championship on ESPN next month.”

The operator also pointed to a redesigned final table arena and an expanded distribution footprint. It said Main Event coverage returned to ESPN and cited a multi-year agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery to distribute coverage across HBO Max, Eurosport, and TNT Sports globally. WSOP added that edited broadcasts will air from July 21.

On tournament metrics, WSOP said 35,157 places were paid and 41 prizes of $1m+ were awarded. The operator highlighted several field-size records, including 22,811 entries for Event #63 $1,000 Mystery Millions No-Limit Hold’em, 1,368 entries for Event #68 $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold’em Championship, and 11,933 entries for Event #18 $1,500 Monster Stack No-Limit Hold’em. WSOP also said 149 countries were represented across the series and 111 countries were represented in the Main Event field, which it called a new record.

WSOP also reported digital and social growth during the series, citing 378.3 million total views across its social channels and 222,828 new followers overall. By platform, it reported 38.7 million YouTube views (103,128 new subscribers), 125 million Instagram views (54,450 new followers), 127 million Facebook views (56,800 new followers), and 36.6 million impressions on X (8,450 new followers). Looking ahead, WSOP said it is rolling out a revamped $1 Million Global Player of the Year race spanning WSOP Europe, the Las Vegas summer series, and WSOP Paradise, with the overall winner to be crowned at WSOP Paradise at Baha Mar in The Bahamas from December 1 to 17, 2026.

The post WSOP 2026 wraps in Las Vegas with record 251,899 entries and $469.98m paid out appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

affiliate marketing

iPredicta launches US prediction markets price comparison site

Published

9 minutes ago

July 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

ipredicta-launches-us-prediction-markets-price-comparison-site

iPredicta has launched a comparison platform for US prediction markets, aimed at bringing live prices from multiple venues into a single interface, including Polymarket. The company announced the launch from London.

iPredicta operates an affiliate model, letting users compare prices on its site before continuing to a participating exchange to register and trade. At launch, the company said it tracks dozens of live markets across two venues, with data updating automatically as markets move.

The platform includes market scoring and notifications designed to help users monitor price differences, liquidity and market movements. It also offers plain-English guides for newcomers and an “AI explanation layer” that summarizes a market’s question, resolution criteria and what the current price implies. iPredicta said the AI “produces the words, not the numbers” and “does not set scores, predict outcomes or give trading advice.”

“Prediction markets have grown rapidly over the past 12 months, yet the information people need is still scattered across different exchanges,” said Charlotte Nimmo, founder of iPredicta. “We launched iPredicta because people should not have to piece everything together across several exchanges just to understand what is happening.

“Whether you are well versed in prediction markets or trying them for the first time, iPredicta brings prices and comparisons together in one place, making it easier to follow how markets are changing. It also gives newcomers a clearer way into a category that can look complicated from the outside.”

The launch comes as prediction markets expand across categories including sport, politics, entertainment, crypto and climate. iPredicta cited CertiK’s 2026 Skynet Prediction Markets Report, which said global prediction market trading volume rose from $15.8 billion in 2024 to $63.5 billion in 2025. Nimmo previously ran affiliate betting platform Best of Bets and founded Cavalier Public Relations, according to the company.

The post iPredicta launches US prediction markets price comparison site appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.