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Introducing the Winners of the 2024 Game Developer Awards
Play’n GO, Playtech, Elk Studios, Pragmatic Play and streamer CasinoDaddy were some of the big names celebrating victories at the 2024 edition of the Game Developer Awards ceremony.
Concluding the final day of the highly successful CasinoBeats Summit, the illustrious awards ceremony, which took place at the Hilton Malta, was a night dedicated to honouring the remarkable achievements of the iGaming industry.
The evening witnessed the return of veteran host Trudy Kerr, alongside award-winning game developer John Romero, as they handed out 28 awards to accomplished operators, game studios and individuals.
Award categories included:
- Game Performance,
- Streamers,
- Game Creation,
- Game People,
- SlotCatalog,
- Casino Platform, and
- Best Game Release.
Rasmus Sojmark, Founder and CEO of SBC, said: “The Game Developer Awards offers a pivotal opportunity to honour the remarkable accomplishments of the industry, celebrating both regional and global brands as well as individual talent. This year’s shortlist was by far the most competitive we have seen, and I would like to congratulate all our esteemed winners.”
It was a good night for Play’n GO, who secured the prestigious SlotCatalog’s Game Studio of the Year (Large) award for the second consecutive year, whilst also picking up the Game Music / Soundtrack accolade for their title Hugo Legacy.
The game creation categories saw:
- Playtech once again take home the Game Licensed Content award for their work on Breaking Bad: Cash Collect & Link.
- Hacksaw Gaming was awarded Game Feature of the Year for their title Chaos Crew 2,
- Relax Gaming was honoured with the Game Design & Art Direction award for Money Train 4, and
- GAMOMAT was named winner of the Game Retro-Style award for Fancy Fruits Deluxe.
Pragmatic Play notably took home two awards on the night, winning both the Game Mechanic of the Year award for their MultiHold mechanic and Slot Legacy Title for Gates of Olympus.
The SlotCatalog categories saw:
- GAMOMAT return to the stage to pick up their second award of the night for Best Game Development Company Central Europe, while
- Playson was awarded Best Game Studio In Development Countries.
- Reel Kingdom secured the SlotCatalog’s Game Studio of the Year (Medium) award,
- Fortune Factory Studios was named SlotCatalog’s Game Studio of the Year (Small) and
- IGT Play Digital claimed SlotCatalog’s Best Game Development Company North America.
The coveted SlotCatalog’s Rookie of the Year accolade was presented to industry newcomers Area Vegas.
In honour of the individual achievements in the industry, the Game People categories saw:
- Andrei Filipovich of Aviatrix awarded Game Designer of the Year,
- Julia Aliakseyeva from BGaming named Product Manager of the Year and
- PearFiction Studios’ Jean-Pierre Larouche presented with the Game Composer of the Year award.
EveryMatrix won the Aggregator of the Year award, The Mill Adventure was awarded Platform Innovation of the Year, while the Best Game Release award went to Lambda Gaming for 8Bit Football Twinko.
This year’s edition saw the introduction of two new awards:
- the FTN Game of the Year award which was sponsored by BetConstruct and presented to Rubyplay for Mad Hit Olympic First, and
- the CasinoBeats Annual Community Recognition Award which was awarded to SoftConstruct for its work on BFTH Arena.
It was a big night for CasinoDaddy who took home the esteemed Streamer of the Year award, while The Slot Beasts and Haddzy were recipients of two new Streamer awards, Responsible Streamer of the Year and Next-Gen Streamer of the Year, respectively.
In the Game Performance categories:
- PowderKeg Studios claimed the Slot Debut award for their title Munition Mines,
- Stormcraft Studios won Slot to Watch for their work on Immortal Romance 2, while
- Light & Wonder and Netflix took home Slot Collaboration of the Year for Squid Game.
The illustrious Slot of the Year award went to Elk Studios for Pirots 2.
“Last night’s ceremony was a tremendous success and proved to be a truly memorable night. I would like to thank our official partner Gaming Malta, alongside all our supporting sponsors for their help in honouring the incredible achievements of the industry” Sojmark added.
The awards ceremony concluded the final day of the CasinoBeats Summit, which saw 4,500 industry professionals convene at the InterContinental Hotel in Malta, the hub of iGaming.
Fruit Cha Cha Cha
Fruit Cha Cha Cha Brings Rhythm and Rewards to Classic Slot Play
TaDa Gaming invites players to step onto the dancefloor with Fruit Cha Cha Cha, a lively slot release that blends classic fruit symbols with rhythmic gameplay, reactive features and steady win potential. Designed for smooth pacing and frequent action, the game offers a low to medium volatility experience with a maximum win of 1600x.
Set on a vibrant 5-reel, 3-row layout, Fruit Cha Cha Cha transforms familiar slot mechanics into a playful sequence of movement and interaction. Colourful fruit symbols take center stage, supported by upbeat visuals and energetic animations that keep every spin feeling light, dynamic and engaging.
The core of the gameplay revolves around the Symbol Collection. In the base game, whenever a specified symbol lands as part of a winning combination, it is collected and stored. Once all required symbols have been gathered, players unlock the Free Game, awarding 10 Free Spins where enhanced payout values and additional feature triggers come into play.
Adding unpredictability to both the base game and Free Game is the Bomb Symbol. When a bomb appears, it explodes outward from its position, transforming surrounding symbols into new ones. This chain-reaction effect can quickly reshape the grid, opening new win paths and extending the life of a spin with sudden bursts of activity.
Another standout feature is Cross Fever, which can be triggered when matching symbols form an X-shaped pattern on the reels. Once activated, the matching symbols lock in place while all other positions re-spin. If additional matching symbols land during the re-spin, they too become locked, continuing the sequence until no further matches appear. This creates a flowing lock-and-respin style moment that builds anticipation spin by spin.
During Free Games, payouts are further enhanced, with improved symbol values compared to the base game. Wins are calculated based on the number of matched symbols and the number of completed combinations, allowing rewards to scale naturally without relying on complex mechanics. Multiple winning combinations can be paid in a single spin, keeping the action consistent and satisfying.
With its balance of classic fruit slot familiarity, interactive features, and rhythmic pacing, Fruit Cha Cha Cha delivers a relaxed yet engaging experience that appeals to players who enjoy steady rewards and feature-driven gameplay without extreme volatility.
Sean Liu, Director of Product Management at TaDa Gaming, said: “Fruit Cha Cha Cha is designed to feel fun, fluid, and approachable. By combining familiar fruit symbols with interactive features like Bombs and Cross Fever, we’ve created a game that keeps players entertained while maintaining a smooth and enjoyable rhythm.”
The post Fruit Cha Cha Cha Brings Rhythm and Rewards to Classic Slot Play appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Benjamin Parker
University of Bristol Graduates Create Toolkit to Help Students Avoid Gambling Harms
Two graduates from the University of Bristol have developed a new toolkit designed to protect students from gambling-related harms.
The toolkit, ‘From Freshers’ Week to Losing Streak’, began as a final-year project at the University of Bristol’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, where, as students, Benjamin Parker and Jordan White researched student gambling behaviour and ran a survey with support from the Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms.
Benjamin Parker, co-founder of Fair Play Toolkit, the organisation behind the toolkit, said: “Lots of my mates gambled, and I had a suspicion that it was happening all the time.
“When we investigated university student gambling and discovered how pervasive gambling harms are, we felt we had to develop a solution. There is a massive gap between the awareness of universities and the scale of the problem.”
Having received £8000 funding from Runway, the University of Bristol’s start-up accelerator, Ben and Jordan have been working to bring the toolkit to universities with Ara Recovery For All, a charity that supports those affected by gambling harms in the South-West and Wales.
Recent research highlights the scale of the issue. YGAM (Young Gamers & Gamblers Education Trust) have found that nearly half of students (49%) reported gambling in the past year, and of those who gamble, 63% of students were at risk of harm from gambling. The risk is even greater for students in their final year of study and those accessing university financial hardship funds, two significant factors linked to problem gambling.
The educational toolkit includes guidance, practical tools and a pre-designed awareness campaign to help universities better understand gambling harms and improve access to wellbeing support. Its purpose is to increase understanding of the issue, to signpost to specialist services, and to create a single source of information about gambling harms for universities and their students.
Ben and Jordan have designed the toolkit to be integrated into already existing university structures to ensure that universities strengthen support for students while keeping implementation simple and sustainable.
Jordan White, co-founder of Fair Play Toolkit, said: “As well as strengthening access to support, we want students to reflect and question their own relationship with gambling, and feel empowered to have conversations with their friends about it.
“People only talk about the wins, not about the losses, and often wait until they are in crisis before seeking help. But there are resources available for people who want to feel more educated and informed on the topic.”
Dave Hewer, Education and Prevention Team Lead at Ara Recovery for All, said: “‘From Freshers’ Week to Losing Streak’ is an excellent example of students recognising a growing issue and developing a thoughtful, evidence-based response. When Jordan and Ben approached Ara Recovery for All, we were impressed by the quality of their work and the practicality of their ideas.
“Students aged 18 to 24 are consistently highlighted as being at higher risk of experiencing gambling harms if they choose to gamble, yet they are not a group who typically seek support.
“By partnering with Jordan and Ben and developing a full version of the toolkit in collaboration with university stakeholders, we aim to help institutions strengthen safeguarding, increase staff confidence and make university students more aware that free, confidential support is available, all without adding to staff workload.”
Dr Vanessa Marshall, Hub Manager at the Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms Research, said: “Understanding and addressing gambling harms experienced by the student population is an important and very relevant issue.
“The Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms Research is pleased to facilitate and follow Ben and Jordan’s journey from an initial idea to a product that has come to fruition, and which will continue to grow. We wish Ben and Jordan every success with launching the toolkit.”
Thanking The Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms Research for their support, Jordan added: “The Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms Research have been highly supportive of our work. The Hub introduced us to leading academic researchers in the field, helped us to disseminate our student survey to institutions across the UK, and provided opportunities to engage with wider stakeholders, which ultimately led to the fruition of our partnership with Ara Recovery for All.
“As graduates, the Hub has recognised and championed our own expertise on university gambling harms by inviting us to speak at their annual colloquium and to provide our input into ongoing research. We are incredibly grateful for their support, particularly the guidance and encouragement from Dr Emily Crick, Research Development Associate at the Hub.”
The post University of Bristol Graduates Create Toolkit to Help Students Avoid Gambling Harms appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Africa
Sun International Appoints Mark Sergeant as Chief Operating Officer of Gaming
Sun International CEO Ulrik Bengtsson has announced the appointment of Mark Sergeant as chief operating officer: gaming, responsible for land-based revenue across the group.
Sergeant will head up the casino operations from February, reporting directly to the CEO. He also brings over 25 years of credible leadership experience across all spheres of Sun International’s operations, from gaming to leisure and hospitality, having led two of the UK’s largest casino groups.
As the group managing director at Genting Casinos he oversaw a portfolio of 35 casinos across the UK, an international casino operation in Cairo, a UK integrated gaming and leisure resort, and two online gaming businesses.
Sun International said the appointment marks another giant leap forward for the group as it pursues its strategy to become a digitally-led, market-leading omnichannel gaming company of scale.
Bengtsson said: “Mark brings all the right skills to drive our gaming operations forward as well as a fresh new perspective for how we can continue to build world-class capabilities”
“In addition to his notable skills, we were also impressed by his leadership expertise and his passion for people. He is widely recognised for building high‑performing teams, developing future leaders, and cultivating service‑driven cultures that will ultimately deliver exceptional customer experiences. He has also played a significant role in championing Responsible Gaming strategies, ensuring operational excellence while upholding the highest standards of compliance, integrity, and customer care.”
The post Sun International Appoints Mark Sergeant as Chief Operating Officer of Gaming appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
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