The iGaming industry is a vast and expansive sector, home to thousands of online games ranging from blackjack online to online slots that dominate the industry. With online slots dominating a large part of the iGaming industry, these slots must differentiate from one another by implementing distinctive features. The industry is composed of numerous slot developers, each with a unique style of game creation, creating a clear identity.
In many development studios’ slot portfolios, titles are differentiated in a variety of ways, ranging from the themes utilised to the mechanics that power the games. There is a vast range of slot themes in the iGaming industry today, each featuring unique designs that create distinct gameplay. Additionally, implementing game mechanics can help differentiate titles, and slot developers often incorporate nuanced formats and features to create sequels.
In this article, we will cover some of the common elements that development studios use to differentiate their slots from others in the industry.
Why is Differentiation Important
The iGaming industry has thousands of online slot titles, making it crucial for development studios to create distinctive features that set their games apart in the crowded market. Differentiation is important for creating identity in a game, and development studios often create new designs, soundtracks, and gameplay to stand out from competitors.
In the current era, players are used to slot games offering a variety of themes and features, making it essential for slot developers to create distinctive titles that stand out online. Additionally, slot developers who incorporate immediately recognisable features help foster and grow the slots brand.
Unique Themes
Incorporating slot themes is one of the main ways slot developers distinguish their titles from other releases in the iGaming industry. Today, the iGaming industry is home to numerous slot themes, each essential to the uniqueness of an individual game’s release. Before the rise of online casinos, slot games did not always prioritise themes, and most titles featured similar designs. The wide selection of slot themes available today enables developers to create entertaining designs, elevating the slot experience. All slot games have their unique gameplay characteristics, though the main purpose of them remains the same: to create identity in the game.
The iGaming industry today offers a broad selection of slot themes, ranging from those inspired by ancient cultures, iconic landmarks and characters to classic themes. Some themes in the iGaming industry are more popular than others, and ancient mythology is one of the leading ones for several reasons. Although this theme is one of the most popular in the industry, many developers add their own twists, incorporating elements to differentiate the titles in the genre.
Bonus Features
Bonus features have been part of online slots for decades and have consistently added additional gameplay to enhance the experience. As time went on and technology evolved, new and innovative bonus features were implemented into online slot games. The new and innovative slot games allowed game development studios to differentiate their titles with a combination of bonus mechanics.
The bonus mechanics introduced varied, from the early days with progressive jackpots to modern features such as Hold and Win bonus games. Additionally, with new game features such as the Megaways mechanic being introduced, game development studios could release sequel titles. These sequel titles would implement nuanced game features that provide distinct gameplay while maintaining a similar design to help build the brand. Brands such as Big Bass have shown that new game features can differentiate titles, with over 25 sequels introducing new mechanics.
Reels Setup
Traditional slot games were based on a 3-reel grid setup, which remained the primary layout for many years. In the traditional slot setup, releases lacked individuality, with all games sharing a similar style of play, lacking the technology to experiment with new and original game formats. The 5-reel grid layout gained traction in the iGaming industry’s early days, with many developers favouring it over the traditional 3-reel setup.
In today’s iGaming industry, the 5-reel slot setup remains the most popular grid layout, though many developers have implemented larger reel counts in their releases. Alongside the change in reel setup, the payline count of the slots changed respectively to their layouts, with larger playgrids having a more extensive payline count.
Final Thoughts
Distinctiveness is essential for online slots, helping them develop a reputation and offer different gameplay. Whether through slot themes or unique gameplay mechanics, all modern online slots offer distinct gameplay. Game development studios have their own ways of creating distinct slot games, each adding its own unique twists to the gameplay.
Some slot themes are extremely popular, prompting slot developers to add unique twists to the genre and differentiate their releases. Bonus mechanics have been a staple of developers’ differentiation strategies since forever, and continue to this day, though the range of features to implement has broadened. Overall, distinction is essential in online slots to ensure that releases do not become dull and tedious, but remain interesting and innovative.
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