BetSoft Gaming remains at the forefront of game development. INTERGAMINGi speaks to the marketing director Mark McKeown to find out how.
IN a crowded marketplace, delivering an engaging player experience is more important than ever.
Debates about mobile, convergence – in fact about almost any aspect of online gaming – all come back to player experience. Players expect software to run smoothly whichever devices they play on.
It needs to be a welcoming, easy-going intuitive experience - in the words of a famous advertising campaign, they expect to already know how to use it.
Expectations are high and the focus on quality content is as clear and unforgiving as it has ever been - for companies like BetSoft, nailing the player experience is key to success. We asked the company’s marketing director, Mark McKeown, just how BetSoft does it.
INTERGAMINGi: How do BetSoft’s games differentiate themselves in terms of user engagement?
MM: “The first thing that sets our games apart from our competitors is our amazing 3D cinematic graphics. Our reputation for being the industry leaders in this area is well known and it is clear why: our team consists of some of the best CG artists in the world, using the most advanced tools and cutting-edge technologies to ensure we stay at the forefront of the industry. We have constantly strived to push the envelope of what is possible in 3D and players clearly love it.
“However, look and feel isn’t enough alone to satisfy the sophisticated tastes of today’s slots players. You also need a solid math model behind if you are going to keep players engaged and coming back. Over the past two years we have applied real focus to this area of game development.
“We have really stepped up our game, so to speak, and increased the volatility and excitement of our games. Payouts are bigger, bonuses are juicier and player response reflects that they enjoy this aspect of our games very much.
“One of the more unique elements to our engagement strategy is our focus on introducing elements of progression and choice into our games. Many of our games incorporate things like Achievements, which are extremely popular with players, especially those coming from social-gaming platforms. In games such as flagship Slots3 title WhoSpunIt?, we have a procedurally generated murder mystery plot that the players must solve, and in doing so they are rewarded with a huge bonus payoff at the end.
“We think this is also the reason why another of our breakout hit titles, Sugar Pop!, has been so successful. The incorporation of a ‘score’, levels and unlocking new candy pieces proved to be very desirable to players. So much so that we have developed an entire framework for pushing out new content releases for existing games - what would be considered ‘expansion packs’ or ‘DLC’ in other game markets. The end result is that we can draw players back to a popular game, even after they have ‘finished’ it, by adding new content, which can be much easier for all involved than developing an entirely new game.
“The other key element we have focused on is giving the player freedom to choose how they want to play our games. Good Girl, Bad Girl is a great example of this. It’s actually three games in one, with the player choosing which of the three math models to play.”
Read the full article in the latest issue of iNTERGAMINGi
