Play’n GO on Pioneering iGaming’s New Entertainment Age

As the iGaming industry continues to transition into a new era of progressive entertainment, we spoke with Play’n GO’s Chief Commercial Officer Magnus Olsson to talk about the perennial lure of slots, explore how new technologies are transforming the sector and ask the powerhouse games studio what they plan for New Year 2024.

The iGaming industry is making the exciting transition into a purely entertainment-focused sector, as opposed to being seen as just another way for punters to make money. Why is this transition so important? And how do Play’n GO reflect this in their product development?

To say we reflect this transition is a bit of an understatement. We actually pioneered it. We’ve always believed that the entertainment aspect of online slots is the entire point. That’s because we’re a team of slots fans ourselves. We love playing these titles, and we make the type of games we enjoy.

As a company, we also believe it’s the only approach to build a sustainable future; not just for Play’n GO but for the industry as a whole. People aren’t short of great entertainment options these days, and if online casinos can’t offer something truly world-class in that department, players simply won’t return.

Everything we do when we build a new title is designed to make it the most entertaining it can be. This means eschewing certain mechanics we believe are not good for the sector, like Bonus Buy features. For us, Bonus Buys are a shortcut that don’t deliver the player true value. We also think they can potentially cause harm if misused.

The entire gaming experience needs to be entertaining, and whether the player wins or loses should be secondary. We want our customers to feel that playing our games is a worthwhile pursuit, regardless, and that always comes down to being the very best at things like narrative, gameplay, graphics and audio.

The online slots sector is probably the most saturated part of the iGaming market, with more competition than ever. How can operators best leverage Play’n GO content to help them stand out from the crowd and reinforce their competitive advantage?

We deliver value via the quality of the product and the sheer diversity of our portfolio, which now includes more than 350 premium titles. When you look at the growing number of regulated markets worldwide, the common theme is that operators don’t succeed by chasing short-term gains. Instead, they thrive when they build differentiated and sustainable businesses. And a central pillar of this is developing deep relationships with the studios that build the best games.

Offering our partners an unparalleled back catalogue of titles, and a steady stream of blockbuster new releases, empowers them to vary their lobbies for different regulated markets and audiences. We’re absolutely committed to working closely with our partners to find what works best for them.

With new advances in tech emerging in the market, such as AI, virtual reality and 5G, how will this impact the type of games and customer experience Play’n GO can provide? How can this new technology be best leveraged to create the most entertaining games?

AI has already transformed the production of games, and it will continue to do so. With the right prompting, you can break new ground, innovate and streamline, and ultimately produce more and better content without needing the same amount of time and resources as you used to. This isn’t about sacrificing quality, it’s about finding efficiencies that benefit us, our partners and most importantly the players.

5G is obviously great from a connectivity and experience perspective, although we always aim to make our games accessible and enjoyable in environments with lower bandwidth. We’re active in more than 25 regulated markets worldwide, and there are significant variations in the connectivity among these. Of course, as 5G rolls out globally, we’ll be able to include even more action and entertainment in the products.

Virtual Reality is interesting. But to make an impact, the devices must be affordable and available: They need to be as common as a cell phone, laptop or desktop computer. This is not yet the reality. It looks like we are still a little way off VR’s mass market tipping point. That’s not to say we aren’t watching the space closely. When the time is right we can absolutely see ourselves pushing-out truly immersive content that not only gives a brand new experience but also attracts a new audience.

As we come to the end of the year, what has been your biggest achievement of the year? What do we have to look forward to, as an industry, in 2024?

The answer to the first part of your question is, without a doubt, the massive growth in players enjoying our content in regulated markets across the globe. Building great entertainment for online casino players to enjoy safely and responsible sounds simple now, but remember that many people thought we were crazy when we committed to this focus many years ago. It has taken some time for the wider industry to catch up to this way of thinking, and we’re really proud to have led the way.

One thing to look out for in 2024 that I’d also like to mention is our sponsorship of the Haas Moneygram Formula 1 team. It is a multi-year engagement that’s unlike anything we’ve seen before among games studios, and will give us a platform from which to showcase our content to a huge global audience, many of whom will be introduced to Play’n GO for the first time. It’s an incredibly exciting and ambitious deal, and we’re already counting down the days until the first race of the season in Bahrain in March next year.

Editor’s Note:

After speaking with Magnus, it’s clear to see that the iGaming industry has made great strides in its pursuit of increasingly entertainment-focused online casino products.

Play’n GO is the pioneer of this new movement and the change is reflected in the company’s latest portfolio.

From the beginning, this has been a core part of their culture. Magnus and his team believe that this is the only approach to take when attempting to build a sustainable future — not just for Play’n GO but for the industry as a whole.

Today entertainment options for consumers are seemingly endless. And if online casinos can’t offer something truly world-class players simply won’t return.

Switching to an entertainment focus is now more important than ever, and it’s truly hype to see more of the industry adopting this approach — with Play’n GO leading the way.