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Casinos and video games: A match made in heaven?
Video games and casino gaming are two standalone entities that often attract very different types of clienteles. However, there are plenty of areas where the two overlap. But how close is the influence, and do video game designs influence casino game designers more, or is it the other way around?
We’ll examine some factors that show how the two markets overlap and how they’re positioned to influence future developments within their respective industries.
Pioneering in marketing
Some of the great video game adverts over the last 30 years are still easy to recall for an entire generation of gamers. Although online casinos use a different marketing route, they have had to adjust to the growing digital world and the huge emphasis on social media strategies and marketing, as well as other types of marketing, such as SEO.
This is one area where video gaming companies and casinos have much-shared interest. Collectively, online casinos have broken a lot of fresh ground regarding online marketing and the power of social media. Not only have casinos pioneered by offering free spins and a host of other bonuses, but some of the smaller innovations within these markets have proven to be fruitful marketing avenues too.
Changing the marketing formula
Wagering requirements are a great example of this as they’re often talked about as a stumbling block and are one of the main downsides of free spins offers. Some casinos offer 30x as a wagering requirement, meaning you need to play through your initial deposit 30 times, while some push this up all the way to 100x, which is not a beneficial component for a casino bonus.
However, some casinos go the other way and pride themselves on marketing that no wagering requirements are needed. Of course, always check that the bonus ticks other boxes such as gaming selection, expiry dates and available payment options, but the best no wagering casino bonuses often tick all the boxes right across this highly competitive range of marketing.
Although no wagering casino bonuses are a bit of a specific example, this commitment to innovation and thinking outside the box with marketing has led to sustained growth in the gambling world. Likewise, video gaming companies have followed similar suit.
The December 2023 release of the GTA VI trailer garnered over 100 million views. It brought the entertainment world to a standstill, and in true Rockstar fashion, they picked an iconic song and cinematography and put the best qualities of their game design right in the shop window. This is something they have in common with the best casino marketing strategies out there.
Casinos in video games
Despite the crossover appeal of both, there aren’t all that many casino games integrated into video games. Sure, there are plenty of references, especially in games like Grand Theft Auto, but in the broader scale of the gaming world, there aren’t many games set for release on PS5 or other consoles that have a specific focus on casino games.
GTA VI may have some version of a casino, as many of the previous releases have casinos to some extent. Other than that, there’s plenty of ground to explore for video game designers looking to implement casino gaming options into a video game.
Slots inspired by video games
If we look at the influence in the opposite direction, video gaming has plenty of influence on casino games, most of which is in the slot gaming genre. Sure, there has been the odd attempt at fusing a blackjack or poker idea with a video game, but the slot gaming sector has witnessed the greatest return from video game-influenced ideas.
It’s plain to see just how influential video game ideas are in slots. Some of the most well-known gaming titles over the last two decades have been found in slot gaming, with influences stemming from a broad range of game titles and genres, including Call of Duty, Hitman and Lara Croft.
Granted, these slot ideas didn’t quite take off the way that many of these companies would’ve hoped, but the continued focus on branching into other areas of entertainment means that there are slot gaming companies and marketing strategists who see video gaming as a market and source of ideas.
It’ll be fascinating to see which video game is identified as the next big influence, what shape this takes with its final product and whether slot gamers will resonate with the idea.
Final thoughts
Video gaming will always have a specific clientele that does not resonate with casino gaming. However, as both worlds become more global and more people start to sample each market, there will inevitably be a greater degree of crossover.
The influence will likely be casino games, especially slot games, taking influence from video games rather than vice versa, but the nature of both sectors draws many parallels, and within this lies the potential for innovation and ideas. It’s all down to the right designers and software companies having enough vision to execute these ideas properly. So, while a match made in heaven might be a tad hyperbolic, there’s no denying that there’s great influence that permeates both sectors moving in both directions.