Insight: Quickspin's chief product officer Joachim Timmermans
Quickspinâs chief product officer Joachim Timmermans on what modern casino players now demand and the secret behind the success of Nordic firms on mobile
All casino players want a gambling experience that is exciting and fun to play, regardless of device. We do our very best to achieve the same level of quality in design and performance on mobile as we do on desktop. If weâve mimicked the desktop experience perfectly on the mobile device, then weâve succeeded. But we also have to look at the mobile audience from two different angles. Our goal is to recognise and please both the classic casino player that has been with us for years on desktop and the modern generation of casino player who has only ever used mobile devices for their digital entertainment.
The modern mobile casino playerâs expectations are high because they compare our games not only to other casino games but to mobile gaming in general. We are competing on a higher level where all digital entertainment is an option. This means making a big effort to ensure we can offer a great gaming experience, not just a great gambling experience. That applies to the slots themselves and gamification concepts. Levelling up, achievements and tournaments are normal and expected elements of a slot to the modern player and thatâs where the industry is currently falling short. But operators and suppliers are improving. Weâre very conscious to adapt to the best technology practices. HTML5 is rapidly evolving and improving greatly; as a company you have to evolve accordingly.
What makes casino game development tricky is the technology. This isnât a big concern when it comes to innovation, which mostly happens through new gameplay features. Itâs that the really innovative designs – the ones which have the highest interest peaks – are the hardest to develop. Challenges like screen size are less of a concern now when it comes to slots, but the challenge is using the various technologies available to develop games to the same quality. Thatâs a tough nut to crack.
The success of Nordic suppliers and operators in the UK market is mostly a result of technology. Having lived in London for many years, the main difference I saw between the Nordic parts of Europe and the UK was one of technological lag, although that is getting smaller every year. In Sweden, itâs very normal to handle everything online, especially when dealing with payments. In Britain, even dealing with your local council includes a lot of physical paperwork. The concept of solving problems with technology has a longer tradition in the Nordics.
Nordic firms were offering high quality mobile content earlier than the rest of Europe. It has allowed them to take an advantageous position over those that were mostly concerned with desktop games. It helps that the successful Nordic operators all started online. Most successful British operators have a long history of land-based operations. It takes very different people and skill sets to be successful in retail than it does to be successful on mobile. It is true that some operators are now doing well on both, but in the past others have struggled to make the transition.