Opinion: Skills to pay the bills?
Nektan founder Richard Sagman asks whether Nevadaâs decision to permit skill-based casino games will be a boost to profits
Wherever you are in the country, in-venue or online, from real-money to social, everyone is playing the same games. Customers play the same products wherever they go, often struggling to remember where they played. If the only differentiation you have is your next promotion, perhaps some of the money thrown at your customers just to engage would be better spent on getting products that will make them want to stay. [private]
Innovative products in this sector rarely find more than a small niche of players, but following the lead of social gaming, casino managers sometimes need to look beyond the bottom line of individual games. Most social apps are actually at their core sophisticated marketing solutions, and itâs worth noting that as well as the obvious crossover with casino social games, many big earners such as Candy Crush, Angry Birds or Crossy Road are actually based on classic arcade and skill game mechanics.
In May, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval signed a bill â SB 9 â into law adapting slot content rules and opening the door for casino skill style games to, in his own words âmeet the challenges prompted by a younger, more technologically engaged visitor demographicâ.
There is a huge assumption that younger players weaned on video games are going to jump at the chance of playing their preferred games in a casino for cash. However, this fails to acknowledge what motivates these players to play. It also misses the mobile gaming demographic which is as likely to be a 30-50 year old female who already plays slots as it is 18-25 year old males looking for excitement.
All that said, the crossover between players who enjoy skill games and casino (social or cash) products doesnât seem that far.
Pay to play, not just to win
Back in Nektanâs infancy in 2008 we launched a range of skill games on GTECHâs iGaming network in Europe, including a match three candy game (Candy Swap!) and the following year a matching skill slot. Maybe we were ahead of our time with swapping candies, but Kingâs launch of Candy Crush in 2012 proved to be a pivotal moment, where existing player vs. player skill game revenue mechanics were swapped for new freemium models, transforming King into a coin printing gaming giant.
So what motivates a skill player to play? Is it the kudos of winning or the slim chance of earning a few bucks? Or are the majority willing to pay (like in the coin feeding arcade days) simply for the right to play more?
Rather than taking a straight player vs. player prize competition or pay to play model, casinos can rethink what they do with skill style products as regulations change. Hybrid games which aim to introduce new players to casino mechanics while still being soft enough to genuinely entertain is one approach. Skill slots have already come a long way, the games we launched last year with William Hill in the UK were so feature rich that they were actually aimed more at sophisticated slots players looking for differentiation, rather than at introducing casual game players to slots. But thatâs not the only game in town.
Free to play and stay
When we launched a range of custom mobile skill games in June with The Sun newspaper in the UK, the goal wasnât to monetize, instead it was to engage new customers. Players who are genuinely having fun with your product are likely to become brand ambassadors and will stay longer when they eventually sign up and play. Converting players who love your content from freeplay to real play is a lot easier than searching for new players in the dark.
Whereas existing casino models might rate a cabinet by the amount of net revenue it generates, skill game formats might be better evaluated as part of the bigger casino offering. As well as your classic VIPs, casinos may follow socialâs lead by separately valuing players who are viral and spread the good word.
A loyal entertainment player playing skill games in a sportsbook while waiting for the next game or playing a few arcade games before dinner in your restaurant, who shares a great night on Facebook, might be adding value in ways a standard slot player never would.
Perhaps the next great product isnât your biggest money-maker, but a differentiated product line so engaging that players will want to come back again and again, forcing them to try and remember where they played last night.