As technology advanced and the internet improved, reaching a wider audience, online casino evolved alongside it, with the last few years giving us live casino games as well as a mobile casino service that is second to none.
Thanks to most of us enjoying a reliable wireless broadband connection instead of having to use dial-up modems, it is so much simpler to sample the wide selection of online casinos games like slots whenever or wherever we choose to, taking advantage of the best bonuses and promotional offers in a safe and secure environment.
The gambling industry is one of those that has always embraced new technology and pioneered innovative ideas and gamification seems to be the next step in the continually evolving online casinos.
Many that play at an online casino also play other games, and just like the casino industry, the video industry is a massive concern, simply put gamification is the attempt to merge the two together, targeting a greater audience.
There will be those that think that popular esports games like Call of Duty, Halo and FIFA are nothing like casino games, but they would be wrong.
If we take a look at what gamification is – that is adding some gaming elements (visual and auditory) level ups, content that has to be unlocked and story lines then we can see how the providers of casino games can add these elements making their own games more enjoyable and exciting for their players.
Being able to interact with a game to any extent creates a better user experience, whether that is slots, video slots, progressive slots, table games or even the live dealer games, all will benefit from more user interaction within them.
Slots are now created with a more interactive storyline that grabs players’ attention. Engaging roles like saving the human race from certain extinction allow players to become the hero for a time and as that hero, they will have to employ strategies like unlocking or triggering level ups.
Gambling researchers have for years been linking traditional video games and casino games, recognising that each share similar characteristics, although each of them reached a different audience. Having that line now blur as casinos copy those gaming elements from the video games industry means the gap between the two is becoming narrower by targeting that audience which would once have been disinterested in online casino games.
It’s safe to say that the majority of Millennials and Gen Z have never entered a bricks and mortar casino or played at one online but they are spending money on video games, in-game purchase and character upgrades.
The gamification of online casino slots games means that this audience will be targeted and as the games become more attractive to players with an element of skill and not simply luck included, having more control over the final outcome has proven to be very popular
Today players demand a more personal experience and as we witness the online gambling market expecting to reach the one-trillion-dollar mark in the next few years, the question could be asked, ‘is it reasonable to expect gamification will turn out to be the future of online gambling?’
If gamification continues to introduce a new audience to the excitement of the online casino and gains pace then it is not unreasonable to see a new generation of online casino games taking over the market.
All in all, the future does look bright for online gaming especially in an environment where so many aspects are uncertain.
