I’ve just returned from attending this years’ iGaming business to business conference, ICE 2020.
I spent 2 full days talking to the leading live casino suppliers in the iGaming industry about their plans for the rest of the year.
If you have an interest in Live Casino and want to catch up with what’s going on, this is a pretty good place to start.
Every year over a 1000 businesses use the event to promote their gaming related products and reveal their plans for 2020.
It’s full-on business, with innovations everywhere assaulting your eyes and ears with bursts of colour and noise, reminiscent of my younger days when I played the slots on Brighton Pier.
For me, the most interesting and relevant part of the conference is visiting the Live Casino Operators. Traditionally they use the show as a platform to reveal their product road maps for the next 12 months.
This year was no different. I spent two full days walking the floor, speaking to as many of the suppliers as I could to find out what live casino innovations we can expect to see this year.
So, here’s my rundown of what’s happening in the world of Live Casino in 2020.
There is a lot going on in the live dealer sector. New operators are still coming to the market hoping to find their niche, while the suppliers launched last year seem to be gaining a foothold albeit rather slowly. Innovation sits with the bigger more established operators and it’s with them that I found the most change.
New games are bountiful, with Evolution Gaming, Playtech, Netent, Pragmatic Play, Ezugi, Authentic, Betgames.TV and Super Spade Games all displaying their new titles.
The latest emerging market seems to be India, with a number of suppliers providing localised games.
Specialist Italian and Spanish games are not far behind. I’m looking forward to trying out some of these during the coming months.
The lines between Live and RNG are being blurred by a new company called RealDealerStudios.com. I’m not sure how I feel about this. The product looks great though and I’ll be taking a closer look soon.
There is a general increase in focus on the quality of the products and greater attention to detail on the player experience.
Lobbies are evolving, with a few platforms making some significant changes to make it easier for players to find what they want.
More attention is being paid to the user experience, with attention being paid to the small issues that can really spoil the gaming experience for a player. Evolution, for example, makes at least 1 change a day to improve the player experience.
Functionality like bet builders, which I’ve been raising for a while, are now being developed for all sorts of games. Card and Wheel visibility has been improved and I’m seeing more in-game statistics right across the board.
Multipliers games, i.e. games that offer enhanced payouts are not that widespread, with only Evolution and Playtech offering a range of games with this functionality.
The big news last year was the launch of Monopoly Dream Catcher, which mixed a live game with an elaborate fantasy bonus round. This year, Evolution, Playtech, Pragmatic Play and Authentic Gaming have all announced new games in this genre.
Overall Entertainment games are in their ascendancy and we’re going to see some cracking ones released this year.
Let’s have a closer look at what each of the live casino suppliers is doing this year.
I managed to get to see most of the live casino providers, however, some didn’t have stands and quite frankly I probably missed a few.
Here’s details of the ones I did see.
I first became aware of Super Spade Games late last year when I was chairing a live casino session at the CasinoBeats conference in London.
They came and introduced themselves, however, this was the first time I had the chance to talk to them.
In a nutshell, they are a UK company founded in 2018 with studios in Belarus.
They target the Asian and African Markets and have a selection of live dealer games including some Indian variants, such as Teen Patti and Andar Bahar.
Blackjack is about to be released in March.
I have some history with ALT. I did some player focused feedback for them a few years ago.
Their products haven’t moved on since, however, they do have new games and markets in the pipeline, although they were unable to expand on either.
A Progressive Baccarat Jackpot has recently been launched, which apparently differs from existing jackpots in the market. However, I was unable to establish just how!
The Indian Market features strongly in their plans.
It was one of those frustrating discussions where there’s stuff clearly in the pipeline but they felt unable to discuss.
Amazing Gaming has grown considerably since their launch 18 months ago.
They occupy two studio areas in the Portomaso land-based Casino in Malta, one with 16 tables and one with 8 tables.
Roulette, Blackjack, and Baccarat are their main games with Sic Bo and Dragon Tiger in the pipeline.
Their customer base is growing, operating under Curacao, Isle of Man and Malta licenses.
The stand at Playtech was different this year, with Live Casino very much at the forefront.
There were live demonstrations of their recent releases of Quantum Blackjack, Quantum Roulette, and Live Slots.
I was really impressed with how the presenters coped so well being in a conference environment rather than in their tiny studios.
In terms of new games, the headline is likely to be a new entertainment game based on Adventures Beyond Wonderland.
However, the development of new regional games, Live 7 e Mezzo and Bocca Al Lupo for the Spanish and Italian markets add some additional interest.
Already mentioned before ICE is Playtech’s extended partnership with Endemol Shine Gaming. This will see live entertainment games for Deal and No Deal, Money Drop, and the £100k Drop.
There will be a Bingo variant and player experience improvements with more Auto Play, Bet Planners and a new side bet appearing on Roulette.
Pragmatic play Live Casino has been around for about 18 months and they are already listed on many casino sites.
I’ve been waiting for the UK license to come through, which it did shortly before the conference. Now I’ve got access to the games at Leo Vegas and PlayOjo.
The staple games of Blackjack and Roulette are to be joined by Baccarat, including a speed version.
Plans are in place for Sic Bo and maybe an Entertainment type game. Dedicated language tables for Italian, German, Russian, and Turkish are being added.
As for markets, this year Pragmatic is planning on expanding into Asia, although India isn’t part of their plans.
I didn’t quite know what to expect when I visited Authentic Gaming.
Their recent purchase by GentingBet surprised some but has clearly opened some doors for them.
The casino floor concept is going to be rolled out to a number of GentingBet land-based casinos, so expect to see these popping up in Kensington, Manchester, Edinburgh, Palm Beach (Mayfair) , China Town (London), and Birmingham. They’ll all be given suitable table names.
Some new tech is on the way with On Demand Slow Motion replays, which shows the last few seconds of the ball bouncing into the pockets.
A new roulette-based entertainment game, PrimeTime Live will be with us in June. It promises a mobile game show displayed only in portrait mode for those of us that like to play one-handed. You bet small to win big. It’s a quiz-based mechanic played up to 7 rounds which can pay 1700x, however you can cash out after 5 rounds.
2021 is likely to see the addition of Blackjack and Baccarat to the games portfolio.
I’m most interested in seeing what will happen when Genting Resorts World in Las Vegas opens. The opening of the casino/hotel has been delayed, but I wonder how long it will be before we see a land-based table streamed from a hotel on the strip. I’m keeping my fingers crossed it will happen. No pressure guys :-)
Portomaso Gaming now have the ability to offer dedicated Blackjack tables and will be adding a land based Blaze Roulette table to their games.
They provide partnership streams for a number of other live casino providers, Vivo, LuckyStreak, Ezugi and PlayPearl, while also hosting the Amazing Gaming and Fashion TV tables in studio areas on their land based floor in Malta.
EkoGaming is a new company to me, providing online gambling software and a live dealer solution.
They currently have 2 tables, 1 Roulette, and 1 Blackjack from a studio based in Malta. They operate under a Curacao license. It looks like they plan to offer Baccarat, Bingo and Poker Live Poker games, but I have no timetable on when they will be ready.
Interestingly they said they accepted UK players, but maybe that was sales talk as they don’t have a UK License!
Evolution has managed to hit the sweet spot again, launching 12 new games at the conference.
Available now you’ll find Speed Blackjack and Lightning Baccarat. Speed Blackjack is fantastic. If you like a quick play you’ll have trouble playing a standard 7 seat game again. It’s just awesome.
Other new titles include Live Craps – I love craps but do wonder how this will translate to online – it’s such a great social game to play. However, it’s a great addition, especially for the US market.
Mega Ball is a bingo game and will be the first title we’ll see go live this spring. It’s possible to win 1,000,000 x with the Mega Ball!
Instant Roulette uses a bank of 12 Auto Roulette wheels to deliver a very quick game of roulette. Once you’ve bet, select play, and the next ball to drop gives you the result, fast-paced and something completely different.
Power Blackjack is a multiplayer single-handed game. The 9’s and 10’s have been removed from the deck and you can double, triple or quadruple your bet on your first two cards.
The jewel in the crown will be Crazy Time, another Dream Catcher entertainment-based game, with 4 separate bonus rounds. It’s effectively 5 games in one. It offers some fantastic pay-outs and is bound to be a success. Keep a lookout for this in late Spring / Summer.
Completing the list is FPG versions (RNG) of Craps, Football Studio, Mega Ball, Baccarat, and Dragon Tiger.
NetEnt has continued its march forward.
The live casino product is almost unrecognisable from how it looked last year.
While Baccarat was being displayed at the stand it won’t be available until later this year. I did hear that other games are also in development.
The NBC (Network Branded Tables) is a huge step forward, providing tables that can be branded over and over again.
The biggest change has been NetEnt’s first foray into having its own physical studio which we’ll see for the first time later this month.
Built-in the existing building where all the green screen tables are located the Gold & Silver Studio tables will offer players and customers a more traditional feel in a modern and light setting.
Players at Netent will also be pleased to hear that the rather awful lobby is being consigned to the bin and we’ll be getting something more appropriate. That makes me happy!
Following its purchase by Evolution, Ezugi are still operating as a separate business. They have their own road map and are exploring new games and markets.
They are currently doing well in India, already having live versions of Andar Bahar and Teen Patti, and are soon to launch their own OTT tables from a Sri Lankan land-based casino.
I’ve already covered a lot about Ezugi in a recent Studio visit if you’d like to read more.
Betgames.TV are a Lithuanian based company who have a very distinctive style with the presentation of their games. They’ve recently launched 6+Poker and have revamped their popular Dice Dual game so it now runs every minute.
Main markets include South Africa, CIS, and Croatia & Poland.
I’m holding out for a chance to visit their studios. Their games are not traditional casino games but are presented live so I’m interested to see how that’s all put together.
RealDealerStudios.com is a new operator to enter the market. When you first see them they look like any other Live Casino supplier, with presenters standing by real gaming equipment. Look a bit closer and you’ll see it’s not quite what it seems.
The dealers are real enough, however, they are not live, their presentations are all pre-recorded. The wheels are real, but again all pre-recorded outcomes. Put together with an RNG engine that decides the outcome you get Real Dealer Roulette. To be fair they don’t pretend to be live, a little strapline explains it’s RNG.
I have to admit it’s slick, looks good and with 100’s of pre-recorded versions of the dealer and wheel outcomes it’s almost impossible to tell you’re playing RNG Roulette.
Other games are in the pipeline and with a partnership with Microgaming to distribute the games on their Quick-fire platform we’re going to see the games all over the place. If you want an early look, check them out at Betway – they are in the Live Casino Lobby?
Vivo were the last of the suppliers I visited. I was flagging by now but had a chat with a very nice young man. Vivo is another operator that has transformed its platform. They are not available in the UK so I don’t get to see them much. However, they have a full selection of games, presented in a modern lobby, with table Gifs showing real-time information about the dealers and tables.
They have a good selection of OTT tables now (live casino streams), with one operating out of a Chilean Casino including a cabaret show.
Bingo, Casino Hold’em, and Dragon Tiger have recently been added to their studios in Uruguay.
I certainly need to update my Vivo Gaming pages with the latest information on their live casino solutions.
When prepping for the conference I totted up the number of live casino providers I knew about and the number ran to about 30ish. That’s without a lot of Asian providers who I just don’t know about.
Not all chose to be at ICE – in one way I’m thankful as it was hard enough speaking to those that were there.
Live Casino isn’t niche anymore.
For the operators, it’s becoming an important line on their balance sheet.
For the suppliers, the challenge is providing games that players want to play.
The more advanced suppliers are creating games that are appealing to a much wider audience than before.
Providing entertainment with the opportunity to win a large amount for a small bet is the trend for the moment and I can’t see that changing anytime soon.
As a traditional player I can honestly say that I’m getting a kick out of some of these new games in a way I never thought possible.
Roll on 2021!
I’ve been playing, reviewing and collecting data about online live dealer casinos since 2011. I monitor what’s going on in the industry so I can give the best and most impartial advice. I regularly visit live casino studios around the world, so I know what’s going on behind the cameras! If you want some information or just want my opinion on something, drop me a line using the form below.
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