Rahul Chudasama, Head of Business Development at Blaze Gaming, on what new studios need to have in place if they are to go up against the 500+ other developers in the market
I read a stat the other day that might surprise you. Right now, there are more than 500 studios creating online casino games with new studios hitting the market each month.
This makes for an incredibly competitive market where success is never guaranteed – ultimately, it’s a small number of games from a small number of suppliers that dominate the charts.
But that shouldn’t deter new studios from getting in on the action as there are still plenty of opportunities for those that can bring something new to the mix.
There are tons of examples in recent times of studios arriving on the scene and within a few years achieving top-tier status (and a multi-million-dollar price tag).
So how can a new game studio find success? And is it just down to producing that one game that catapults it into the stratosphere?
This is what we at Blaze Gaming consider to be the ingredients for success.
Something a bit different:
To be heard above the noise being made by the 500+ other studios in the market, you need to have something a little bit different within your portfolio or offering.
This could be a mechanic or bonus feature, a gamification system or engagement tool or, better yet, an entirely new format of game.
Pioneering a new game format gives the studio a significant USP and this is why at Blaze, we have developed our Bull Casino Trading Games.
This format brings together the fast-paced world of financial trading and wraps it up in the sleek and polished UX of a casino game.
There is nothing like it in the market, and it’s already led to conversations with operators and aggregators despite our debut title in the series yet to officially launch.
A portfolio of proven games:
Having something special in the bag is important, but so too is having a comprehensive portfolio of proven games that players want to play.
Operators are willing to take a risk on something new, but if the studio also has a portfolio of traditional casino games – slots, table games, instant wins, etc – the argument for integrating the provider into the lobby is much more compelling.
But this portfolio needs to be varied, especially when it comes to themes, mechanics, RTPs and volatilities – operators need to be able to engage a wide range of player types, so studios must provide the content for them to do this.
A strong technological foundation:
The technology the studio uses can also be the difference between success and failure. There are two approaches here – a proprietary remote game server and RNG or using a third party.
There are pros and cons to both approaches but whichever route the studio goes down, they need to be confident they have the capability and flexibility to develop the games they want to.
It’s also important to consider distribution, and how games are delivered into the casino lobby.
Aggregators are ideal for a new studio, providing global reach and a ready-made roster of operator partners to work with.
But they are not without their challenges – competition, commercials, busy integration roadmaps, etc all need to be navigated.
The ideal is for the studio to have its own RGS and RNG as this ultimately gives them complete control over development and integrations, but this is an expensive and lengthy process that carries additional risk.
This is why we see studios taking different approaches, but the end goal is the same – to have a strong technological foundation for both development and distribution.
A black book of contacts:
On the subject of distribution – new studios must be able to get their games into online casino lobbies in good positions and without delay.
You can have a portfolio of blockbuster games but if operators are not stocking those titles and players are not playing them, you might as well not have them in the first instance.
Studios need to have a black book of contacts to tap up, and this either comes from the founders or the commercial team that is put in place.
Of course, it helps if the studio has something new and exciting to get conversations started and again, this is where our Bull Casino Trading Games have come into their own.
A smart management team:
The final piece of the puzzle is the founding/management team – these people are crucial to guiding the business through those often-tough early months and years.
If not managed correctly, workloads spiral out of control, costs get out of hand, targets are missed, and a bad culture comes to the fore.
By having the right management team in place, the studio stays on track, teams become empowered and the whole organisation is driven by this unstoppable positive force.
And sometimes, amidst the toughest of challenges, it’s this force that gets you through.
I really do believe new studios can succeed. It’s the attitude we have here at Blaze, and by having the factors listed above in place, we are confident that we can stand out from the 500+ rivals we are going up against.
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