Pulse
Evoplay Entertainment: breaking new ground
By William - 31 March 2020
Evoplay Entertainment has released Dungeon: Immortal Evil, the industry’s first RPG slot game, to great acclaim. G3 interviews Evoplay Entertainment’s new Chief Business Development Officer, Vladimir Malakchi, about the game’s inspiration and the rationale behind the slot’s unique game design.
Could you provide an overview of Dungeon: Immortal Evil?
Dungeon: Immortal Evil is the industry’s first ever role-playing game (RPG) inspired slot. The slot takes players to an ancient temple filled with every demon imaginable. The aim of the game is to fight these demons to collect loot and have an opportunity to defeat the main evil. The slot offers a unique blend of the iGaming and gaming worlds.
When was the idea for an RPG slot conceived?
Evoplay Entertainment is always striving to break ground exploring new technologies and themes. In 2018, we released Necromancer, the industry’s first 3D/VR slot. We challenged ourselves to open the gates between gaming and iGaming to open a new perception of slots and Dungeon: Immortal Evil is just the first in this canon of games.
What development issues did you face before coming to market?
We conducted extensive research within gaming and iGaming. We then combined our findings to create an original slot whose visual concepts were tailored and adjusted during the development process prior to finally introducing it to market.
The right development pipeline is crucial to ensure there are processes in place should the team suffer a technological issue in the first stage of the development and design process. As the first RPG slot on the market, we discovered that there was no defined technology out there to create such an innovative product. Of course that presented its own challenges when it came to tailoring the game from a behavioural and player experience perspective, but I’m delighted to say our team went above and beyond to produce Dungeon: Immortal Evil and we could not be prouder of the result.
Amongst other features, Dungeon: Immortal Evil has a cinematic introduction, health kits and videogame-like sound effects. What does the future hold for narrative style slot games and storylines? What further inspiration can be taken from videogames?
The loot and bestiary of the game invites players to delve deep into the game and feel like a real gamer. I have been a gamer myself for a number of years and wanted to learn more about the monsters and their characteristics. There is plenty to take from gaming and video content in general. It is no longer enough to create simple products as players are spoilt for choice with an incredible array of products. Players demand games that stand out and Dungeon: Immortal Evil undoubtedly achieves this.
Dungeon: Immortal Evil is optimised for mobile users. Do you see mobile as the future for iGaming?
Evoplay Entertainment is proud of its functionality and features for mobile users. Research from partners around the world show that more than 75 per cent of players are on mobile devices and represent the future of iGaming. It is simply more comfortable and easier for many players to use mobile devices than desktop alternatives. It is still a pretty big database of players that are using desktop devices, particularly streamers, so we cater to both audiences but the main focus should be on mobile devices.
Despite being an RPG slot, Dungeon: Immortal Evil lacks a skill-based element. Why?
Despite the game’s amazing features, ultimately we produce slots – and in creating Dungeon, we wanted to stay true to slot’s RNG principles. Whilst Dungeon: Immortal Evil gives players the feeling that they can control and influence the game, winning is just a case of luck.
Is Dungeon: Immortal Evil designed to target a new generation of player?
First of all, our team members are representative of this new generation, so it is easy for us to observe the gaming landscape and its future development through their experiences. We try not to limit ourselves to one style but to think outside of the box, as games such as Necromancer, Sprinkle and Nuke World demonstrate.
Evoplay Entertainment’s primary focus has always been the new generation of player. We observe that players of the future explore themes and styles, rather than old school slots with a big win. They are demanding content driven, entertaining and immersive experiences. We therefore strive to provide this for our players.
What behavioural patterns have you identified since the slot’s release?
Dungeon: Immortal Evil has just been released so we cannot delve too deep into the statistics yet. The immediate feedback we have received is that people are really enjoying exploring the game’s features. To see the game become as popular as it has was always going to be a major goal for us. In six months, we will be able to fully identify the behavioural patterns of players.
Are there further RPG games in the pipeline?
There are a lot of ideas within the company and we are not going to stop creating quality content. You will see a lot of different exciting titles in 2020 and that is as much as I can say at present.
Is Dungeon: Immortal Evil the flagship slot Evoplay Entertainment will be promoting throughout 2020?
This year, we plan on entering new markets with our products and elevating our product development pipeline to provide partners with the very best offering. From a personal perspective, 2020 is a year of amazing opportunities for game providers. Seeing the positive feedback from audiences is the best reward.
