Building the Roadmap
“ What ’ s important is intensity and tenacity . It ’ s all about the games , but organizationally for us , it ’ s about being hyper-focused , very scrappy and executing with a lot of intensity .”
Eyes on the Prize
Building the Roadmap
One thing agreed upon by all is the need for a small slot supplier to be very careful in planning each year ’ s product roadmap .
“ It ’ s really a targeted focus ,” says Bluberi ’ s Brennan . “ It is measured growth . We ’ re not trying to turn any of our studios into factories . We can allow them to shine without putting the pressure to just deliver , deliver , and skip quality . If a game is late by five weeks and it ’ s much better , it ’ s worth it .
“ We ’ re following the right metrics , and that means not releasing a game that doesn ’ t work , which hurts ; it ’ s reputationally damaging ... We want to make sure we put obsession on game quality , with subtle but impactful differentiation . It ’ s important to franchise our studios to keep pushing to be different in little ways .”
AG2 ’ s Cozzolino says crafting the product roadmap involves a balance between the old and the new . “ Our product plan leverages the success of our past games while incorporating market trend-setting innovations to stay competitive with the largest suppliers ,” he says . “ Games like Triple Treasure Pot , known for their engaging bonus feature and strong floor performance , have laid the foundation for our reputation . Building on this success , we are enhancing popular games with updates that introduce dynamic mechanics and multi-level bonuses to keep players engaged .”
Also crucial in this effort is engaging the operators to ascertain what is working in the market . “ Customer feedback plays a vital role in shaping our game development process ,” Cozzolino says . “ Through close partnerships with operators , we gain valuable insights into market trends , preferences , and game performance . Operators share crucial information about the types of games their patrons enjoy most . This feedback allows us to refine game features like engaging bonus structures , and feature-in-feature bonuses that players find appealing .”
IT ’ s Whelan says impactful research extends to the end users of the games , the players . “ Every month , we hold player focus testing in our office ,” he says . “ It is run by our marketing team with help from our development
“ What ’ s important is intensity and tenacity . It ’ s all about the games , but organizationally for us , it ’ s about being hyper-focused , very scrappy and executing with a lot of intensity .”
— Mark DeDeaux , General Manager and Senior Vice President of Slots , AGS
teams . We ’ ve been lucky enough to collaborate with local partners to find avid players with serious slot knowledge and reward them with free play for giving us feedback on games that are in the early stages of development .”
Customer feedback “ is essential ,” adds Bluberi ’ s Brennan . “ There really are multiple customers . It starts internally with our sales team , and then operators , and then the players . Player input is the best chance to stop , when the game is almost done , with time for fine tuning — take a step back and get feedback from some fresh eyes .”
Eyes on the Prize
Regardless of the research , feedback and innovation placed into each individual game released by small slot companies , one thing all have in common is the courage to compete with the largest suppliers in the market by exploiting what already resonates with players .
“ What ’ s important is intensity and tenacity ,” says DeDeaux at AGS . “ It ’ s all about the games , but organizationally for us , it ’ s about being hyper-focused , very scrappy and executing with a lot of intensity — and the energy we have to put into being successful because of the constraints of being an emerging supplier , versus an incumbent with a lot more resources to leverage .”
AG2 ’ s Cozzolino adds that carefully leveraging successes in the marketplace is essential to compete with the entrenched market leaders . “ Establishing a competitive position in the market requires a combination of proven performance , innovation , and responsiveness to market trends ,” he says . “ Leveraging the success of our past games , we continuously refine and enhance popular titles ensuring sustained player engagement and floor performance .
“ The key to achieving a podium position is our unwavering commitment to developing innovative and engaging games that captivate players and meet market demands .
“ Equally important is our ability to anticipate and capitalize on current market trends . We are focusing on developing games with engaging game-play elements , and cutting-edge cabinet designs to draw attention on the casino floor . Additionally , integrating market feedback and data-driven insights allows us to design games that resonate deeply with both casinos and players .”
Companies like Gaming Arts and AGS will soon have the ability to tap into the resources of well-financed larger companies in striving to compete , thanks to Gaming Arts ’ partnership with Merkur and the pending acquisition of AGS by Brightstar Capital Partners .
“ Having the ability to tap into that larger resource pool from a technology point of view and from an operational point of view is going to be significant ,” says Gaming Arts ’ Colella , “ because it gives us the advantage of still being a small company that has the ability to be nimble about different things , but to have the backing of a very large company — so when we do get a hit , we could deploy lots of machines very quickly .”
Other small companies like Bluberi are consistently improving their financial position through organic growth —“ measured growth while staying extremely hungry ,” says Brennan . “ That ’ s the intangible .
“ We ’ re avoiding sameness by having these different studios and different approaches . For a small vendor , if you do only the same thing and you don ’ t have a diversified approach and portfolio , you die .
“ So we are always thinking forward 18 months , staying hungry , staying humble , and making sure we celebrate wins , but never are satisfied .”
16 Global Gaming Business FEBRUARY 2025