Exclusive interview with Pragmatic Play – Social Tournaments Q&A Session

We, at Slots-777.com, had the great pleasure to meet Ivan Faulisi, currently acting as Head of Affiliates Engagement & Localization for Pragmatic Play. In this interview we talked about the challenges that the provider is facing but above all about the Social tournaments, an innovative product in the iGaming panorama. 

Pragmatic Play is a multi-product provider within the market and produces software for slots, bingo, live casino, virtual sports and more. Which of these is most successful?

Ivan: “We pride ourselves on developing exciting gaming experiences for players across all our verticals. While our history is rooted in slot creation, we’ve experienced significant success across our Live Casino, Bingo and Virtual Sports offerings as well. Preferences and personal taste vary wildly among players, so it is our goal to provide amazing games to cater for as diverse an audience as possible.”

Pragmatic Play has been expanding its business markets in LatAm. What kind of challenges did you face in entering these markets?

Ivan: “Latin America is a very exciting continent, with a large populace, positive regulation, and an impressive scope for growth. Like all new markets, we conducted due diligence to ensure we could hit the ground running, this allowed our establishment in our Latin American hub to be a real success.

Gaining an understanding of player tastes, regional habits and even the way each operator works requires local knowledge, but the way we approached Latin America is something we’re very proud of.”

Could you please explain to our readers what Socialtournaments.com is and how it works?

Ivan: “Socialtournaments.com is an online platform where players can register to for free. They can play social slot tournaments and most importantly, win real money prizes! There are different types of tournaments players can join, all of which reward players depending on their level. From total wins to biggest multiplier, as well as a Bonus Buy tournament where players have 100 Free Spins to win as much as possible. It’s clear players have the chance to win real sums in a social casino environment.

There’s also a Monthly Tournament, this is a sponsored event and comes with a huge prize pool of around €6,000. One of our casino partners sponsors the event and can be joined with a special ticket, where potentially lucrative prizes await!”

How do you think Social Tournaments will affect the slot gaming industry?

Ivan: “Social Tournaments give players more ways to be engaged. Some players may just enjoy slot’s gameplay, but do not necessarily want to participate in real money gaming. This gives them the opportunity to enjoy amazing Pragmatic Play games without any risk.

Equally, it allows the reach of our games to spread, with social casino available across the globe. Attracting players to our interesting titles in a safe environment is a great driver of engagement, and we’re very happy with the direction our social tournaments are heading.”

What are the most popular trends in the slots industry nowadays?

Ivan: “The increase in high volatility games is something that is clearly noticeable, as is the expansion of more ways to win, such as Megaways games, or cascading wins. Mechanics play a key role in slot production nowadays, and this is something we expect to continue. Finding an exciting, engaging mechanic and combining that with a thrilling theme and great maths model allows slots to truly be elevated within the industry.”

Pragmatic Play is one of the most prolific providers and releases up to five new slots every month. How do you keep the production so consistent? And where do you find new inspiration for your games?

Ivan: “The dedication of our development teams is clear to see, and through their hard work we’re able to release a game a week. With so much appetite for slot content nowadays, being able to consistently produce amazing games gives us a real advantage, and a great proving ground for innovative concepts and themes.

Inspiration can come from everywhere. Triggers can be all around us, from literature to film to everyday occurrences. The creativeness of our team allows us to turn an idea into a fully-fledged slot swiftly, and it leads to fantastic creations for our fans.”