Q&A with Annamaria Anastasi, Marketing Director at Betsoft Gaming.
Betsoft’s new video slot Legend of the Nile is offering a fast-paced slot adventure down the legendary river. The traditional, familiar Egyptian theme isn’t uncommon when it comes to video slots so what is it that Betsoft did to make it differ from other Egyptian-themed slots?
The truly unique aspect of this game comes with the innovative functions that we’ve incorporated into the game play. However, the Egyptian theme is kept from being a stale revisitation through Betsoft’s unique art style. Rather than focusing solely on the icons of Egypt, such as the pyramids, we put a particular focus on the natural elements that make Egypt a unique location of natural splendour. As you can see through the art for this game, fronds, ferns, placid waters, and lilies all create a setting of peace and tranquillity. This is not to say that the iconography of Egypt is lost, as we focus on the sphinx, various Egyptian treasures and classic Egyptian hieroglyphs. Adding to the game’s unique take on ancient Egypt are the stunning, animated representations of the gods Ra, Isis, and Anubis. These gods, with their jewel-tone accents and realistic art style, help Legend of the Nile stand out among slots with a similar theme.
Anything special operators and players can expect from the animations in Legend of the Nile?
The animations in Legend of the Nile were intentionally kept subtle and reserved to not disrupt the element of serenity that the style of design supports. The symbols drop into view on stone tablets with their associated animation, and the gods each have a subtle unique animation when they appear on the board. These small animations are rewards for attentive players. Each win brings the game alive with an energetic glow to the cluster right before it explodes. The energy left behind beams the winning amount to the display bar.
I noticed a progressive jackpot being linked to the game. Can you tell us something more about this generous prize available while playing Legend of the Nile?
Legend of the Nile has added several ground-breaking mechanics to the game play. One of these is the turn based, dynamic Ra Trail. This is a meter that collects all instances of the Ra Symbol won in a single turn and uses them to lead players to Free Spins, a massive 400 times multiplier on bet, or the progressive jackpot.
The game promises several mechanics. What mechanics are we talking about and how do these enhance the player experience?
Legend of the Nile incorporates our new “persistent trail” system into the game play. This allows players to collect symbols they’ve won during a spin, as is the case with the Ra trail, or in between game sessions, as is the case with Isis and Anubis. This allows players to take the excitement of play from game to game, and collect rewards along the way, which we’ve found is a growing requirement among the newer demographics.
The Isis Trail, Anubis Trail, and Ra Trail are slot features players can’t miss out on. Why is that and are there any other slot features players can look forward to in Legend of the Nile?
The Trail features are an innovative part of this new slot, adding a new element to the game play. These trails persist throughout different game sessions, so players can return time and again to continue where they left off. The Ra Trail allows a player to collect Ra symbols and move up the Ra Trail in a single turn. This trail leads to Free Spins, big wins, or even the progressive Jackpot. The other two trails continue to collect symbols between games. This allows players to carry-over their excitement from spin to spin. The rewards for both the Isis and Anubis Trails are much larger. Not only do both trails result in a significant number of Free Spins, but both trails play out those Free Spins using a bet multiplier based on the bets made by the player while proceeding up the trail. This is of huge benefit to the player, not only because their choices determine how high their multiplier will be, but also because it means the player doesn’t have to continue to bet the same amount each round or lose their progress. They can change their bet any time they like and continue to advance on their current trails, simply altering the final multiplier of the Free Spins.
Legend of the Nile offers a different grid format again (6×6) like we’ve seen in Giovanni Gem’s (7×7). In what way do players benefit from these special video slot formats often used in the Betsoft games?
These spreads give a wider area for wins to occur and can allow for bigger clusters, creating a sense of tension and excitement for the player. They better emulate the modern “match 3” cluster games found in many Freemium game platforms. We find this a helpful mechanic to draw in youthful players, and new demographics. It’s both new and familiar at the same time.
Is it possible for you to offer our readers a sneak peek at the upcoming Betsoft slot and what to expect from future Betsoft games released in 2018?
There are many fantastic games in the works for 2018. Our big release for quarter one of 2018 is the sequel to one of our most popular titles Sugar Pop, called Sugar Pop 2: Double Dipped. It revisits all the best parts of Sugar Pop while introducing some new candies with special abilities which we think will excite players. This game also includes new infinite level structures, giving players the chance to move up levels as they win. There are also added rewards, from morphing wilds to candy bombs, making this well-known game feel brand new. We will have a demo available for the first time at ICE Totally gaming expo stand #S3-312.
In addition to that, we also have a game called Tiger’s Claw , a 3-4-5-4-3 mystical themed slot planned for quarter one. We plan a few blockbusters later this year, along with some new mechanics, and a little something special in the works on the innovation front, but I cannot give you more details on this at this time. Let’s just say that something very different is coming soon and you will have to wait a little longer to find out more.
