The online gambling industry is worth a staggering $63.53 billion, and analysts predict we will see a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 12% from this year to the end of the decade.
This rapid industry growth has led to an explosion of software development companies active in the creation of games for the casino industry. These are not the pixelated fruit machines of years gone by, but sophisticated titles that rival the creativity of AAA games released on consoles.
‘Traditional’ Gaming vs. iGaming Development
On the surface, it would seem that there are a lot of overlaps between traditional gaming, i.e. what you’d find on a PlayStation or Xbox, and iGaming, like slots and table games.
But under the hood, there is plenty that’s different. The game mechanics, what drives the game forward, is driven by mathematics. Casinos are legally bound to create games that are fair and follow certain ‘rules’.
The design of casino games, therefore, is more about the experience of the game. Think of visuals, sounds, and storylines. For video games, on the other hand, developers have a lot more flexibility.
Despite that, it doesn’t mean that iGaming development requires a more limited skill set. Indeed, it’s arguably a bigger challenge to come up with a video game within an architecture that is legally tied to a particular mathematical setup.
If you’re a relative newcomer to the iGaming scene, you can find out everything about online casino games with the use of helpful instructions and guides, often provided by platforms such as SkyCity. Veterans of brick-and-mortar establishments will be familiar with the gameplay, but otherwise, games like slots and blackjack are relatively easy to pick up.
The Top Companies in 2023
The casino industry was previously dominated by just a handful of companies, but in recent years we’ve seen significant growth in the iGaming development sector.
There is greater demand for online casino games, which drives growth, but there is also more professional satisfaction from working in the sector; high-speed internet access, improved tech in smartphones and personal computers, for example, all mean that developers have a platform to show off their creative juices. These are the main companies behind the best casino games today:
NetEnt
Otherwise known by its full name, NetEnterprise, this company has been in the business for a long time. It started a small development house back in 1996, but is now one of the leading players in the space.
The company has gone through a staggering 58.3 billion gaming transactions in the last 4 years, working with over 200 online casinos. With over 200 games, you’ve likely played one of NetEnt’s classics.
Playtech
Another company that has been around for quite some time, active in the gambling industry since 1999. Playtech is responsible for some of the household slots you’ve undoubtedly seen, but it is perhaps their ‘behind the scenes’ work that is more interesting.
For instance, in 2018, the company began working on real-time fraud prevention through the usage of machine learning. With online fraud at an all-time high, the software developers behind this technology will have plenty of work in the coming years.
Microgaming
Microgaming claims to be the first company to launch online casino software, and is known to house some of the brightest software development talents in the industry.
The company not only releases high-quality games on the regular, it is also the main driver of software solutions for responsible gambling. For example, deposit limits, reality checks and self-exclusion features were all originally released by Microgaming.
The Future of Software Development in iGaming
Despite the industry’s scintillating growth, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it is still in its infancy. It wasn’t too long ago that playing on your smartphone was barely possible, and it’s only in recent years that we’ve seen casino titles make discernable leaps in overall gameplay.
With the tech industry struggling overall and iGaming booming amid a difficult climate, expect even more talented software developers to land roles in this industry. With plenty of funding and some of the top software brains around, expect games to match the AAA experience very soon.
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