Mobile-First Gaming: Getting the most of the new audience
Dmitry Starostenkov, CEO EvenBet gaming, explains how the industry could get the most out of a new player generation through mobile gaming.
Opinion.- Within a few years, online gaming has made a complete technological shift. Even in conservative Europe in 2021, the share of mobile devices used for betting and gambling has crossed the psychological barrier of 50 per cent for the first time, according to European Gaming & Betting Association data.
For top-10 industry websites, according to Similarweb research, mobile players make up 79.5 per cent of the audience (notably, over 20 per cent of players come from Brazil).
The rise of mobile gaming was predicted and expected, however, the industry is still adapting to the new wireless reality where the lion’s share of the audience plays from their smartphones. Numerous mobile applications still have limited functionality or troubled navigation and user interface, especially in the online poker niche.
One cannot simply transfer the desktop app interface to the mobile phone screen. That is why we have decided to share some of the findings we used to redesign the EvenBet Gaming mobile poker applications launched this spring.
New player generation: what do they need?
For two decades, we believed that players come to gambling games to win and only to win. Now, we know it’s far from being the main attraction: winning is exciting, but the reason to stay is being entertained. Should it be a slot game or a poker table, we know that in most hands or spins, players lose.
And the only reason for them to continue playing is having fun. More fun than watching a new episode on Netflix, matching another three-in-a-row in a casual arcade, or scrolling through the Instagram stories and reels.
What have we added to our poker apps to reach this audience?
- More metagame elements (narrative missions and quests, collectable experience points affecting the player level, etc.). In the last five years, the number of top-100 mobile gaming apps using different narrative and collectable elements has increased from 20 per cent to 70 per cent.
- Easy app customisation: a player may change table colours, card backs, etc.
- Mastery tracking: for every player, comprehensive poker mastery data are available. They may track their performance with the statistics that were accessible previously only through specialised tracking software, replay their games, study their opponents and make personal notes.
- More social elements: in addition to chats, we now have quick reactions shown directly at the table and leaderboards. Now, we are finalising a video chat functionality that will allow players to have an almost live poker table experience.
Ensuring engagement from the first click
Online poker used to be relatively messy to navigate through. For a newbie, logging in to the app for the first time, the problem of finding the right table or tournament or getting through the settings was sometimes too difficult or time-consuming.
We have worked a lot on it, and now a player may get a seat at the perfect table just with a single click. From the first screen, he accesses actual promotions and special offers, intuitive game filters, and the most needed account information.
The online poker experience has become smoother and more interactive even before sitting at the table, and it pleases users looking for more casual gaming, with easy ins and outs. At the same time, a vast choice of game and tournament types allows starting the full-scale exploration journey and ensuring engagement for those who prefer mastery over casualty.
At EvenBet, we have over 35 poker and card games, including region-specific, and almost infinite possibilities to set up various tournaments.
Taking care of the performance and availability
Along with the design and UI changes, we have been working on the technical performance. Changes made this year introduce general security and stability updates, a decrease in traffic sent between client apps and the server, several critical improvements to the anti-fraud detection system, and a non-stop upgrade of animation and design elements.
These are mostly the changes unseen by the players, but they directly affect the application user experience. What’s more important for a mobile app than a smooth and hassle-free UX?
