Three decades ago, real, physical casinos seemed invincible and irreplaceable – and they are, to some degree. After the first online casino was created, in the 90s, and after casino games shift to smaller, yet more powerful screens, one would believe there’s no way the gambling industry can come up with something more innovative. To that, the gambling industry said “Hold my beer”.
With technology advancing by the day and users demanding connectivity 24/7 and entertaining all the way, the gambling industry needs to keep up and meet these demands. Let’s take a look at what 2020 can bring in the online gambling industry.
eSports betting can become even bigger
The Cybersport industry has been growing steadily over the years with the help of the young generation of gamers and the constant advertising efforts. This growth has already been evident, with global eSports tournaments thriving year-upon-year. In 2017 the amount of money spent on eSports betting exceeded some traditional sports such as tennis or golf. That’s why many predict eSports will become huge over the coming years.
Seven of the most popular eSports games are Battlefield, Call of Duty, Counter-Strike Global Offensive, Dota 2, FIFA Football/Soccer and Halo. In order to make good betting decisions, you should know that a lot of tournaments and leagues are held around the world, but it’s probably best just to focus on the biggest ones. Four of the most known leagues/ tournaments are: The International Dota 2 Championships, ELEAGUE, Capcom Pro Tour and Call of Duty Championship.
If you believe there’s only one way to bet on eSports, think again. The most popular options are real money betting, skin betting, social betting and challenge betting. The first method is the most obvious one: you place real money wagers at agreed odds, and you get paid out if your selections were correct. Skin betting is about exchanging virtual currencies and other items within video games.
In other words, you use in-game elements as real money. Social bets refer to wages that are normally placed between friends on the outcomes of events, while challenge betting is about players (mostly friends or acquaintances) compete directly in eSports matches/events for a wager. The last two types of bets are gaining a lot of popularity, but you must be familiar with whoever you are betting against so that you don’t run the risk of being conned by some stranger.
Cybersport gambling seems indeed a very promising industry for casino operators. Although it might have some restrictions, the eSports industry will continue to expand, there’s no doubt about that.
Virtual Reality, Virtual Reality everywhere
We all know that VR Technology has become quite of a business in the past few years, so it’s only natural that it will impact the gambling industry pretty soon. Gambling developers created virtual casinos for players to visit – they look like regular online casinos in most respects, but they use virtual reality to make the gaming experience even more exciting. For example, you can play in your own private virtual room, with 360-degree video and 3D graphics.
The first casino that adopted this technology is the SlotsMillion. With a selection of 50 different games, SlotsMillion has quite of a variety to choose from. A few of the titles they brag with are Starburst, Gonzo’s Quest, Sparks, Twin Spin, Mega Boy and Cloud Quest. Another casino where you’ll find the VR technology is Mr Green. Mr Green Live Beyond Live is offering Roulette and Blackjack tables in a unique, luxurious environment.
VR Slots are also close to becoming a thing. Classic casino table games such as European roulette, blackjack, baccarat, craps, poker, and Punto Banco have given players a chance to see what is to come. If VR slots can leave as much of a positive impression, then it will be a very productive step for slots gaming into the VR arena.
The future is about smaller screens
A study back in 2016 confirmed that mobile gaming revenues had surpassed the ones created by PC gaming. The mobile revenue hit $36.9 billion while PC gaming could record only $31.9 billion. And this was only the beginning. Players seem to prefer playing whilst on the move, making online casinos transfer a lot of their operations to the mobile platform.
More ideas are on the table
The gambling market’s bucket is full of new ideas; that’s why our expectations are sky-high when it comes to innovation in the gambling sector.
It seems that we are now on the precipice of a new era for slots gaming. Has there ever been a better time for this industry? We think not. The Social Tournaments team also has a lot of ideas for future Seasons but, as the old saying goes, everything has its time.
