iSoftBet’s soon-to-be-release slot title Queen of Wonderland Megaways, scheduled December 3, is said to ‘do things differently’ according to the company’s head of games, Mark Claxton.
The company’s eighth Megaways slot of the year is said to incorporate both, what iSoftBet lauds as the ‘first game’ to combine both Free Spin modes and its own Hold and Win Respin mechanics.
SlotBeats spoke to Claxton about the inspiration behind the title, its launch campaign and what we can expect from iSoftBet in 2021.
SlotBeats: What can players expect to experience when playing Queen of Wonderland Megaways
Mark Claxton: Players will experience two of our best performing features combined into one superb slot with unique ways of linking the two features in a very exciting way. They will challenge the Queen of Hearts herself in her own Kingdom and aim to emerge victorious!
Queen of Wonderland is performing exceptionally well as part of an exclusive period with some of our key partners, and we expect this trend to continue when the game goes out on general release on 3rd December.
SB: What initially inspired you to develop this title?
MC: We wanted to delve further into our successful Twisted Tales series, and this tale of old was a great fit for the mechanics that we wanted to achieve. From a gameplay perspective we are always keen to build upon successful and player-loved features, two of which feature in this game.
We’re offering players experiences to remember in their slot adventures. More often than not in slot games you typically find yourself playing as the hero or the ‘good guy’ of a given theme, but in line with our values of curiosity and passion we wanted to mix this up by enabling our audience to play as the anti-hero in each release.
SB: What made you go with the ‘Wonderland’ theme for your next Megaways titles?
MC: This theme has been very successful in the past but at iSoftBet we like to do things differently. As with our previous Twisted Tales games (Sheriff of Nottingham and Morgana Megaways) and stance on folklore, we wanted to flip things 360-degrees so players were surrounded by the Queen herself as opposed to usual heroine.
The wonder and vibrancy of the theme lends itself perfectly to making the game come across as fun and highly entertaining and something that will continually bring a smile to players’ faces.
SB: Tell us more about the launch campaign you have planned for Queen of Wonderland?
MC: This year has been like no other, so what better way to bring some much-needed positivity than by ending 2020 with a bang and an immersive virtual tea party.
We wanted to showcase our passion for what we do by delivering a unique experience and giving invited guests a taste of what’s to come. So, on Wednesday December 2, a day before the general release of Queen of Wonderland Megaways, the voice behind the Queen herself will roll out the red carpet to operators and media royalty with a first-of-its-kind event hosted by well-known casino streamer Fruity Slots.
Our guests to the ‘tea party with a twist’ will see their curiosity re-awakened with mystery hampers arriving at their doorsteps filled with goodies that they will be invited to ‘wear’, ‘eat’, ‘drink’ and play as the event unfolds.
The highlight of the launch will be a frantic ten minute ‘freeplay’ Battle Royale where they will spin with strategy to see who emerges victorious, with the slot champion spinning a wheel with the chance to win some fantastic prizes.
SB: You’ve developed seven other Megaways titles in 2020, why is this mechanic so popular with players and developers?
MC: Megaways changed the landscape of what players were looking for in their games in recent years. The unpredictability of the Megaways mechanic, i.e. how many ways will appear on any given spin, is something players really like.
It’s also great how the potential return in a single spin can go from a small to a huge number depending on the layout. It always feels like a big win is around the corner.
SB: With 2020 coming to a close, what has been iSoftBet’s highlight in such a challenging year and moving forward, can we expect to see another title before the year is out and what can we expect from the company in 2021?
MC: Despite the challenges this year, we have kept our commitment to increasing our games production values and offering game titles that players really want. We’ve had some amazing releases this year thanks to our seriously talented teams providing such a high-quality production value and their tireless efforts spent on improving our games framework. This is a great springboard for us to do bigger and better things into 2021 and beyond.
In 2021 we will be getting even closer to our players and further fine tuning and tailoring our new titles to give the player the experiences they want. We have a healthy pipeline of Megaways titles, Hold and Win, further instalments in the Twisted Tales series and some top-secret new features. I can’t give too much away, but one example has a unique free spins round that can link a total of three-reel windows. We are looking at this series to continue with some of the best premium titles and feature designs iSoftBet has ever produced.
As for this year, seeing as you asked, we will be releasing another title before the year is done – Raging Dragons. An adrenaline fuelled, dragon themed, game where wins can be multiplied by up to 30x on any spin.
