As 2024 draws to a close, we’ve decided to take a look back at recent Beyond the Reels episodes, taking an in-depth look into the past year’s most interesting slot releases. In the first of a two-part special, we look at the first three episodes of the year, featuring slots from Tom Horn Gaming, Platipus and Armadillo Studios.
243 Fire’n’Diamonds – Tom Horn Gaming
The first episode of 2024 saw Mykhailo Pushnia, Game Producer at Tom Horn Gaming, return to the Beyond the Reels series to discuss the fiery features on offer in the studio’s 243 Fire’n’Diamonds title.
Tapping into familiar fruit themes and sparkling diamond bonuses, 243 Fire’n’Diamonds offers 243 ways to win on a 5×3 reel set with players able to win up to x1,800 their stake. The game uses medium-high volatility with an RTP of 95.02 per cent.
Explaining why the studio decided to play on familiarity with symbols and themes that players will recognise, Pusnia said: “I believe that classical fruit slots are still really popular amongst the players, and they still captivate pretty substantial player bases all around the world.
“Although we have a trend of growing popularity for games that have complex features, themes and narratives, there is a set of players that still prefer simplicity and familiarity over the modern, or let’s say ‘fancy’ graphics.
“In 243 Fire’n’Diamonds we really took the traditional elements of a slot game, such as fire and diamonds, obviously, and the fruits. Just by combining these with contemporary and astonishing art, we brought the experience to a whole new level.”
Fitting in with the recognisability of the art, symbols and theme for the slot, Pushnia suggested that the game’s diamond-collecting bonus feature is “pretty straight forward”, with players able to easily identify what symbols are needed to gain specific, high multiplier wins.
He continued: “Players enjoy clarity in terms of understanding where the big wins will come from. Actually, in this game, we have two places where big wins can come from – wild multipliers with a maximum win of x1,800 and diamond hits where players can win x777.
“We did this on purpose so that diamond hits have a slightly lower maximum win, and we wanted to make this kind of win more achievable for players. This combined with frequent teases throughout the gameplay make it really dynamic and engaging for the player.”
Alice’s Mad Fortune – Armadillo Studios
Marking the second Beyond the Reels episode in January, David Stoveld, Chief Operating Officer at Armadillo Studios, also returned to the series to showcase the EveryMatrix-owned provider’s Alice in Wonderland-themed slot, Alice’s Mad Fortune.
With playing card guards representing low value symbols and the many creatures of Wonderland offering higher-value prizes, Alice’s Mad Fortune takes place on a 5×3 reel set that uses 10-paylines to offer a maximum win of up to x50,100 the player’s wager.
After providing a brief look back at his journey into the igaming industry, Stoveld dived into the new slot title and the reasons behind taking players down the rabbit hole with Alice.
He explained: “We’ve all gone down the rabbit hole, we all make references to the film, I do all the time. I personally love it. More importantly, I think everyone can relate to it.
“We’re the in-house studio provider for EveryMatrix, where everything is possible. What better idea than to have all of these characters that have this creative imagination and believe they can do anything.
“It also gives a lot of flexibility to our amazing art, animation and sound team to be able to create really amazing animations to fit the actual scope of a slot game.”
Looking at the importance of animations in engaging players, Stolved said: “Technology has been getting better and better and if you’re making a new game, especially with all the competition everywhere, you really need something to stand out, you need a kind of beauty to your game.
“When you have those animations to keep you going, that buys the player time to understand the unique mechanics and how the game works, helping them to make the assessment of whether they like it or not.”
Urban Neon – Platipus
Kicking off the month of February, Vladyslav Garanko, CBDO at Platipus, took the Beyond the Reels hotseat to run through the studio’s Urban Neon slot, explaining how he believes fruit symbols have passed the test of time and remain as relevant as ever.
Running through the 5×3 slot that offers players the option of three bonus features when enough scatters drop into play, Garanko explained to SlotBeats why he thinks fruit symbols are still so prevalent in today’s slot industry, as well as the importance of familiarity and player autonomy.
With Urban Neon consisting of majority fruit symbols, Garanko was probed on the reasons why fruit symbols are consistently used in the majority of the industry’s slot releases.
“It is a self-fulfilling prophecy,” answered Garanako. “The origins of slot machines came from these fruits and they’ve returned to fruits. When people think of what they’re going to have in a slot, they probably think of a bar symbol or a fruit in there, irrespective of what the actual theme is going to be.
“That is just something that has been hammered down into our consciousness, it’s what most people consider or think about when thinking of gambling and slot games. This is why I do believe it’s exceptionally important to cater to that feeling that people get, when they get exactly what they expect.”
This notion of expectations led Lee to ask about the importance of considering familiarity when designing new slot releases, with Garanko suggesting it is a top priority for all Platipus titles.
“Now, that is a question to which different studios will have different answers. I do believe sincerely that it is exceptionally important that players can understand what the game is about just from one look at the icons in the game, and that the title gives clarity on what the game is going to feel like.
“There are thousands and thousands of different games, and when a player chooses what they are going to play, they look at the themes and their understanding of the game to find what they want.
“Long story short, I do think it is important and most, if not all, of Platipus’ games carry this theme that the icons and the titles give players a very clear understanding of what each game is going to be about.”
