Viabonus Interview Corner – Meet Tommy from Play’n GO!

Play’n GO is one of the most popular game providers in the online casino industry. The portfolio of this Swedish-based game provide includes a great variety of fun slots, of which Reactoonz and Book of Dead among others have redeemed their place in the hearts of casino players. In addition to the slots, this versatile studio has also produced several great table games.

The history of Play’n GO dates back to the ’90s, so the company has been in the business since the beginning of the online casino industry. Today, Play’n GO has offices in several different countries and it’s headquartered in its home country of Sweden. Over the years Play’n GO has released over a hundred carefully designed slots games and live casino table games.

Play’n GO games are familiar to almost all casino players and are offered in all the best online casinos. PNG games are characterized by fun themes, great visual layouts, and a variety of bonus features. There may be a number of different special features in a single game, such as free spins, a bonus game, and wild symbols.

In Viabonus interview corner, we ask some tricky questions from the best game providers in the market. This time our guest is Tommy Adolfsson Saarela from Play’n GO – get familiar with how PNG-guys choose their game themes, how games are designed, and who is in charge of the bonus features!

Pssst – from our listing you can find several Pay’n Play casinos that offer bonuses and free spins to Book of Dead and other great PNG-games!

Play’n GO - Entertaining the crowd!

We are, at heart, entertainers. So much of our success is built on our desire to give players the best entertainment out there. We design games that we would want to play; the most fun, the most engaging, and the most entertaining content possible. - Tommy Adolfsson- Saarela, Play’n GO

Tommy, Play’n GO is known in online casinos all around the world. What are your most popular games of all time?

How much time do you have! Over the years, we’ve released several games that became staples in the industry, and people want to play again and again. Added to that, we also have our series of games, interconnected narratives that people always want to visit when a new entry comes out.

Titles like Book of Dead, Reactoonz (and its sequel), Troll Hunters, our Joker series of games, to name a few, continue to delight players around the globe.

Play’n GO often has funny themes in their games. How did you end up doing a Twisted Sisters slot? Why not Iron Maiden?

Our ideas are a more organic process; we don’t try and force them. We could easily list any number of popular bands and go out and make a slot on the strength of their name alone, but that’s not how we do things.

Our music slots come from an idea that we have the perfect mechanics and designs to fit with the band we’re working with or would like to work with. So, if we come up with the perfect idea for an Iron Maiden slot, we’ll make it happen.

There are plenty of game providers in the market. What is the recipe for Play’n GO’s success?

We are, at heart, entertainers. So much of our success is built on our desire to give players the best entertainment out there. We design games that we would want to play; the most fun, the most engaging, and the most entertaining content possible.

We are always looking to innovate, to move the industry to the next level, and try something new. But we have to temper that with our experience and the demands of the various markets. Drawing on our experience so far and all of the new things we are learning to create the best content possible.

Finally, we live by our three values; quality, trust, and energy. We make sure we adhere to these values each day, and the rest is history!

How do Online Slot Games work?

How does the development of a new slot game start?

It all starts with an idea. We welcome suggestions from all corners of the company; we believe everyone has the imagination capable of dreaming up a great idea. We don’t want to stifle the creativity of a great concept because of where it originates.

Once we’ve determined it’s a viable idea that can work, we shape it and hone it through various processes and milestones until we have the finished article. It’s not an easy process, and it can take a lot of time to complete, but it ensures the best version of the original idea gets released.

Do you ever think “this is not gonna work” just before launching a new game in Play’n GO? Will you try to fix the game or just forget it?

No! As I said before, we have a very detailed process that looks at every aspect of the game, from UI and design to maths and mechanics, at various stages of production.

If a portion of the game isn’t up to the required standard, then it won’t pass through to the next stage until it is. We would never have a game ready for release that we thought wasn’t right, whether it be the theme, concept, or gameplay itself.

What do you think are the key features of a successful slot game?

There are a lot of things to think about when you’re making a slot game. It has to have an interesting theme, eye-catching design, and fun bonus features for sure, but then these things all have to fit together to create a great experience. So, a free spin round with multiplying Wilds may work for a pirate slot, for example, but not a vampire one because it doesn’t fit with the game’s narrative and may feel out of place.

If everything isn’t right, then the game won’t hold players' interests. They may not even know why they don’t like a game, it just doesn’t feel like a good experience to them, and they move on.

A new game release is always the sum of many factors. How many employees does it take to make one new game?

A lot! Every game is a collaborative effort between many different departments; designers, artists, producers, to name a few. The exact number will vary depending on the project, but whoever is needed will pitch in and help out; it’s all hands on deck

Who is in charge of developing the bonus features? That employee must have a dream job – spinning free spins all day long!

When we develop the bonus features as we’re developing the game; make sure the features fit the game, rather than coming up with features and trying to wedge them into our games.

So it doesn’t come down to a single person sitting dreaming up features for slots…but that does sound like an amazing job!

Play’n GO is also known for its table games. Which is harder, developing a new blackjack table or a popular slot game?

Both have their difficulties, but table games have a slightly stricter framework; you can’t deviate too much in the actual gameplay, so you have to be creative with giving it a new spin or finding an innovative way to give players something new.

The future of Play’n GO

What has made you apply to this industry?

I was always a fan of slots, table games, card games, sports betting, etc., even before I joined the industry over ten years ago.

I got into affiliation because I was working for an online dating company that also ran a small online casino as part of their business. From there, I moved onwards and upwards, working for several different companies before becoming a part of Play’n GO

 Where do you see Play’n GO in five years?

Continuing to be one of the biggest suppliers in the industry, probably undisputed number one, hahaha. We are already planning ahead and looking years into the future, so it’s not that far away for us! We already have an idea of where we’ll be and how we will be innovating; you’ll just have to wait and see what it is we do!

What are your hobbies outside the office?

I’m very active; I like going to the gym, keeping myself fit, and going for walks with my beautiful dog, Shiva. I’m also a big gamer. Like I said I’ve always been a fan of slot games, but I also like to play PC and console games online in my spare time.