Zona de Azar UK – How BetConstruct is Offering a “Modern Twist” on Traditional Games
UK.- January 8th 2021 www.zonadeazar.com The launch of four new mini games has guaranteed a fast start to 2021 for BetConstruct, as it continues to build the perfect product mix for its sportsbook and igaming partners.
This new collection reflects the international reach of the company, as a “fresh twist” on four games already popular with players across Asia and Europe.
Hokm, which is one of the most popular card games in Iran and India, is a trick-taking game and is sometimes known as Court Piece or Whist in English.
After the first five cards have been dealt, the eldest hand makes trumps and trick-play is typically stopped after one party has won seven tricks. The objective of the game is to be the first player to win seven points.
Another player favourite in Iran, Pasoor is a fishing card game in which numbers are captured by making a total of 11 – a game which BetConstruct noted is similar to the Italian Cassino or Scop, and bears greater similarity to Egypt’s Bastra.
Moving over to Turkey, Okey is a tile-based game which BetConstruct described as being ‘very similar to the game Rummikub’.
Okey is played with a set of 106 tiles and 104 of them are numbered from one to 13 with four different colours. During the game, each player has 14 tiles on their board. On each turn, a player draws one tile and discards one tile. The object of the game is to be first to form a board that consists of sets and runs using all 14 tiles.
In these three games, BetConstruct explained that it wanted to maintain the ‘real values’ of the traditional games while offering a ‘modern design and spirit’.
This was made possible by the inclusion of customisable theme options encompassing avatars, background themes and card types, all combining to elevate the user experience.
BetConstruct has also adapted these games to the modern player by ensuring both mobile and desktop access to the games, in addition to game history for players and operators across both local and global networks.
Penality, the fourth game to join the BetConstruct roster, differs slightly in that it is focused more on football aesthetics. Designed as a ‘very simple concept’, the interface displays football goal posts which are divided into 24 numbered sections.
The aim of the game is to predict where the footballer in the forefront will score the ball. Based purely on luck, Penality is also available on both mobile and desktop, with an unlimited number of players, various betting options and verifiable RNG.
Karen Gulkanyan, director of engineering, said: “The first three, Hokm, Passor and Okey, are more region specific. These card games found wider appeal among the players with middle eastern backgrounds who will enjoy the online PvP format and positively contribute to operators’ website visits.
“Penality with its near-soccer concept may remind of a thematic slot game. The only difference is, instead of spinning the reels, a player chooses the lucky slot out of 24 provided in the game.”
Praising the games’ highly engaging formats, BetConstruct believes that these four games can help ‘enrich’ its partners’ gaming suite, thus ‘contributing to the further growth of the operators and helping to generate higher revenues’.
“With the faster internet available worldwide came the rise of online gambling,” explained Gulkanyan. “The traditional card games of smaller local origin are not only played face-to-face in the communities of their origin, but also available in an online gambling format.
“The operators who have a significant audience coming from the countries where Pasoor, Hokm and Okey are played, will never go wrong by integrating these games to their platform. What comes to Penality, it can be a decent gaming accompaniment to sportsbook.”
Discussing the thought process, Gulkanyan said the combination of historically significant games with a modern twist to drive player engagement was a ‘no brainer’ for BetConstruct.
“The thought process was relatively un-thought-provoking,” Gulkanyan continued. “These games have massive appeal and historical relevance for these target markets so it’s a no brainer to develop and push these styles of games for the betting industry.
“On top of that, offering a football game will draw traditionally sport-inclined betters to dip their toes in the casino side for a possible conversion.
“The Penality game will be great for the European market. Promotion can go hand in hand with sports promotion and bonuses. For the US, the game can easily be tweaked to encompass US games such as NFL and basketball or ice hockey.
“Regarding the other games which are culturally not familiar in Europe and US, bettors in these markets are more open for card-based games than Asia, so the chance to promote a completely new player experience can be considered as a type of self promotion itself.”
Edited by: @MaiaDigital www.zonadeazar.com
