The online casino sector is by far the most competitive offshoot of gaming, which is why it is completely awash with offers and promotions. Sites need to do everything they can to attract players away from their rivals, and bonuses have been one of the main ways to do this ever since the early days of the industry.
The number of sites offering bonuses has become so high that the promotions that exist today are much more generous than they were a decade ago. This suggests that deals and marketing in other offshoots of gaming could evolve as well.
Online Casino Bonuses Have Evolved Greatly Over Time
If you click here to see the latest casino bonuses and offers, you’ll notice that the biggest operators in the online casino industry are now taking a multifaceted approach to the ways they entice players. In the early days of online casinos, the deposit match bonus quickly became the standard. Now, on top of this, free spins offers are common, as well as VIP schemes that have daily and weekly deals.
The bonuses at online casinos have had to evolve because when every site is offering the same thing, players find it hard to choose. Operators have had to come up with ingenious ways to get a slight edge on their rivals by providing something slightly better. Free spins bonuses arose thanks to the popularity of slot games online, and site owners quickly realized that these games were a huge draw for players.
The Days of the Freemium Game May be Coming to an End
One of the most common ways of marketing mobile games over the last ten years has been the freemium model, which was pioneered by games like Clash of Clans in 2012. Players would be able to start playing a game for free, but then they would have the option to pay money if they wanted better upgrades or to get things done faster.
Part of the reasoning behind Apple’s decision to release Apple Arcade was because it noticed that free-to-play apps like this generated more than $21 billion in revenue in 2018. By offering a cheap subscription model for premium games, the tech giant hoped to draw players away from these freemium offerings and into the Apple Arcade, where they’d have a multitude of games to choose from in exchange for a monthly fee. It’s still early days, but subscription services like this could be the beginning of the end for freemium games.
Discounted Console Titles No Longer Pack the Same Punch
The same can be said in the console sector. In the PlayStation and Xbox stores, players have always had the opportunity to buy discounted games at different times of the year, often picking up bargains. The frequency of these deals helped to sell the hardware as well, as players knew they’d be getting access to several high-quality games for cheap.
Now, the subscription model is creeping into the console market, and offerings like PS Now and Xbox Game Pass are swiftly becoming the most prevalent ways of accessing games. This means that discounted games will no longer pack the same punch because players will be able to play many of them on their subscriptions.
The gaming industry is constantly adapting to changes around it, and it moves faster than many other sectors because of its competitiveness. Online casinos have highlighted how marketing and promotions change over time, and now this is being seen in other offshoots such as mobile and console.