Anyone who has been paying attention to the online casino industry over the last decade has noticed an upward trend.
The sites are becoming more professional and expansive, while the games are constantly improving and becoming more creative.
This steady improvement has been down to market demand and the variety of software developers contributing to the games available.
Unlike the traditional video game industry, casino game development isn’t dominated by massive studios.
Instead, it’s an industry that supports huge companies, indie studios and emerging developers.
The discussion on CasinoMeister regarding the evolution of online casino software highlights all of the major ways that these companies have contributed to the current state of the industry.
Music isn’t mentioned and that feels like an oversight. The music that features in many releases has made today’s online casino games much better.
Music plays its part in game quality, user experience and aesthetics. Anyone who has played video games knows how important the music used is to the overall experience and to staying engaged in the game.
This article will take a deeper look at how software developers use music to keep players engaged and what effects a good soundtrack can have on a player.
Relaxation
Slot games are successful when players play for extended periods of time.
Most people play video games to relax, even when the games have a high-adrenaline component.
To promote relaxation, software developers create soundtracks that are easy to listen to for extended periods.
Extensive research has been done on the power of music to influence our emotions and mood.
For example, gentle tones and natural sounds both contribute to positive moods. These are often incorporated into jungle – and forest-themed slots.
Immersion
Video games are a form of escapist entertainment. The music and sound effects in a video game contribute to making the game immersive.
It’s hard to imagine that Zelda: Breath of Wild would have been such a sensation if it didn’t have such an immersive soundtrack.
With slot machine games, the immersion into the game world doesn’t happen solely through storyline or gameplay — there is rarely any story, and the gameplay is incredibly simple.
This puts more pressure on the music to create a mood and keep players engaged.
Software developers have embraced the challenge. They create music for their games that fit the theme and style of the game to increase the immersive nature.
Wild West-themed games are a popular genre, and they use music inspired by cowboy songs.
Medieval-themed slots use instruments that mimic lutes, traditional drums and flutes.
Power of the beat
The instruments, tone and songs reflect the theme and style of the game to increase immersion and promote casual engagement.
The beat plays a different role. Slot game software developers use the beat to heighten player emotions while they play.
With slot games, the music tempo increases during key moments in gameplay, especially when players are nearing a bonus round or have a chance to land a big win.
As the tempo of the music increases, our heart rate increases as well. This increases our emotional investment in the game and makes everything feel more intense.
As the tempo decreases, we relax and go back to enjoying the game. The peaks in excitement become something we chase, so players continue to play.
Sound effects
Sound effects are just as important in creating an engaging game environment as the soundtrack is.
With slot machine games, sound effects are used to highlight when special symbols like Scatters or Wilds are hit.
Sound effects are also used to increase immersion by matching the theme of the game. For example, games with magical themes will heavily feature twinkly sound effects.
The biggest role sound effects play in slot games is to celebrate wins. This is such an effective tool for increasing player engagement that recently the British government banned celebration sound effects and animations for wins that are less than the wagered amount.
The fact that this regulation was passed shows how serious an impact celebratory sound effects can have on players.
Maintaining a balance
Not every player will enjoy the soundscape that a game developer has crafted for their game.
Some players even choose to play games with the sound muted. Due to this, music and sound effects can’t be an integral part of the games.
What matters most is not alienating those players and maintaining a balance between having a short, catchy tune without being too repetitive.
Too short and players will find it repetitive and annoying. Too catchy and players will get it stuck in their heads.
Seasonal slots are the perfect example of this delicate balance and how difficult it is to maintain.
Let’s look at Christmas slots as an example since they’re the most common genre of seasonal slots.
We all love a classic Christmas song. We all also know that playing the same Christmas song on repeat is the quickest way to drive people crazy.
To maintain the balance between the nostalgic charm of Christmas music and not annoying players to the point that they leave to find a different game, software developers use clever tools.
Some games, like Quickspin’s Book of Yuletide, cycle through multiple Christmas classics played in the same style.
On the other hand, Play’n GO’s Moon Princess: Christmas Kingdom and Pragmatic Play’s Big Bass Christmas Splash use soundtracks that are recognisably Christmasy but don’t include any familiar songs.
Conclusions
Music is such a key part of the gaming experience that it can make or break a game.
Software developers who create casino games have become masters in using music and sound effects to keep players engaged and entertained.
The short development time of these games and the volume that they’re produced at leads to a lot of trial and error, which explains how they’ve been able to advance the industry so far, so fast.
