Cultural influences on sweepstakes casino game design
Jerard V. • Last updated on 28 October 2024
Cultural representation is one of the most important things of the modern era. Today’s world is all about accepting and encouraging everyone to express themselves freely without being met by the cruel world. That’s why numerous companies and industries incorporate elements from different cultures to promote inclusivity and diversity, making everyone feel safe and welcome in different environments.
One of the industries that has grown immensely in the last couple of years in terms of cultural representation is the sweepstakes casino industry. Many sweepstakes game developers have presented different culturally sensitive games people can enjoy and learn from. If you’re interested in exploring this topic more, you can check out the article below for more details.
The role of cultural themes in sweepstakes game development
As previously mentioned, the sweepstakes casino gaming industry is one of the industries that’s trying the hardest to become as culturally diverse as possible. This transition has an immense role in game development and player experiences, as presented in the text below.
- Increased engagement – proper cultural themes can help the players connect to the games and play the titles they’ll enjoy. When players discover a game with correct cultural elements, they’ll feel accepted on the platform, leading to the desire to continue the gameplay.
- Finding the right audience – sweepstakes casinos will provide numerous culturally diverse game titles to discover the target audience and explore the themes and elements that will bring the casino the most traffic. Moreover, the casino will have a larger user audience due to diverse and inclusive elements.
- Emotional connection – one of the most important things during the sweepstakes casino experience is that the player feels safe and accepted on the platform. Sweepstakes casinos will create and provide games with the strongest emotional connections to increase engagement and sweepstakes activities.
- Brand creation – once a casino becomes recognized for its diverse game library and unique cultural elements, it’ll automatically create a recognizable and popular brand name everyone will know. It’ll also influence the popularity and improve the institution’s reputation.
- Following market trends – a sweepstakes game developer and provider will thoroughly research the market of a specific region, its trends, cultural elements, and other aspects to create the most universal and culturally sensitive content everyone can enjoy.
As you can see, cultural elements represent a major role in sweepstakes game development and can immensely influence the overall gaming experience, user interactivity, and engagement.
A few examples of culturally influenced games
Since the sweepstakes market is expanding rapidly in terms of cultural influences and games, you’ll encounter numerous new and old titles with such elements. To give you a better idea of cultural influences, we’ve prepared a few examples from sweepstakes casinos to represent the power of representation. You can check these examples out below.
Irish Luck Slot
Irish Luck Slot is a game developed by Eyecon, and you can find it on numerous sweepstakes casino platforms. This sweepstakes slot is filled with multiple traditional Irish cultural elements, such as leprechauns, four-leaf clovers, fairies, beer, and many more. The first thing you’ll notice is a leprechaun who will be your guide on the Irish slot journey.
This game was developed to bring the audience closer to some of the most important Irish elements and to help audiences all across the globe learn about the culture through entertaining experiences, so this may be your ideal game if you want to get to know a piece of Ireland.
Viking Vanguard
Norse mythology has hundreds of elements people may want to learn about to understand ancient times. That’s why sweepstakes casinos have developed Viking Vanguard, a simple slot game packed with all the crucial Norse mythology elements to provide the players with a unique experience. You’ll be greeted by a male and a female Viking, who will guide you through the sweepstakes journey.
One of the elements that contributes the most to the unique Viking atmosphere is the audio experience. The developers wanted to enhance the ancient feeling, so you’ll surely get a hold of the authentic atmosphere and learn more about the culture through this slot game.
La Fiesta
Bulls often represent the Spanish culture, as these sacred animals played a major role in the country’s development and history. Some of Spain’s most renowned artists and celebrities praised and represented this animal in their works. The main character of the La Fiesta game is a friendly bull who will introduce you to Spanish slot games.
Other significant cultural details in the game include Spanish roses and tomatoes, giving you the truest and most unique atmosphere possible. With this game, you’ll feel like you’re in a Spanish city.
Challenges of developing culturally sensitive games
Although introducing culturally sensitive games to the sweepstakes market can help with inclusivity and diversity, game developers and providers will often encounter issues on this journey. We’ll present some of the most common issues below.
- Avoiding stereotypes – stereotypes have been around for centuries, so avoiding these cultural aspects is difficult, especially if you don’t know the culture. The developers must avoid these elements and represent a culture for what it is and not for what people think it is.
- Proper representation – sweepstakes game developers must stay on track regarding cultural elements and discard any fantasy aspects while creating new games. That will represent a culture in its true light and help other players learn more.
- Addressing insulting aspects – before even starting the developing journey, providers and game developers must address potentially insulting aspects and instantly remove them from the game design plans. It will ensure the games are entirely culturally accurate.
Developing sweepstakes games with cultural influences is complex, and the providers must pay special attention to numerous factors to get the best results and user satisfaction.
The future of cultural representation in sweepstakes casino game designs
Although the sweepstakes game industry grew in terms of cultural representations and elements, the future will hold much more than we know today. We expect more casinos to start their cultural journeys, including even more diverse backgrounds and elements than today.
Moreover, thanks to the advanced technological systems and tools available, the gaming experience will be as authentic as possible. Game providers will include high-quality graphics, accurate elements, and even audio experiences to enhance the atmosphere and make the players understand the game’s background.
We cannot precisely predict what will happen in the sweepstakes future, but according to today’s market trends and elements, we think the future of cultural elements is bright. We’ll get even more representations and games, leading to complete inclusivity and diversity on the sweepstakes market.
Sources
- Rozain, C. (2023, Jun 20). The Power of Representation: Embracing Diversity in Mobile Game. Medium.
- Ramasubramanian, S. (2014, Dec 01). Experimental Studies of Media Stereotyping Effects. Research Gate.
- Oppliger, T. (2023, May 20). What is the National Animal of Spain? All About the Bull. Love at First Adventure.