Brian Christoper and his company, BCSlots, might have the next version of Rotten Tomatoes or the People’s Choice Awards on their hands.
But instead of movies and music, Christopher’s new venture will shine a light on the best new slot machines.
BCSlots recently announced a strategic partnership with Eilers & Krejcik Gaming. EKG’s data and analytics will be paired with BCSlots’ access to 2.5 million followers for an idea Christopher has always believed is important: the voice of the player.
“We have a huge access to people that are all players, and so whatever they want to know, we can find out,” Christopher tells CDC Gaming. “And so far, our fans have been really excited about being able to have a voice.”
A comprehensive research report will be jointly published and distributed throughout EKG’s operator and supplier partner network, giving game developers and casino decision makers a statistical look at what makes modern players tick.
A new consumer-voted category will be introduced at the next l EKG Slot Awards Show in Las Vegas, recognizing the year’s slot titles that player audiences are most passionate about. Christopher will be the presenter for the award.
And research findings will be amplified via BCSlots media channels, including FlipTheSwitch.com, and featured on EKG’s Bonus Round podcast, with appearances by BCSlots guests.
Christopher notes that EKG has long compiled technical information on machine-level performance data. But what was missing was players’ input on slot machines. During conversations, someone noted it would be helpful to join forces to create a more complete image of player behavior and likes and dislikes.
“It would benefit our community, but it would also benefit a lot of manufacturers, casinos,” Christopher said. “Everyone could benefit from this.”
Todd Eilers, co-founder of Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, said the partnership will benefit his company and BCSlots’ players.
“We now get to layer our quantitative data with qualitative insights from the highly engaged, organic audience developed by BCSlots,” Eilers said in a statement. “Blending what the machines are tracking with what the players are actually feeling, we can offer our vendor and operator partners an entirely new perspective on the slot library.”
“Our job is to get into the minds of the players and to find out what really excites them,” Christopher said, “what they want to see more of what annoys them about slot machine. Every bit of it.
“We want to get the intel from them,” he said. “What’s cool is that we’re asking slot manufacturers and casinos to reach out to us or reach out to EKG as well and let us know what do you want to know from the players.”
Christopher says it’s too early to discern what people are looking for, as the first survey was just posted. He does say they are trying to find out their followers likes and dislikes and then get a bigger and better picture of what slots work, and which ones don’t and why.
What does Christopher like or dislike?
“I think we’ve gone to a point where, in my opinion, some manufacturers have been prioritizing bigger jackpots, which make games too volatile, and there’s a lot of oversaturation of that right now,” he said. “It’s getting to a point where, like, I’m not enjoying playing certain games that I used to enjoy before.
“They’ve just become too hard, and winning on a slot machine one out of 10 times is just not exciting,” he said. “I’m looking for more feature-heavy games that keep me interested and keep me playing a little bit longer. And I believe that’s what our fans are looking for, too.”
