Nick Robinson, director of Big Time Gaming, discussed with Bigwinboard the upcoming mega release, Star Clusters Megaclusters, which will offer unique mechanics. It is expected to become as popular as Megaways. The novelty will appear on June 17 exclusively at Betfair, and from June 24 it will appear in bulk at other Big Time Gaming casinos. Below is a translation of the interview.
Hi, Nick! Congratulations on your score of 9.8! As you know, we are usually quite strict when it comes to giving such high ratings, but from the first second we hit the start button, we felt that Star Clusters would most likely be the beginning of a new era of grid slots , just like Megaways transformed the traditional game of lines. How did you react to our review? Were we able to understand your vision?
When we first saw the Megaclusters engine in action, our first reaction was why no one had thought of this before! It's like Megaways in grid slot format. Have you ever worried that someone will get ahead of you by taking your idea?
I think there is something that everyone subconsciously connects to, this is the ether of all consciousness. It contains almost everything that has happened or will happen in many universes, and all of this is available to anyone. You just need to tune into it.
For example, a 12-eyed alien named Bob is playing Megaclusters in a casino a trillion light years away. Bob's ancestors did not always have 12 eyes, they began to appear in them in the process of evolution, after Megaclusters appeared. This allowed them, as a species, to assimilate the many visual actions that take place on the screen. Do you think I'm kidding? Well, maybe not, but aether is real when you think of an idea; the chance that someone else will bring it to life is alarming. Last year I went to trade shows, feeling that just by thinking about the game I could pass this idea on to other providers.
Tell us a little about the creation process, please. We know you're directly involved in the production and we've seen you use that iconic Moog synth to record some of the music.
17 years ago I came up with the first grid game, long before Bejeweled was made into a gaming product. The game was a great success and held out as long as Flash itself held out. I sold the company that developed it a long time ago, but that was the basis for the grid based cluster games you see today, they are all more or less variants of Chain Reactors with different additions. We at BTG are all focused on Megaways and we are excited about the process of changing the genre, which will become classics like Extra Chilli, Millionaire and Royal Mint as a result. Sorry, got off topic, back to the question...
A few recent grid games have become popular and it got me thinking back to the genre, I didn't play the concept for many years but kept coming back to it from different angles until I got excited about the idea of reactive fission early last year. Hell, isn't that how we humans are, after all, it's an organic process.
At first, the symbols were divided by two, but it was a little boring and a little clumsy, so two divisions turned into four! I put together some graphic layouts to see how the tick marks would look on a phone and it worked! This was the beginning of a journey - towards mathematics, graphic design and sound.
The math is very complex, we don't just put a bunch of winnings in the basket and pull them out on Friday night like a lottery! We process every spin dynamically and in-play, just like we do with Megaways. Therefore, every single spin produces a completely unique grid of symbols that no one else will ever see - unless you're a streamer, of course. The uniqueness of each win is the reason I can't stop spinning this game, it's like an endlessly changing kaleidoscope. So, the math under the hood does something very special.
On the surface, the graph shows that we are flying through an endless rainbow of colors - colors that change with each win. All gem reactions cause a wave of unique colors across the screen. The Megaclusters game design is also a hybrid, it feels like both a slot and a cascade game, the larger symbols burst into mini slot machines that spin in place. When they stop, they become cascading characters.
We hope that this mechanic will eventually unite fans of grid games and slots, as there is something here for everyone. Other than that, the game starts out simple, which was a major decision from the start, to keep it simple and develop complexity over time.
The sound is disco and techno, as simple as possible. But Moog One is very complex, and it's intentional, as the game goes from simple to complex, the beats between the bam, bam bass of the drum create a rich complex sound matter. It is also in tune with the light that is fixed in the background and the interface, and everything turns into a show of light and sound with specially built-in modulators that pick up the rhythm and produce graphics and illuminations in perfect synchronization with the rhythm. Everything is quite incendiary, so I want to continue the game!
What do you want players to feel and experience when they launch Star Clusters?
I want the players to be fun and interesting. Slots should be like a rollercoaster ride to riches! But some players will lose, and if players lose their hard-earned money, then they are bound to have some fun on their bankroll. Star Clusters is not a heavy game, the main round is very light and fluffy and the feature activation frequency is about 1 per 100 spins, so if you land 100 auto spins there is a huge chance that you will get a bonus.
In terms of gameplay, when I play this slot, I enjoy it and I hope that's how the fans feel when they play it. I'll also say that you can't judge a game by watching gameplay videos. It's like buying a car, you don't know how it really feels from the outside until you get behind the wheel and drive. I can say the same about Star Clusters, you have to try it yourself to really get a feel for what it can do.
In the past you have hosted exclusive events where our streamer friends like Letsgiveitaspinand Chipmonkz did the first spin. Are you planning something similar for this release?
Yes, we're launching a live slot with streamer Chipmonkz at Paddy Power Betfair next week, simply because Chipmonkz screwed up Lil' Devil's launch so badly (out of his control) and deserves a second chance)
We know that you've been asked this question many times and it's probably hard to answer right now, while the slot hasn't shown itself yet, but you think that Megaclusters will be exported just like and Megaways?
Yes, of course, we have several signing licensees who are eager to start mass production of Megacluster games.
We may be taking a risk here, but wouldn't it be cool to see Reactoonz Megaclustersor Jammin' Jars Megaclusters versions? It's not hard to imagine that a dynamic engine like Megaclusters can give new life to these great slots and improve the experience.
I think this is one of the games that I noticed that made me think again about playing a grid based game. I think we can only wait. But for now, grid games seem to be more popular in some jurisdictions than others. I hope that Star Clusters will break these boundaries, as it is very different from the standard grid game.
Recently, you took part in a web conference where we saw the presentation of Star Clusters. You also mentioned that you are working on the next Megaclusters slot. Can you tell me something about him?
Yes, I'm super excited about this project. It will be sparkling, futuristic and as tough as a truck! Can't say much more than that, but it will shine and be quite different!
A few days ago we published an article about a player who won 105,000x+ on Lil' Devil in what could possibly be the biggest non-jackpot win in history. To be honest, we did not know that the slot had such a crazy high potential. You obviously know your slots better than we do, but were you surprised by this?
No, not at all surprised. We have prescribed the maximum payout for one spin, not for the whole bonus round. Other games paid out more, players just didn't contact us asking for video replays. Lil' Devil is designed to last. This is the biggest non-cumulative payout game at the moment and we will no doubt see more magical wins in the future.
Lastly, is there anything you would like to say to all your fans who play your games?
I hope we're OK. It took us 9 years to come to this! We thank you all for your support and for choosing our games! Over the next 9 years! If you have any questions, leave them below and I will send the answers to Bigwinboard.
Source: https://www.bigwinboard.com/the-beginning-of-a-new-grid-slot-era-nik-robinson-on-his-latest-creation/
