What Will Be The New Gambling Trends In 2023
With the arrival of each New Year, there are certain prospects on the horizon. New years bring new trends, and various people give their take on what they expect for gambling. This is why it is prominent to note what to look forward to in 2023. How far has technology come and will it provide anything novel for the year ahead? Here, we want to know about the gambling trends for 2023.
Without a doubt, there is the expectation that the industry will continue growing. Following the effects of COVID-19, the sector experienced a slow-down. Yet in the years following that, it has been building itself back up. Some suggested that the gaming industry was actually a good thing for lockdown. It provided entertainment and ways to occupy time while shops, cafes and so on weren’t operating. Yet while the online scene boomed, the land-based sector struggled.
For 2023, predictions suggest that there will be a market growth of 7%. This will see a global gambling industry revenue growth of around 34%. What is it that will be driving this growth, though? There must be some new innovations or novel introductions to the gambling scene. Let’s have a look at what trends 2023 will likely feature.
Slowdown in the Growth of Cryptocurrency Casinos
It’s good to start with a surprising trend. Few people would predict the slowdown of cryptocurrency casino sites. After all, these digital currencies have provided players with an anonymous payment option. That fact alone explains why many betting sites have chosen to support them.
Of course, cryptocurrencies are quite unstable. The crypto market itself has crashed on several occasions. Despite this, owners of digital currencies believe it will make a comeback to former glory. The last of those crashes came about towards the end of 2022. Bitcoin depreciated in a significant way, as did various altcoins.
This came about thanks to the collapse of FTX, for a start. That served as one of the world’s most premier crypto exchanges. Hackers stole £338 million from the exchange since it filed for bankruptcy. One of the FTX co-founders is also accused of stealing billions from the exchange. This kind of situation reduces peoples’ faith in cryptocurrencies. As a result, it has an impact on the casino gambling world. Sites that support digital currencies will likely slow their activity.
To add to this, there are political and economic crises hitting the world. Experts believe people will spend less money in 2023 for online gambling purposes. The aftermath of COVID-19 is still present. Meanwhile, the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, which has its own impact. These make for serious issues when it comes to participating in gambling.
Some believe Asia is one of the continents that has the most potential for online casino growth. This is because many countries within restrict gambling activity. Thus, a rapid uptake in players joining crypto casinos is likely. These sites often aren’t licensed within any Asian countries, serving as offshore options.
Live Dealer Will Continue Gaining in Popularity
Live dealer games have been on the rise for several years now. People love to get that land-based experience from home or from a mobile device. Players around the world continue to express their love for live casinos over RNG games. The initial idea of those games was to bring a level of human interaction to gamblers. The success of this has led to the games becoming a top focus of online casinos.
The success rate of these games isn’t anything new. As noted, their popularity has been growing for several years now. Yet it remains quite remarkable to see the shift in attention. Many casinos now promote their live games much more than their RNG games. This is because they see how much demand there is for them from players. Less demand is present for RNG slots and so on. Given the choice between RNG and live games, a casino is likely to select the latter, so too are many of today’s avid players.
Software developers are also a lot less keen on creating new table games. This is why it is likely that 2023 will see unique, gameshow-like live dealer content releases. Slots will likely remain a focus for those providers who don’t offer live dealer games. Yet when it comes to live casino games, look out for some impressive launches this year. That will help the trend of live dealer popularity on the up and up.
A Change in the Payments Ecosystem
This trend has a link to the point made about cryptocurrencies earlier. There has been a drastic change in the way people pay money over the last 10 years or so. Cash is no longer as common as it once was in everyday life. Many consumers have started to pay with their mobile phones or smart watches. Various payment methods have also found their way into online casino sites.
A selection of e-wallets, such as Skrill and Neteller, are often used by players today. Cryptocurrencies have also seen a rise in popularity with gamblers. They are now quite the widespread payment method for people to use. Another banking option that has also garnered a high level of use is the Paysafecard. Various casinos and sportsbooks accept transactions through this method. Few believed that a prepaid voucher would be able to rise to such heights. Yet it is the level of discretion that comes with its use that has helped to bolster it. Paysafecard deposits are not listed on bank statements or the like. It’s a very welcome middleman for people to make use of for this reason.
Interest in cryptocurrencies in general is likely to decline in 2023, though. We highlighted the possibility of online casinos offering such slowing down. Yet people in general may also turn away from the digital currencies. Concerns over them from gamblers may be a little premature, though. Anyone who has adopted a cryptocurrency isn’t likely to return to cash payments. Furthermore, the anonymity factor of cryptos is a top-level perk. For this reason, cryptocurrencies aren’t likely to decline on too great a scale. Some believe that Bitcoin may give way to various altcoins, though.
Further Decline of Physical Casinos
For several years, land-based casinos have been under pressure. The growth of their online counterparts has seen less footfall across their floors. There is a record of decreasing rates of people visiting physical venues over the past year. Players need to make an effort to be able to visit a land-based casino. Online casinos are much more convenient. It is this that has led to their increase in popularity. As a result, the land-based establishments have suffered.
Other than the general popularity of online casino sites, COVID-19 has had a drastic impact. Land-based venues had to suffer through months of lockdowns through 2020 onwards. As a way of combatting declining footfall, casinos have had to turn to other areas. This has seen them put more attention into providing live shows and other entertainment.
Online casinos have so much more to offer as well. Live dealer games, bonus offers, 24/7 availability, and so on. Because of this, players worldwide have turned to this sector instead of travelling. There is a lot more convenience when it comes to the online gambling sector. It’s also more private and comes with financial benefits. Land-based gambling establishments cannot compete with this. There is a high cost of maintaining their physical slots machines and table games. At the same time, adding new games to their floors brings even more outlay. Thus, the land-based casino sector remains in a troubled state on the whole.
Next Generation Of Slot Games
Slot games remain one of the online gambling world’s most popular options to play. Casinos try to continue attracting all sorts of players to their sites. This is why games with inviting themes, mechanisms and so on get released each year. Some providers have already started incorporating novel slot machines. These include high-definition graphics, 3D content and even virtual reality functions. Even skill-based elements have made their way into slot games.
The next generation of slot machines are likely to provide a different, yet familiar experience. Developers have been working on slots that look and feel like land-based machines. Popular television series, movies, video games and so on are already in use as themes. The land-based world utilised such before the online gaming sphere did.
The thought is that newer slots will have a lot more to offer, too. Players will be able to enjoy games with thousands of paylines. The Megaways function will likely continue as a popular game inclusion as well. It’s one of the most significant revolutions of the slot gaming industry. The launch of ranging RTPs, bonus buys and more have also made their own mark. Even more exciting elements for slot gamers should be coming to the fore in 2023.
New types of games in general are also expected for 2023. It’s no longer enough for casino sites to only offer slots. So that they can stay competitive, providers tend to offer new types of games. Some have suggested that NFT integration is likely as the year continues on. Opportunities for players to be creative are on their way, too. Aviatrix is one such crash game that came about, featuring a customisable NFT token. That launched in October 2022, and more of these could come along this year.
Experts in the industry predict that stream betting is likely to grow at a considerable rate, too. There is a high potential for this to increase player confidence in eSports on the whole. Such steps have occurred via bookmakers to enhance the customer experience. The format of stream games has also adapted and grown in popularity.
The Prominence of Virtual Reality (VR)
In the initial stages of VR, there was a lot of focus placed on it. The world saw it as quite the amazing technology introduction. It allows people to immerse themselves in a digital world, making games much more realistic. In turn, this brings a more thrilling atmosphere to them. Over the past few years, casinos have also started to include this technology into their sites. The chances are that players will soon be able to experience full VR games.
Plans are in place for online casinos to provide a land-based experience through VR. If you can gamble by using VR glasses and on live dealer games, it’s as close to being in a venue as possible. Top-quality providers, such as Netent, are already experimenting with VR technology. Demo versions for different VR games from the brand have been exhibited, too.
It is key to mention that VR has been on the horizon for several years now. At the start of each year, it is often highlighted as an upcoming trend. Thus, while it could very well become a lot more prominent in 2023, it isn’t guaranteed. You can be sure that the technology is something always worked on by developers. In 2023, it is in a much better position than it was in 2022 and 2021. With this trend, it’s a matter of wait and see.
