Both NetEnt and Microgaming walked away with awards at the global Gaming Awards 2015. NetEnt managed to win one award, but Microgaming managed to scoop two awards. This year’s event took place on Monday 28th September in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Venetian Palazzo Congress Center.
NetEnt beat Microgaming and eight other shortlisted contenders to win the Digital Industry Supplier of the Year award and the Runner Up in this category was Playtech. Microgaming managed to turn the tables in the Digital Gaming Innovation of the Year category after beating NetEnt and nine other shortlisted contenders. Microgaming won this award for its forward thinking work in Virtual Reality and Wearable Technology.
Microgaming’s VR Roulette utilises the Oculus Rift DK 2 headset with Leap Motion 3D Controller to track a player’s hand movements and then project this information to a 3D world. Microgaming specifically developed VR Roulette to study the immersive potential of 3D technology in the gaming industry.
Microgaming also won the Digital Product of the Year award for the second in a row. The Runner Up in this category was Playtech. Microgaming netted this award based on the ground-breaking Jurassic Park slot machine that arrived in casinos in August 2014. This was the first 3D rendered online slot machine to use Parallax Scrolling effects. The following comments came from an official Microgaming press release:
“We are so proud to win not one but two awards at this highly prestigious and credible award ceremony! Jurassic Park™ is an incredible game and the fact that the experience is just as impressive on mobile as it is online really does blow people away,” said the Microgaming CEO, Roger Raatgever.
He continued, “But to win an award for innovation is particularly close to my heart as we have always worked so hard to stay several steps ahead of the industry, predicting trends and ensuring that our content works on emerging technology. For those that have seen our slots work on smart watches and experienced our VR Roulette product, it is an incredible insight into the future of online gaming. A big thanks and well done to my team for this huge achievement!”
Some of the other winners and Runner Ups at the 2015 Global Gaming Awards included MGM Resorts International (Land Based Operator of the Year), Bet365 (Digital Operator of the Year), S3000, IGT (Casino Product of the Year), Income Access (Digital Acquisition Program of the Year), MLife, MGM Resorts International (Customer Loyalty Program of the Year), Scientific Games (Land-Based Industry Supplier of the Year), Powerbucks, IGT (Land-Based Gaming Innovation of the Year), MGM Resorts International (Responsible Business of the Year) and Ricardo Regner, Scientific Games (Latin America Executive of the Year).
