The Pipeline of Video Gamers to iGamers: What Does the Intersectionality Look Like 

There is a fundamental difference between games of chance and video games that depend on a specific skill set. However, the gap is not as huge as some people believe and it can be bridged by those who have an interest for both play styles. The same competitive mindset drives winning in both cases, but the approach to probabilities and strategy diverges quite dramatically. 

It’s interesting to look into the subset of players who thrive in both systems and try to figure out what it takes to conquer the odds and accomplish all missions. 

 

Do Games Love or Hate iGaming? 

The traditional view is that people who are into video games don’t have a high opinion about gambling or anything related to it. In fact, introduction of luck-driven features in major games is usually met with an outcry from the most hardcore parts of the player base. Yet, randomness remains a key part of any game and the best performers are good at breaking down winning chances in real time, which is not all that different from calculating odds for Tikal Casino slots. Then you have the crowd that just loves playing something, anything whenever they have the time. Such players may not identify with any gaming method too deeply, and will casually cross-over to try an interesting title without thinking. 

 

Can You Be Really Good at Both? 

It is clear that some of the video gaming skills translate well into online casino gambling, and those who master the former have a built-in advantage with the later. However, there is the small matter of having enough time to practice the craft and that’s where the pros separate themselves from amateurs and wannabes. In order to be even moderately successful on the big stage it’s simply necessary to invest a lot of hours into specific games you want to compete in. That’s why the overlap between the eSports circuit and high-level online poker play is smaller than you might expect. Both gaming styles require discipline and dedication, so doing both at once is a herculean challenge. 

 

Risk Tolerance as the Driver of Success 

Players who make the switch to iGaming with success tend to have a common trait. They are comfortable dealing with probabilities that don’t always go in their favor and waiting for a turn of good luck to reap the benefits. This principle works well in every game, but few players have the mental fortitude to fully embrace this opportunistic mindset. Those with a higher tolerance for risk tend to do just as well against difficult bosses as in a high-variance slot game, but they also tend to get disappointed more often. It’s all a game of numbers, and players who don’t mind facing the naked mathematics that prop up the illusion usually have a good time with iGaming titles.  

 

Are Futures of the Two Niches Connected? 

Right now, game operators from each niche are aiming at similar audiences. While this technically makes them competitors, there are also areas where they can learn from each other or even collaborate directly. The trend of ‘gamification’ in iGaming has been going on for several years, and it basically involves applying some of the staples of video gaming (i.e. leaderboards, daily quests…) within a casino site context. The opposite is also true, with the loot box mechanism in video gaming in particular often described as ‘casino gaming in disguise’. It’s obvious that the connections are real and it’s very interesting to follow exactly how blurred the line separating the two families of games will become in the near future.