The Quest for Progressive Jackpot Adventure
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Progressive jackpots have exploded recently in digital games. But when Scientific Games and the Pennsylvania Lottery knew they wanted to add a progressive jackpot game to the iLottery portfolio, they set out to offer players an adventure with a twist.
The company’s digital game designers collaborated with the Pennsylvania Lottery Products team to create a new series of progressive jackpot games that would appeal to players based on Scientific Games data analytics of game playstyles and themes that had already proven successful in the state.
“It really comes down to fun. It started with the idea of offering an ongoing Cash Quest progressive jackpot with a growing selection of linked adventures to choose from and the initial concepts from Scientific Games sparked great collaborative creativity,” says Kara Sparks, director of products for the Pennsylvania Lottery.
But it was important to ensure the right balance of games in the portfolio.
A 33-person SG Studios team of front-end game developers, back-end game developers, artists, animators, and digital engineers led by a creative director worked with the Pennsylvania Lottery team (made up of both Scientific Games and Pennsylvania Lottery product and marketing professionals) for six months to get the first game in the series right.
“The games are developed with deliberate continuity, but each new launch charms with its own special personality. Marketing assets make the most of the fresh thematic details to beckon our players to join the fun – again!” explains Sparks.
In October 2022, the Treasure Chest Quest linked jackpot game debuted. Four more games followed, including Ca$tle Quest, Deep $ea Quest and Big Top Quest, with the final game, Big Top Quest, launching in July 2023.
The Quest series has generated more than $53 million in online wagers (through December 5, 2023). Nearly 58,000 unique players have played more than 30.3 million rounds of games, with more than $1,319,519 paid out in progressive jackpot wins.
Paul Le Fondre, Scientific Games head of art and animation for SG Studios, shares the science inside the game.
“The magic happened with the right recipe of math, game mechanics and playstyle," he says. "While we are continually developing new games, there are games that players keep coming back to because they like the game and are loyal to that game.
"So, we set out to capture that loyalty with a series of games. We flipped our creative process.”
In the Quest series, there is a unique, linked progressive jackpot – meaning wagers made in one game of the series will contribute to a jackpot that continues to grow and is visible in all the games of the series.
“The key to Treasure Chest Quest’s success wasn’t one of those team members, it was all of them coming together,” Le Fondre explains. “Our studio atmosphere is open and highly creative. There is a constant feed of ideas happening all around us every day.”
The creativity combined with analytics and planning paid off. With a rock-solid foundation, the fifth game in the new Quest series, Cave Quest, is planned for a Summer 2024 launch.
“The Cash Quest approach takes game refresh and progressive jackpot families to a new level. Each new adventure delivers what our players want most: a fresh, new, chance to win. I am really pleased to see each introduction shows a consistently strong bump to sales,” shares Sparks. “Player enthusiasm is not waning. I look forward to seeing what the Cave Quest brings.”
Le Fondre credits the company’s relationship with the Pennsylvania iLottery team, which has developed over five plus years planning, launching and managing the iLottery program – the first in the industry to reach $1 billion in sales in less than two years.
With digital content studios in the US and Europe (following the August 2021 acquisition of Sideplay, now SG Studios), Scientific Games provides iLottery and digital lottery to 30 lotteries worldwide.
“Our stringent compliance and security practices combined with a deep understanding of consumers has firmly established us as a trusted lottery partner and innovator in all things digital, including iLottery,” says Le Fondre.
The company’s holistic approach to digital lottery portfolio management includes games, game extensions for retail games, second-chance promotions, player loyalty programs, mobile apps, and customer relationship management programs.
In 2022, the Pennsylvania Lottery topped $5.1 billion in total sales and is ranked among the top 15 lotteries in the world for performance (La Fleur’s World Almanac, per capita total sales).
Scientific Games also provides the Pennsylvania Lottery with instant scratch games, instant game logistics management services, licensed properties, lottery gaming system, CRM, mobile app, monitor games, retailer management system, retail point-of-sale, and virtual sports.
SEE THE QUEST GAME SERIES:
The Pennsylvania iLottery program has received the distinguished Internet Compliance Assessment Program certification.
Scientific Games is among the first companies globally certified by the World Lottery Association as a responsible gaming provider.
