Why has crash gambling increased in popularity so dramatically recently? What are the most popular crash games? What does the future hold for the crash gambling industry? As crash gambling becomes a familiar aspect of the online casino world, an expert’s view can provide insights into players’ questions.
Today, we speak with Magnus Boberg, co-founder and Managing Director of JustGamblers and its parent company, JustMedia Ltd, to explore the current crash games market and consider its potential for the future.
Magnus, could you start by explaining where your professional interest in crash gambling comes from?
Playing the crash game Aviator was the first time I felt entertained by gambling. Old-school slot games have not really spoken to me in the past. Something about being in charge of when to exit the bet puts you, as a player, on edge. Every second, you must decide whether to stay or exit the bet, compared to slots, where you just hope for the best.
My professional interest in these types of games came from the realization that there must be more people like me who have not previously been entertained by slot games, a whole new sector of gamblers to be reached.
Where has this current surge in crash gambling interest come from? What’s the background to it?
The surge is coming from a whole new player type starting to gamble. Many of these players don’t even see it as gambling; they see it as pure entertainment with a chance to win or lose money. I am part of many Facebook groups created for these games where players talk about crash games as separate from casino gambling with traditional slots.
Is it easy to find crash games online? Are they widely available?
These days, they are, yes. Almost every casino has a dedicated category for crash games. This no longer only applies to the crypto casino sites that were among the first to adopt this game type. Now, you will find crash game options everywhere.
Some sites only have one or two crash games, and that can be enough if it is a popular game. However, if you want to make sure to find a good crash game library at the site that you choose, I recommend that you check out our list of tested crash gambling sites based on our findings from hours of research and playing.
Many sites have created their own crash games, some of which are not up to standard. In my opinion, the best crash games are still Aviator and JetX. These games are pure quality with excellent UX.
Will interest in these games continue, and are there any other potential hurdles to the industry’s future, such as regulation?
Yes, they are here to stay, most certainly. Regulation could potentially impact the experience of the games if they are limited or restricted in a way that eliminates the “thrill” of the game.
It’s not clear whether this type of restriction will ever happen. However, crash games are not part of current proposals by regulatory organizations like the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), such as removing “turbo” play for games. The UKGC stated that:
“This proposal was not intended to remove game types, such as ‘crash games’. We have added implementation guidance that makes clear where a game requires the customer to make a decision to end the game (and not doing so guarantees a loss of stake), it will not be caught as a feature designed to speed up play.” – Gambling Commission, Procedures and Guidance.
They state that crash games are not designed to speed up game play, so the restrictions we have seen with spin time for slot games will most likely not apply to crash games in the future.
How is regulation likely to develop? Are there any examples of crash game regulation happening right now?
No current evidence suggests that major regulators like the UKGC intend to restrict crash games. As the UKGC is one of the most restrictive gambling legislators in the world, I feel confident that other countries will not create specific limitations on these types of games.
What are the benefits of a growing crash game industry, and are there any risks?
The biggest advantage of crash gambling is that it speaks to a whole new type of player, unlocking a new range of gamblers who are not entertained by classic slot games. These are new players for gambling sites to attract to their products and services.
The risk is that these types of players are less aware of responsible gambling measures. They may not even know that they exist. So, education is important here. I would suggest all sites have pop ups with a responsible gambling message and links to account limit settings for players. These pop ups could perhaps be triggered by the system when player betting patterns are a cause for concern and suggest the player may be at risk from their crash gambling.
Overall, how do you see the crash gambling industry developing?
Crash games have simple mechanics, making them easy to play. For people like me, they are also more entertaining than slot games. So, I see the industry continuing to grow.
These games are fairly easy to design. So, I can see that more gambling sites will create their own crash games as a means of keeping more of the gross gambling revenue (GGR) for themselves instead of having to pay a software game provider. If this happens, it will become increasingly important for crash game fans to choose sites that give them access to the highest-quality games.