10casinos.com interview

10Casinos.com had the pleasure of interviewing Lucie Svandova Kadlecova, Head of Marketing at Mancala Gaming, in a bid to discover more about this awesome casino software provider. Mancala Gaming caught our attention through excellent slot games that come in various themes and outstanding visuals!

Q: Greetings, Lucie! We appreciate that you took the time to answer our questions. Let’s get started by telling us more about yourself and of course, Mancala Gaming.

 Hi everyone, thank you for having me here! Let me introduce myself first. My name is Lucie Svandova Kadlecova and I am Head of Marketing at Mancala Gaming. I have been in the iGaming industry for a couple of years now and always been on a side of game providers which I really enjoy.

I have been with Mancala Gaming from the very beginning. The company was founded in 2019 and after months of preparations, it finally launched in May 2020. Mancala was launched with a vision of fresh and innovative slot games that will blur the line between slots and video games and incorporate the element of skill. The games are developed entirely in our own game studio and any employee of Mancala Gaming can contribute with ideas for a new slot. 

Q: Mancala Gaming was founded in 2019, so not very long ago. Nonetheless, can you tell us what are the biggest challenges Mancala Gaming has faced so far?

We have faced various challenges over time. In the beginning, we started growing too fast for example. All our plans and estimations were exceeded faster than we planned, so we had to hurry up with hiring. 

Another challenge worth mentioning is that we were not able to attend any offline exhibitions and that makes communication of the brand vision, and developing the business more difficult.

Q: Mancala Gaming is a new name on the market that still needs to unveil itself to the gaming community. However, can you tell us which online gaming platforms offer your games at the moment?

Our clients are both among big platforms and small single casinos. To name some of the biggest platforms that are offering our games, I would like to highlight Softswiss and Betconstruct as an example.

Q: Although fairly new, Mancala Gaming has released an impressive amount of slot games so far. What makes your slot games stand out from the crowd? 

We have created a volume of games that can be described as “classic slots”. It is the type of games that traditional players tend to reach out and enjoy. Our new and upcoming games are incorporating new mechanics, visuals, and new gameplay elements that will change the way players interact with slot machines. 

The days of clicking spin and waiting for the result over and over again will inevitably be replaced by games that prioritize engagement and elements of skill.

Q: What games from your portfolio do you think are the most successful?

Although the traditional slots from our portfolio contain some really popular titles, it is usually the new game titles that set new records. Every new game release exceeds the success of the previous one and step by step we are building a loyal player base. 

The game which is worth mentioning in my opinion is our recent release called Cherry Bombs. This slot offers exciting gameplay where the player smoothly moves between 3 levels, each level is played on a different size of the grid starting at 5x3 up to 7x5.

Each level has unique features and either line or cluster wins for an extra boost of excitement while playing. If players are lucky enough, they proceed to Level 3 with a high chance for full-screen wins.

Q:You have just released a new game, Coco Tiki. Can you share with us a little bit about the developing process of the game? What inspired the creation of Coco Tiki slot?

It is true, Coco Tiki is our latest addition to our game portfolio! We are like any other game provider in terms of how the game is made. What differentiates us from others, though, is the game mechanics and mathematical model behind and then, of course, the visual presentation of this new model. 

With Coco Tiki, we are taking players on a beach on a tropical island. They can be expecting the unique way of showing spin - a wave washing the shore, and tic tac toe mechanics incorporated into the slot.

Q:What are Mancala Gaming’s plans for the future? What should we expect from your upcoming game releases?

Our main plans are on expanding the business, getting certified for regulated markets, and creating more and more engaging games to get closer to the younger generation of players. 

I cannot tell you any details, but I can hint at the theme of one of the games coming this year. You can expect a magic-themed slot where the player can cast different spells depending on his position in the game. 

Q: Your Cyberpunk-themed slot, Zero Day, explores a very popular subject at the moment. Where does Mancala Gaming get the main ideas from for its game titles? 

Cyberpunk theme was an easy choice for our team which is full of gamers. They were all anxiously waiting for the Cyberpunk 2077 game, so while waiting we decided to create our take on the theme and players are loving it.

What is unique in our company is that everyone can contribute with ideas for new games and you will see it with our upcoming releases. Everyone’s idea is welcomed and valued in Mancala gaming. 

Q: In regards to promoting new games, what channels does Mancala Gaming use for this? What role does social media play in your marketing strategy?

Promoting a new game is a fairly complex thing to do if you want to tackle the task from all possible angles. You need to promote the games to the players in the first place, but then, you need to promote it to your business partners too, so that they can properly offer the game to players. And give them the tools for it. 

We are calling this approach the B2B2C. That's what we decided to do from the very beginning in Mancala Gaming. We use the experiences from B2C to create bonusing tools and specific types of slot games, both done to increase the player’s retention. We apply this on B2B level and let the B2C operations benefit from it. Besides that, we want to improve the Lifetime Value (LTV) of players, to enhance retention and increase the virality of our brand, in order to service our partners with bigger, better benefits. 

Social media is part of our marketing strategy because you simply need to be present on “socials”, especially if you want to make yourself visible to the younger audience. 

But to market a gambling product it’s not a walk in the park by any means. You face restrictions and bans due to the nature of the product and the overall hesitation of your followers to react because gambling is still stigmatized in our modern society.

Q:Lastly, are there any markets you’re targeting right now? Are you looking to enter new markets in the near future?

We have currently a big presence in Latin America and CIS countries and we are planning our further expansion once we obtain MGA and UKGC license we are working on right now. 

 Note: The original interview can be found here:https://www.10casinos.com/blog/top-casino-providers-interview-series-a-conversation-with-lucie-svandova-kadlecova-head-of-marketing-at-mancala-gaming