NextGen

NextGen is usually the cool way to say “next generation”. You know, because it’s all about abbreviations these days. Or abbrvs, as the kids might call them. That’s why NextGen has gone from being an independent content delivery provider to one of the most recognisable game developers in the online gaming industry.

Way back in 1999, NextGen was born in Sydney, Australia. It wasn’t afraid of the Millennium Bug and it knew that there would be no online failure and apocalypse. So it seemed as good a time as any to go into business and focus on creating online casino software, with a heavy focus on slots. And that’s exactly what it did.

The slots NextGen has gifted us all sport traits that are inherently “NextGen”. First of all is the personal nature of each one, giving us a more intimate playing experience. We get characters who we are invested in and actually enjoy seeing spin around on the reels. Take Doctor Love or Foxin’ Wins for example. Lothario doctors who would fit better in a Carry On film and foxes living in rich manors that would have huntsmen red with anger – the characters and their depictions are quirky and unique. That’s the Aussie sense of humour coming out, as it’s difficult to play a NextGen slot without raising a smile. And the slots have proven popular too. We’ve seen sequels for both these two characters, in Doctor Love and Foxin Wins, showing how players are lapping up NextGen slots releases.

To help NextGen really make a name for itself (and of course to increase its market share, portfolio and customer reach), NYX acquired NextGen in 2011. Instead of remaining an independent developer based in the outback (well, downtown Sydney), the studios moved to London and business boomed. In fact, it boomed so hard that NYX was on the receiving end of multiple trophies in the concurrent years, such as the 2012 EGR Social Network Games Supplier of the Year, 2013 RNG Casino Supplier of the Year Award and the 2014 EGR Special Achievement Award. There’s no way that the brains behind NextGen didn’t help in that.

While NYX is scooping up independent developers and bringing them into the fold, it’s also allowing individual brands to keep on doing what they do best. In NextGen’s case, that’s releasing specially crafted, hyper-playable slots. We’ve seen Norman Bates get all stabby stabby on the Psycho slot and we’ve been seduced by An Evening with Holly Madison. NextGen slots offer experiences that cover entire ranges of emotions.

Is NextGen an award-winning developer? Yes. Is it part of a bigger group now? Yes. Will it still give us the awesome slots we’ve come to expect? Certainly. It is next generation after all.