Are 'Quickspin' and MG the same thing?

[ChopleyIOM]

Playing at Unibet again this evening, WMS slots are unplayable again (they usually pick up as the evening goes on), so I'm trying a few spins on some of their other slots.

One that I quite like is 'Supernova', which as you can see, proudly presents itself as being 'A QUICKSPIN Production'.



Thing is, once you're in the game it looks a bit like an MG slot, insofar as it has that familiar options and latency bar, and also the help screen. (Note the OPTIONS, STATS and EXPERT text, although none of it is actually clickable.)

Now I had noticed this before but I thought it was some sort of weird casino artefact, where the game was overlaid on an MG client skin and the help file was piggy-backed off in the same fashion, something like that. (I didn't think it was an MG slot, basically)





I quite like the game, but I was unable to find any RTP figures for it in the help files, so I opened up a live chat session to ask about the RTP.

Live chat (who answered quickly and competently) were unable to locate the figure either, and eventually sent me this message in chat:

Ok I cannot see this so as it is a microgaming game I will need to contact them

The chat person said they'd get back to me via email with an RTP figure, which is fine - but what's going on there, are 'Quickspin' an offshoot of MG?

 

[Sovietsky]

Ok I cannot see this so as it is a microgaming game I will need to contact them

That must be a mistake.

I know that quickspin is a swedish company.

 

[dunover]

NO mistake. Chopley is correct in his observations.
Quickspin AB are a games developer, Swedish. Hitherto they have been trialling them on Facebook under the guise of 'Mirrorball' games. They have now tested them for popularity and Microgaming have taken licenses for the ideas, so yes, they are NOT MG designed games, but are placed via the Microgaming game portals, hence your observations. I'm not exactly sure who is boss here, but I'd suggest MG being the giant. MG have done a trial deal as a partnership for a limited amount of games so MG have obviously spotted some potential.

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[vinylweatherman]

I notice in the screenshot that Microgaming have laid claim to both the authorship and copyright of this slot. This seems odd given that they have licensed it from Quickspin. It's obvious who's boss in this relationship.

Microgaming have their own Quickfire platform, which may lead to confusion over Quickspin just being a part of Microgaming. This game may also be a Flash/Quickfire only offering, as I haven't seen it in the Viper client. Microgaming have a number of games that are only available in Flash/Quickfire.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

NO mistake. Chopley is correct in his observations.
Quickspin AB are a games developer, Swedish. Hitherto they have been trialling them on Facebook under the guise of 'Mirrorball' games. They have now tested them for popularity and Microgaming have taken licenses for the ideas, so yes, they are NOT MG designed games, but are placed via the Microgaming game portals, hence your observations. I'm not exactly sure who is boss here, but I'd suggest MG being the giant. MG have done a trial deal as a partnership for a limited amount of games so MG have obviously spotted some potential.

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Cheers dunover that's very informative.

The Quickspin slots are pretty good fun on the whole, you'd probably hate Supernova though, it feels a lot like Starburst

 

[dunover]

Cheers dunover that's very informative.

The Quickspin slots are pretty good fun on the whole, you'd probably hate Supernova though, it feels a lot like Starburst

No problem. I actually see Supernova as an improvement on Starburst, has a little more going for it than just a childish colour explosion. I assume the variance is higher simply by the presence of the potential 10x10 multipliers.

 

[dunover]

I notice in the screenshot that Microgaming have laid claim to both the authorship and copyright of this slot. This seems odd given that they have licensed it from Quickspin. It's obvious who's boss in this relationship.

Microgaming have their own Quickfire platform, which may lead to confusion over Quickspin just being a part of Microgaming. This game may also be a Flash/Quickfire only offering, as I haven't seen it in the Viper client. Microgaming have a number of games that are only available in Flash/Quickfire.

No, these games aren't being added to the download portal. I assume the licensing observation you made is due to Quickspin being 'bitch' in this instance. They have to take the opportunity to break through in established casinos whatever he cost.

Another point (possibly) is the recent explosion of Scandinavian casinos with more dynamic and varied software; we are all familiar with Netent etc. and as well as providing flash MG games they have WMS and Chuzzle etc. for example Betsson. Bearing in mind the Scandinavian countries are relatively wealthy as regards disposable income like the UK and Holland, this could be a tactic by MG to recover or increase their share of that market. They merge with a Swedish company, and can provide new games via the partnership. We'll see.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

No problem. I actually see Supernova as an improvement on Starburst, has a little more going for it than just a childish colour explosion. I assume the variance is higher simply by the presence of the potential 10x10 multipliers.

If my calculations are correct, and assuming it's on the paytable, the full screen of orange suns (top paying symbol) on the 10+10 (i.e. 100x) multiplier is worth 5400x stake.

Overall game variance feels on the low side, but that doesn't mean there can't be a 5400x win in there somewhere

 

[rainmaker]

.

Quickspin does have some cool games and more to come

Just wanted to mention that there are many different suppliers like for example Rabat, Sheriff Gaming, Leander Games and NextGen Gaming that are distributed by Microgaming through Quickfire.

This does not mean that any of these companies are controlled, owned or are a "bitch" of Microgaming. They are simply being distributed by Microgaming.

Quickspin also has a deal with for example GTS (Playtech):

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As for Mirrorball on Facebook. This is done in a partnership with Plumbee: Old / Expired Link

 

[vinylweatherman]

.

Quickspin does have some cool games and more to come

Just wanted to mention that there are many different suppliers like for example Rabat, Sheriff Gaming, Leander Games and NextGen Gaming that are distributed by Microgaming through Quickfire.

This does not mean that any of these companies are controlled, owned or are a "bitch" of Microgaming. They are simply being distributed by Microgaming.

Quickspin also has a deal with for example GTS (Playtech):

Old / Expired Link


As for Mirrorball on Facebook. This is done in a partnership with Plumbee: Old / Expired Link

Microgaming cannot claim copyright if all they are is distributing the game. After all, they never owned the copyright to LOTR just because they had a game based on the film. They can only hold the copyright to Quickspin games if Quickspin signed it over to them. It would also mean that in order to license Supernova to anyone else, Quickspin would need permission from the copyright holder, which seems to be Microgaming. It may therefore turn out that the game is exclusive to the Quickfire platform, and this may be the case for games by these other suppliers. Whether this makes the small developers "MGS's bitches" is a matter for debate, but maybe it was a case of "sign here or sod off", not an ultimatum MGS could get away with in Hollywood, but certainly one they can get away with for a small game developer wanting to get a couple of products into the industry, and with the backing and reputation of a developer like Microgaming.

 

[rainmaker]

Microgaming cannot claim copyright if all they are is distributing the game. After all, they never owned the copyright to LOTR just because they had a game based on the film. They can only hold the copyright to Quickspin games if Quickspin signed it over to them. It would also mean that in order to license Supernova to anyone else, Quickspin would need permission from the copyright holder, which seems to be Microgaming. It may therefore turn out that the game is exclusive to the Quickfire platform, and this may be the case for games by these other suppliers. Whether this makes the small developers "MGS's bitches" is a matter for debate, but maybe it was a case of "sign here or sod off", not an ultimatum MGS could get away with in Hollywood, but certainly one they can get away with for a small game developer wanting to get a couple of products into the industry, and with the backing and reputation of a developer like Microgaming.

If you are referring to the helpfile where it says: Version: 1.16.02 Copyright © Microgaming 2011, then my guess is that this is a reference to the copyright of the helpfile/helpfile software and not the game itself.

 

[vinylweatherman]

If you are referring to the helpfile where it says: Version: 1.16.02 Copyright © Microgaming 2011, then my guess is that this is a reference to the copyright of the helpfile/helpfile software and not the game itself.

It could be, but surely the helpfile is part of the game, and thus also the copyright of the developer. Microgaming have merely inserted it into their own helpfile format. They do not qualify their claim as being related to a specific part, so it looks like it is a claim of copyright of the whole.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

Well either way it's probably a smart move on MG's part, quite frankly I think Supernova is massively better than anything they've come up with themselves for ages. It also runs beautifully slick and smooth in a web browser, which is something that even basic slots like Piggy Fortunes can't manage in their own massively bloated shitware download client.

10.6GB and counting, for a casino client! Mandatory download, you can't even choose where it downloads to, it puts itself into a hidden folder, and it doesn't get deleted even when you uninstall every MG casino off your PC (presumably waiting for the day you reinstall a casino....) - genuinely not far off the definition of malware.

 

[Greigssy]

Yeah when I wanted to delete to free up some space a while back that MGS installation was a bit confusing to find.
I had my casinos installed C:\Microgaming\Casino which took up around 100MB for each casino.

Then I eventually found the actual casino software installed C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\MGS.This was on XP pro.

On another note do Microgaming own the company that designed the slot '300 shield' as it loads very similar to a flash MG slot,the green plasma type loading bar is the same.

 

[dunover]

Well either way it's probably a smart move on MG's part, quite frankly I think Supernova is massively better than anything they've come up with themselves for ages. It also runs beautifully slick and smooth in a web browser, which is something that even basic slots like Piggy Fortunes can't manage in their own massively bloated shitware download client.

10.6GB and counting, for a casino client! Mandatory download, you can't even choose where it downloads to, it puts itself into a hidden folder, and it doesn't get deleted even when you uninstall every MG casino off your PC (presumably waiting for the day you reinstall a casino....) - genuinely not far off the definition of malware.

Yes, this often confuses people who want to uninstall and reinstall an MG casino to iron out glitches. They uninstall the casino, which only removes the portal/skin and not the prog files. It does nothing usually to resolve issues. The main block of files is in a folder called 'mgs' and this has to be taken out too. This file contains all the spins you have taken and jpg's of the results etc. Complete bunkum. Flotsam.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

So are 'SHERIFF GAMING' part of MG as well?

The slot 'The Amsterdam Masterplan' at Unibet says 'POWERED BY SHERIFF GAMING' but if you go to the help file it's the same MG help system that the Quickspin slots use.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

In fact, the familiar MG bar is there as well.

Are they consuming all the competition then?

 

[rainmaker]

So are 'SHERIFF GAMING' part of MG as well?

The slot 'The Amsterdam Masterplan' at Unibet says 'POWERED BY SHERIFF GAMING' but if you go to the help file it's the same MG help system that the Quickspin slots use.

As I mentioned. I think the copyright only refers to a copyright of the help file (where Microgaming is the author) and not the game.

Games from different suppliers like Sheriff Gaming, Leander Games, Rabcat, NextGen Gaming are being distributed thought Quickfire, but this does not mean that they are owned, controlled or are a part of Microgaming.

It is just a way for different suppliers to integrate their games in one platform (to reach a wider audience).

Some of these suppliers also have a deal with Playtech where games are being integrated into a similar Playtech platform.

And they may have their own platform in addition or deals with other suppliers etc.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

Thanks rainmaker

The most annoying thing about these games is that as they get the 'MG Help File Treatment' - the RTP figure disappears.

The Quickspin slots Rapunzel and Goldilocks don't appear to have had their help files consumed by MG, and the RTP is still listed on the help file.

Supernova, another Quickspin slot, has an MG help file, and that doesn't list the RTP.

The Amsterdam Masterplan doesn't have an RTP listed for it either, because that's got the MG help file.

Here's a screenshot of Goldilocks with its non-MG help file, the RTP is clearly listed.



And here's Supernova with the MG help file, no RTP figure to be found, Unibet's support couldn't find it for me either and said they'd have to ask Microgaming.

So it appears that not only are MG opaque with regards to their own slots' RTP, they're inflicting that secrecy upon other providers to the Quickfire platform!

 

[rainmaker]

.
Yes, I have also observed the same thing.

I am just on my way out, but to give you a quick example of how it works.

If you open the game "Megadeth" from Leander Games at Unibet, then I believe this particular game is integrated via GTS (playtech). If you open the same game at Maxino, then you will see that Maxino has chosen to integrate the same game via Quickspin (and you get the MGS bar etc that you pointed out).

By the way. Goldilocks is integrated via GTS at Unibet (I think), which is why you get the RTP%.

Thanks rainmaker

The most annoying thing about these games is that as they get the 'MG Help File Treatment' - the RTP figure disappears.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

Brilliant, thanks Microgaming!

Do you know any other casinos running Sheriff Gaming slots? I'd like to check out what the RTP of the game actually is

 

[wintingo]

Brilliant, thanks Microgaming!

Do you know any other casinos running Sheriff Gaming slots? I'd like to check out what the RTP of the game actually is

Quickspin and various other game development partners license content through Quickfire, which is an MGS company.
As an operator licensing Quickfire games, it allows us to choose which development partners we want to work with. This is the real advantage of quickfire IMO, although majority MGS original content, there are a few other quality providers, players get a good mix.

In this case, Quickspin have licensed Supernova under the Quickfire platform. It looks and feels a lot like netent IMO. Its likely there will be more Quickspin games under Quickfire

 

[ChopleyIOM]

Quickspin and various other game development partners license content through Quickfire, which is an MGS company.
As an operator licensing Quickfire games, it allows us to choose which development partners we want to work with. This is the real advantage of quickfire IMO, although majority MGS original content, there are a few other quality providers, players get a good mix.

In this case, Quickspin have licensed Supernova under the Quickfire platform. It looks and feels a lot like netent IMO. Its likely there will be more Quickspin games under Quickfire

And will MGS be systematically removing RTP information from every game that's hosted on the Quickfire platform?

 

[Unibet Rep]

Hi Chopley,

I think you got an answer on most of your questions now.
Here is still one thats missing : RTP on Amsterdam Masterplan is 94.58%.
We have been asking MG/Quickfire to display the RTP but I guess it will still take a while.

I also want to reconfirm what others have already mentioned. Quickfire is the platform powered by MG but they still work kind of independently. So for some games, its just a matter of which platform manages to get the game out fastest for us to make our choice.
Others would only release their games through either Quickfire, GTS or another platform.

In all honesty, even for our customer support (and not just ours I think), it is becoming a bit confusing. We do provide them internally with all the info but we don`t necessarily tell them which games are from which providers. Its of no use to them when they have to look up specific information so yes, it can happen that you get a reply like "this game belongs to Microgaming/quickfire" since that is actually the platform the game is running on.

If all went well, you should also have gotten the reply about the RTP of Supernova by now. If not, here it is again 97.05 %.

For very specific questions, I think its always best to either contact the casino rep or open a thread here. Although at least in my case, I don`t read all of the topics on a daily basis. I am happy if I manage once a week

If there is anything else, just send me a pm.

Dave

 

[ChopleyIOM]

Thanks Dave, very helpful

(I never did get an email from Support about the RTP of Supernova though.)