Former Gaming Realms execs launch slots studio start-up
Creative director Daniel Lamond and director of gaming Phil Halston set up Rogue to revive creative process after commercial success of Slingo
Two former Gaming Realms execs have left the Slingo Originals supplier to establish a slots studio start-up in Colchester.
Former Slingo creative director Daniel Lamond and ex-director of gaming Phil Halston have launched a new venture called Rogue after making the decision to break away from the hugely popular Slingo vertical.
Lamond will serve as Rogue chief product officer (CPO) while Halston has been appointed as chief technology officer (CTO).
The duo have also been joined by a third co-founder in the shape of Felt Limited CEO John Parsonage, who will fill the position of chief commercial officer (CCO).
Speaking to EGR, Lamond revealed the pair had been planning their exit from Gaming Realms for the last 12 months after helping to establish the supplier’s Slingo portfolio from the ground up.
Lamond said: “It’s been something we wanted to do for a long time and Gaming Realms have known that we’re leaving for about a year and we’ve been working with them on our exit in a nice way, trying to help them set everything up beyond us.
“I love Slingo and I’m really proud of it but you kind of become a victim of your own success when that’s all that people then want. We hope we can produce some great games and it’s what we’ve always wanted to do.
“It’s built out an ambition to do new things. We’ve got lots of ideas for lots of different games that we want to pursue and it was becoming a little bit harder to do that there because of the success of Slingo,” he added.
The studio will initially develop a slots portfolio focused on game mechanics that Lamond hopes will help it stand out in a crowded and competitive field.
He said: “Our mantra is we’re designing games with game mechanics at the core. You see a lot of the industry is flooded with reskins or replicated game ideas and people play it safe and there’s nothing wrong with that, if you’ve got big distribution.
“We want to build innovation in game mechanics in the core of everything we want to do. I want to release some games that we can be proud of that and that people would identify as people doing something a bit differently,” he added.
Lamond revealed Rogue has three titles nearing completion with commercial agreements beginning to take shape.
He continued: “We’ve got a distribution deal in place with Gaming Realms. They’re opening up their RGS and we’re going to put our games out through them, so we can continue the relationship.
“We are discussing a number of deals and potential routes to market for our games. And obviously, with the US opening up, [there are], massive, massive opportunities for people who position their content to the right markets.”
Similarly to Gaming Realms, Rogue will be based in the Essex town of Colchester, although the trio have yet to establish a physical headquarters due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Lamond said the geographical freedom meant he had been able to cast his net far and wide in terms of hiring for new talent.
Lamond said: “Because of Covid, we’ve not set up an office yet but we will look to do that once things quieten down. The plus side of that is as we’re recruiting and the people we’ve brought on board, we’ve recruited globally.
“We’ve got a core team in Colchester and we’re able to look for the talent anywhere because everyone’s working remotely. It’s been a great benefit to us,” he added.