Casino game developers don’t court controversy. If they’re in the headlines, it’s usually because of a polished, sterile and coordinated press release about some shiny, safe new game.
Nolimit City does things differently. This company ripped up the playbook and threw it out of the window. Their work has been a huge success, which culminated in a multi-million Euro buyout by industry giants Evolution.
I wanted to explore the humble beginnings of the Malta-based slot development studio. And to see exactly what they did so differently that’s made the company so much more successful than similar developers.
A Home for Disillusioned Designers
The Nolimit City origin story dates back to 2013 when a couple of industry professionals came together to create something a little different.
Jonas Tegman and Örpen Kisacikoglu are the co-founders. The pair had dipped their toes into entrepreneurship a few years prior, when they set up ComeOn! in 2008.
Tegman previously worked as a NetEnt software architect for about 18 months. His experience at the industry behemoth would stand Nolimit City in good stead in the coming years.
Humble Beginnings
The studio’s pursuit of perfection meant it would be three years before the release of its debut title, Oktoberfest.
With a fun theme, easy gameplay and catchy soundtrack – not to mention a healthy RTP of 96.75% RTP – the game proved to be a big hit. Players and pundits liked what they saw, and the developers knew they were onto something good.
Over the next couple of years, Nolimit City would release several more successful slots. But the titles were largely quite safe. Wixx, BBQ Frenzy and Casino Win Spin were hardly revolutionary in terms of themes and mechanics.
That changed with the release of Tombstone in May 2019.
Broadening Horizons
Although Tombstone was the second game to use Nolimit City’s trademark xNudge mechanic, it was arguably the game which marked the studio’s arrival in the big leagues. It’s still considered a classic of the genre today, and it’s not hard to see why.
Away from creating games, 2019 was a pivotal year for the company for other reasons, too. Securing a license from the Malta Gaming Authority was crucial, allowing them to expand their reach to more markets.
This move put Nolimit City games in front of a much larger audience. At that time, the studio only offered ten titles, but production soon ramped up to coincide with the expansion.
Rapid Growth
This period of growth didn’t stifle creativity levels, either. Everything they considered had to be fresh and exciting or else it was on the scrap heap. New mechanics like X-Ways hit the market in many of the developer’s games, such as Dragon Tribe and Punk Rocker.
Strategic partnerships were the name of the game during this period. Nolimit City signed deals with heavy hitters such as 888, Kindred, and Betsson. They also secured a Microgaming content distribution agreement to bring even more eyeballs to its gaming options.
Never Far From Controversy
In the company’s pursuit to push boundaries, some felt that Nolimit City went a step too far with its San Quentin release in 2021.
Based on the notorious prison in California, it wasn’t the 2,000x bonus buy or the 150,000x max win that grabbed the headlines. The pre-release imagery, however, included an R-rated prison shower scene; a dark nod to the old joke about dropping soap and what might follow.
Talking about the controversy, co-founder Jonas Tegman said, “If video games and movies are able to cross that border, why can’t we? Are we even crossing the border here?”
Ultimately, he was correct. The release proved popular with players and the slots streaming community. Ironically, that particular storm in a teacup was what first brought Nolimit City to my own attention. And I’ve loved their work ever since.
The Key To Success?
After San Quentin, the company was clearly emboldened. Themes became increasingly bleak, morbid and violent. Bad taste was the order of the day.
It was as if they’d held a meeting and decided to just leave the safe stuff to the other slot developers. Perhaps they did.
Whether by luck or design, this decision to position Nolimit City as different – darker and more subversive – helped them to stand out. They were able to build a brand that was totally different to any other slots developer.
There’s no such thing as bad publicity, after all.
Innovation
Still, it wouldn’t be fair to label the studio as one trick ponies. They don’t simply court controversy intentionally to try and boost the company’s sales.
Games with tamer themes were still highly innovative, earning acclaim for their intriguing features and mechanics. Take Fire in the Hole xBomb, for instance, which was just one hugely popular title in the slots community.
The company was creating games with previously unseen levels of unpredictability and volatility. In turn, this results in slots with huge potential payouts, offering multipliers of six figures. Players couldn’t get enough. They still can’t today.
Dark themes were still present, Mental, Serial and The Border are a few classic examples of that. While they still enjoyed a cheap joke now and then, as seen with the release of Karen: Man Eater. But even with these tongue-in-cheek titles, or when exploring a topic that nobody else would touch, innovation was always present.
Parting Shot
The Nolimit City team’s intentionally different stance paid huge dividends. In August 2022, live dealer specialists Evolution bought the company for €340 million.
As a parting shot, Tegman and Kisacikoglu released Walk Of Shame, which seemingly mocks the post-sale celebrations and the hard partying which followed.
While Kisacikoglu seemingly sailed off into the sunset to dabble in the world of professional poker, Jonas Tegman remains with the company he co-founded more than a decade ago. As such, the era of intrigue is not quite at an end.
Still Going Strong
Since the sale, Nolimit City has released many more smash hit games with controversial, dark and humorous themes. Kenneth Must Die is a notable example.
Timed to coincide with the release of the Barbie movie, this slot reimagines the two plastic lovers as sexual deviants. The soundtrack is absolutely immense, never mind the gameplay.
A number of sequels have also been released, including San Quentin 2, Deadwood RIP and Punk Rocker 2.
Although their games may be dark, the future looks incredibly bright for Nolimit City. The roadmap contains a number of scheduled releases for 2025, including the ridiculously named Big Black Cock.
I cannot wait to see what that’s all about.
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