Betable, the bolt-on back end that allows social gaming companies to offer real-money gambling (in jurisdictions where such shenanigans are legal), has inked a deal with French developer Mandala Games. The deal will see Mandala launch a real-money version of its Slots by La Riviera game in the UK in the coming weeks. Since August, Betable has signed similar deals with Big Fish Games, Slingo, Digital Chocolate and Murka Games.
Social betting game Bookie Mania has officially launched on Facebook. The creation of former Chiligaming director Robin Malhotra, Bookie Mania entered into an equity partnership with the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe of Washington State in July. Malhotra says Bookie Mania differs from the plethora of other social betting apps by focusing more on entertainment props than sporting events.
Them’s fighting words to San Francisco-based developers Bunker Mode, who have just launched their High Limit Sports social betting app on iOS, with an Android version due shortly. The game focuses on NFL, CFL and NCAA football, with NBA games in the pipeline and other sports promised soon. Bunker Mode’s Matt Panghorn admitted the challenge will be getting noticed in an increasingly crowded field. “We may be the 10th to come out this month, but the platform we are building will be a lot different,” like the second-screen technology that allows the user to witness the sporting event on which they’re betting in real time without leaving the app.
Nuclear Blast, an independent record label focused on heavy metal music, has teamed with Swiss social gamers kuuluu Interactive Entertainment AG on a free-play Nuclear Blast Poker platform. Warning: bring your ear plugs, as “the user experience is designed with the metal fan in mind” and the integrated Nuclear Blast Player SoundCloud will be “blaring out the latest tracks of the label.” kuuluu is also behind another social poker musical tie-in with UK pop crooner Robbie Williams. RobbieWilliamsFunPoker.com is actually the second incarnation of a Williams-branded free-play poker site. RobbieWilliamsPoker.com earned a public rebuke by UK MP Tessa Munt in February, who thought Robbie’s young fans shouldn’t be exposed to the “deplorable” world of poker. Guess that’s why Robbie added ‘fun’ to the title.
Finally, venerable game outfit Atari is bringing a suite of products to mobile devices in the coming weeks, including its inaugural entry into the social casino realm, Atari Casino for iOS. The game features slots, blackjack and the original Atari mini-arcade games along with social network integration.
