Exclusive Interview: Evoplay’s Olga Pronak Talks Big Adventures, Innovation, and the Future of iGaming

In this exclusive Mr. Gamble interview, CMO Paul Puolakka sits down with Olga Pronak, Head of KAM at Evoplay, to uncover the story behind one of iGaming’s fastest-growing studios. From her personal journey into the industry to Evoplay’s 8th anniversary and the record-breaking “Big Adventures” campaign, Olga shares rare insights on innovation, player engagement, and what’s next for the brand.

Olga, let’s start from the beginning. What’s your story? How did your journey lead you into the iGaming industry?

I guess it was destiny. One day I was thinking about some changes in my life and decided to start by updating my CV. Shortly after, Evoplay reached out with an offer, and with the Head of Department encouraging me. I decided to take the opportunity. Today, I’m proud to lead the KAM team and proud of how we achieve every goal together—step by step, with confidence.

Evoplay is about to celebrate its 8th birthday this September. Looking back, what milestones are you most proud of since the company’s founding?
Well, so many things have happened over the years. I’ve been with Evoplay for half of that time, and what I love most is how flexible the company is, always looking for better solutions, smarter strategies, and new ways to grow. Because of that, we’ve made some pretty big steps: getting into key markets fast, expanding to new ones, improving our games, and releasing truly innovative titles like Star Guardians and Adrenaline Rush. We’ve also created new promotional tools, upgraded the ones we had, and keep adding more. Along the way, we’ve launched exciting projects with partners, building joint games and campaigns that really connect with players.

How will the anniversary celebrations tie into your ongoing campaigns?

We’re planning different activations with our partners and promo campaigns with affiliates, all designed to support and complement our ongoing initiatives focused on the players.

To make the day truly memorable, in September at the SBC Summit in Lisbon, our partners, friends, and guests will enjoy a vibrant atmosphere, gifts, and other surprises. I’m really excited to celebrate eight years in the market together, in a place that unites everyone from the industry and shares the same energy and passion.

Can you give us a sneak peek into the special marketing campaign Evoplay is preparing for its birthday?

SBC Lisbon is always full of energy, connections, and bright people from the iGaming industry, so we felt it’s the perfect place to celebrate our 8th birthday this September. We’re preparing some fun activities for our partners, with nice presents, of course. I can’t reveal all the details just yet, but let’s just say — we’ll soon find out who knows Evoplay best.

“Big Adventures” has been described as Evoplay’s biggest-ever campaign. What inspired its creation?
Players really inspired us, and I’d say the market willing inspired us too. By reaching out to both players and partners and gathering their ideas and preferences, we shaped every detail of the campaign. The campaign has been running for three months now, and the feedback has been great, showing that longer campaigns give players more time to participate and make it even more exciting when there’s the potential for bigger prizes. That’s why we built it as a true journey for players, combining engagement, excitement, and a sense of adventure.

With a total prize pool of €2,500,000 and 115,000+ random prizes, what makes this campaign unique compared to others in the iGaming industry?

I’d say what makes this campaign truly unique is the experience it brings to players. It will last for 9 months – packed with the energy of playing exciting games, the chance to win along the way, and receiving additional gifts, with the luckiest even taking home the super prize. There are no other requirements to get these prizes besides playing during the tournament, which means everyone has a real shot at winning.

The mechanics make it even more exciting. The campaign combines a tournament base with Prize Drops and Wheel of Fortune prizes, so any player can win random prizes – not just those who score the most points in the tournament. That’s what makes it special: it puts all players on equal footing in the eyes of fate, and all it takes is a bit of luck.

The campaign runs for 9 months with four activations per month. How did you design the structure to maximize player engagement?

Yes, our goal is to give as many players as possible the chance to win prizes. That’s why we have four activations every month – four times more prizes, four times more winners. And the best part is, whether a player joins at the beginning, middle, or end of the month, they still have a chance to win. This way, the excitement stays high, and players stay engaged throughout the campaign.

Could you break down the three mechanics – Tournaments, Prize Drops, and Wheel of Fortune – and explain how each boosts engagement differently?
Sure! Tournaments are a classic and well-known mechanic worldwide. They are especially appealing to players with a competitive, sports-like spirit.

Prize Drops are also very popular. Here, players receive prizes randomly – they just need to play the games, and everyone has an equal chance to get an unexpected additional reward.

The Wheel of Fortune also uses randomness, but with an extra twist. A player randomly gets the wheel, then spins it, with six possible prizes or a zero. After the spin, they either win one of the six prizes or nothing. So, as we like to say, the Wheel of Fortune is for adrenaline lovers. And it’s definitely very popular with our audience.

I’d say each of these mechanics has its own audience and works in its own way. The more diverse our tools, the more player preferences we can satisfy – and that’s what really matters for us as providers.

The campaign includes a quarterly iPhone giveaway. How do these recurring rewards affect player retention?

The campaign was organised with the aim of creating a genuine journey for players, which means it’s not just about taking part in one round but about deeper engagement.

The iPhone will go to the player with the highest total score over all three months, which means players need to be really active throughout the campaigns to win the prize. And such a challenge naturally sparks the wish to try one’s chance.

What are some of the most creative or surprising reactions you’ve seen from players so far?
As providers, we don’t communicate directly with players, that’s handled through the operators. But we are inspired by the results of player engagement: in just two months, the loyal audience has doubled, and the flow of new players continues to grow. That tells us that players are really enjoying the campaign.

Which, by the way, aligns with research showing that additional mechanics not only strengthen engagement and loyalty among newcomers, but also stimulate betting activity through effective layering of game features.

From an operator’s perspective, what are the biggest advantages of joining the Big Adventures campaign?
It’s simple and convenient. Knowing in advance what’s coming, operators can plan their promo calendars effectively and benefit from predictable engagement spikes throughout the campaign.

At the same time, operators can see that player retention is already supported by the provider, which makes it easier to increase engagement even further.

The campaign ends with a spectacular prize – a trip to the Maldives. Why did you choose such a high-profile reward?

We believe that players who stay with us all this time truly deserve the best treatment. So we simply thought of a gift we would love to receive ourselves and decided that everyone would enjoy going to such a beautiful, dream destination.

With “Big Adventures” running until February 2026, what are your goals for the campaign’s impact on both operators and players?

We want to showcase our games to players who may not know them that well yet, and also see which of the new ones become most loved by players. This will help us tailor future content even more closely to their interests, making it both engaging and relevant.

For operators, it’s also a win–win scenario. Evoplay likes it when everyone is happy.

Beyond this campaign, what can we expect from Evoplay in 2025–2026?

I can’t reveal all the secrets just yet, but there’s something even more special and unique coming for each player from Evoplay. So all I can say is – stay tuned so you don’t miss it.

How does Evoplay see the future of gamified promotions evolving in the iGaming space?

I can definitely say that we see gamified promotions as having huge potential. Their logic and mechanics may already be familiar to players who play not just casino games, which is already half the battle. Of course, it all depends on how they’re implemented, and that’s exactly where we bring them to life in our own dedicated and creative way.

Lastly, what’s your favourite online slot and why?
If we talk about slots specifically, then The Greatest Catch Bonus Buy is my favorite. It has this amazing bonus game within the bonus buy feature, like another game inside the game. And in that bonus game, a player has really high chances to win big.

If we talk about all games in general, I have a few more favorites. One is our fabulous Penalty Shoot-out: Street, an instant game that’s super fun, especially if you like football. Another is Big Catch Game, where you need to catch fish using different “tools” for different types of fish. You can even play together with friends and catch the biggest fish as a team. And one of my newest favorites is Uncrossable Rush, with its dynamic pace and a fun little challenge you need to master, you really need to try it to understand why I love it.

So, as you can see, I’m more of an instant games person than a slots person.