Before they take the stage at iGaming Lab, we spoke with a few of our speakers about creativity, craft and the thinking behind the player experience. From sound design and art direction to creative leadership, these conversations offer insights from people working inside the industry.

iGaming Lab event will take place on the THU Platform from June 17 - 19.


Spotlighting Madis Kreeva

What does a sonic identity mean for a slot game?

A sonic identity in a slot game means that the game has its own recognizable emotional “voice” through sound. It’s not just background music or random effects - it’s the way audio guides the player’s feelings during the experience. A strong sonic identity makes the right moments feel right.

Small wins can feel satisfying, big wins feel exciting and rewarding, and when there is anticipation in the game, right sounds help it feel more exciting before the outcome lands.


You've composed for TV series & film, theatre productions and iGaming. Each one has its own relationship to sound. What has each one taught you and how do you translate that knowledge into the iGaming realm?

Each field has taught me something different about how sound affects people. Film and TV taught me how to support storytelling and build emotion without always being obvious about it. Theatre gave me a strong sense of timing and dynamics, because everything happens live and every moment matters. iGaming, on the other hand, has taught me how important replayability and instant emotional feedback really are.

What I enjoy most is that every project gives me a chance to approach music from a new angle. No two projects feel exactly the same and each one teaches me something new, creatively and technically.

At the end of the day, it’s still about guiding emotion. What’s interesting about iGaming is that every game can have a completely different style and atmosphere, so you constantly have to adapt and understand different musical languages well enough to make them feel authentic. In a way, that flexibility also feeds back into TV, film and theatre, because it keeps you creatively open and comfortable moving between very different styles.


Spotlighting Silvia V. Rizo and Lluc Baliarda

What's the one thing about slot game art production that some industry colleagues get wrong?

Lluc: I think in our industry a lot of projects fall into repeating the same visual formulas because they're considered safe, which I get, since recognizable and highly polished art styles sell well. But at the same time, I think there's room for more hand-crafted, indie art direction that gives the games a stronger personality. As an artist, I value the creative freedom studios like Peter&Sons bring to the table.

Silvia: People often treat slot game art as “second-class” art because they assume players don’t really notice or appreciate the visuals. In reality, art is just as important as the mechanics when it comes to selling a game. It creates the very first impression, and in such a competitive market, that first impression is critical. Strong visuals are often what make players stop, look, and decide to try a game.

Another misregard I come across a lot is that working for slot games is boring because they are “always the same game”. I strongly disagree. Unlike film or traditional video game production, where artists often specialize very narrowly - only in environments or only in characters - slot game development usually allows artists to work across many different areas and styles. That variety keeps the work creatively rewarding and gives artists the chance to explore multiple branches of art instead of being limited to just one.


When your work is at the intersection between creative vision and production reality, where does your role actually live on a day-to-day level? And what does it take to hold quality when a game is in full production crunch?

Lluc: On my day-to-day, I review projects to identify blockers across different production stages through check-up meetings, one-on-one mentoring with artists, and async Slack updates, while also developing my own game on the side. My role sits between art and production, checking creative quality while keeping the pipeline aligned with production goals. We generally avoid heavy crunch, but when a project is tight or there are last-minute changes, I focus on prioritization, clear communication and blockers detection, always striving to give good production support to lower the team's stress as much as possible while under pressure.

Silvia: Finding the balance between creativity and production is always challenging. As artists, we naturally put a part of ourselves into everything we create and always strive for the best possible result. But at the end of the day, games are still a product, and sometimes it’s more important to deliver something strong and complete than to endlessly chase perfection. On a day-to-day level, the role lives in constantly making decisions about where quality truly matters. During a production crunch, you simply can’t polish every detail equally. For me, the real skill comes from putting yourself in the player’s shoes and understanding what will actually add value to the game. Good art direction is not just about making everything look beautiful; it’s about knowing what serves the gameplay, supports the theme and creates the strongest emotional response for the user.


Spotlighting Tanya Khrypun

What separates a game that lands from one that gets lost in the lobby?

I think players decide extremely fast whether a game catches their attention or disappears in the sea of hundreds of others in the lobby. What separates a game that lands isn’t just “better art”; it’s strong visual clarity, a clear emotional hook and a cohesive visual language that instantly communicates the fantasy, mood and energy of the game.

The strongest games feel completely intentional from the very first moment. In my opinion, immediate readability and emotional impact are way more important than heavy detail or flashy effects. A game can be technically beautiful, but if players are scrolling through a crowded lobby and can’t instantly grasp its personality and core vibe, it’s just going to get bypassed.


What do you look for in an artist who’s ready to grow into a more senior creative role?

The biggest shift happens when an artist starts thinking beyond their own asset and begins understanding the full player experience, production realities and team collaboration. I look for what I call the shift from 'me' to 'we.' A senior creative isn't just focused on making their own portfolio look amazing; they are actively looking at how their work fits into the larger puzzle of the project. While strong technical skills are essential, what really stands out is consistency, clear communication, proactive problem-solving and the ability to receive feedback without losing their creative identity. Ultimately, they don't just spot problems; they bring potential solutions to the table, and they are genuinely invested in lifting up the junior talent around them.