At this year’s G2E in Las Vegas, Soft2Bet arrived with a clear message: gamification isn’t the future of iGaming; it’s already here. Leading that charge was David Yatom Hay, the company’s General Counsel, who discussed with Yogonet how Soft2Bet is reshaping player engagement through innovation, motivation engineering, and a data-driven approach that bridges entertainment and responsibility.
In this in-depth conversation, Yatom breaks down Soft2Bet’s strategy, the growing impact of its MEGA gamification engine, and the company’s commitment to empowering operators with cutting-edge tools
What are the company’s key goals for this year’s G2E?
We’re here primarily as a technology provider, showcasing our platform, gamification solution, and full turnkey system designed to empower operators.
Our current focus is on helping smaller and mid-sized operators — Tier 2 or Tier 3 — who want to enhance their operations and grow. I think our solutions can get them there: gamification, monitoring, design, and player interaction. These are things that make us different. If an operator has already worked with the bigger names and wants to try something new, that’s where we shine.
One of the key elements of your expansion has been MEGA, which has been praised for integrating gamification into regulated markets. What is the core message you want attendees to take away from learning about this product?
The main thing is that it’s different. When you walk around the show floor, you see the usual setup — content providers, sportsbook providers, platform providers. We do all of that, but with MEGA, we add another layer.
It’s something unique: you can actually play within the platform. There are a lot of regulatory restrictions that make innovation tricky, but people still want to engage with something new. They don’t come back only for bonuses or promotions; they return because the experience itself is engaging. That’s what MEGA offers: a new level of interaction.
You can have a very standard casino lobby, but when you add a product like MEGA, you catch the player’s attention in a completely new way. For us, that’s what innovation means — and that’s what attracts players to return.
Many operators talk about engagement, but Soft2Bet talks about “motivation engineering.” What’s the difference between keeping someone interested and keeping them invested, as MEGA does?
Let me answer that with a question: Have you ever played a game on your phone?
Yes.
And why do you keep playing it? Because you want to get better, right? You want to reach the next level, maybe compete with others. That’s exactly what motivation engineering is — it taps into that human instinct to progress.
We offer those stages, layers, and progression paths. Players come back because they want to. They’re motivated by personal achievement, not just external rewards. Of course, depending on regulation, we can still offer attractive bonuses at certain milestones, but the key is that it’s fun and rewarding.
Motivation engineering isn’t about constant promotions or marketing pushes. It’s about creating a cycle where players return because they’re genuinely engaged.
You’ve mentioned the company’s dual role as provider and operator. Could you share a practical example, like how MEGA was implemented with Tooniebet in Ontario?
Tooniebet is a good example. It’s a mix of casino and sportsbook. We built much of it around the sports element, especially with our partnership with the Ottawa Senators and, more recently, the CFL.
We integrated our gamification directly into the platform — tournaments, claw machines, and more. We’re now looking at expanding how games can be incorporated into verification and player engagement processes.
Tooniebet picked up strong momentum, partly because of the excitement around the CFL partnership. We’re now preparing additional brands in Ontario that will offer new variations of gamification and user experiences tailored to their audiences.
Gamification adds another layer of interaction. How does MEGA support responsible gaming while remaining engaging? And how are regulators responding to it?
As a license holder, we strictly operate within regulation, whether it’s responsible gaming, marketing, or compliance. Everything we offer, including gamification, must meet those standards.
Some regulators already understand MEGA because they’ve seen it in action; others require more explanation. We present it as a marketing and retention system: essentially a bonus mechanism designed to encourage engagement in a compliant way.
And most regulators agree with that interpretation. It’s a flexible, compliant system that encourages return play not through external promotions or ads, but through the intrinsic motivation of progress. That’s especially valuable as marketing restrictions tighten across markets.
So yes, MEGA is fully compliant and provides an alternative engagement model that aligns with responsible gaming principles.
Soft2Bet's MEGA workshops offer insights on the possibilities of gamification
The Gamification Academy has become an important initiative for Soft2Bet. What advantage does being at the forefront of this give you, and what have you learned from player behavior?
After running workshops for over 500 professionals, we know how much there is still to explore — and we’re here to help the industry get closer to gamification. When we tell operators, “This can increase your retention by 65%,” the first reaction is disbelief — they think, "Where’s the catch?"
That’s why we bring them into a room and show them how it works — why players come back to games and what triggers that behavior. Once they see it, it clicks. It’s about showing them that the product really works.
As for what we’ve learned, our gamification solution and platform collect vast amounts of data. We can see how people play, when they play, and what motivates them. This allows us to tailor the experience for each type of user. That insight feeds directly into retention and acquisition strategies.
We’re constantly evolving, collecting new indicators, integrating new technologies, and sharing that data with operators. It’s not just about user experience or innovation; it’s about using information intelligently to improve both.
What does the future look like for Soft2Bet and its products?
Honestly, the most exciting thing is that I don’t know — and that’s the point. If I already knew what was next, we’d be limiting ourselves. Our goal is to shape what’s next in gaming technology — to define trends before they emerge.
That could mean new games, new tools, or new engagement systems, always within evolving regulatory boundaries. But the aim is constant innovation.
What I can say is that our mission is to stay ahead of the curve and to bring in the things no one has thought of yet. That’s what keeps us moving forward.