🎤 DEGEN Studios Slots Q&A with Danny Gordon

Zoomania Q&A (April 2026)

In this interview, I sit down with Danny to discuss the Zoomania slot game.

Q: Zoomania introduces a wild animal world where creatures take control of the reels. What inspired that direction?

DG: “Zoomania started with a simple question: what happens if the animals stop behaving like symbols and start behaving like animals?

A lot of slots use animal themes in a decorative way. You’ll see tigers, wolves or apes on the reels, but they don’t really influence the personality of the game. We wanted the opposite approach. The idea was to create a world where the creatures feel dominant, unpredictable and a little dangerous.

We also wanted to push the theme into something more DEGEN - less “zoo visit,” more “containment breach.” It’s an edgy take on a zoo game, where instinct takes over and control slips quickly.

Each animal represents a different type of energy. The lion carries authority, the gorilla brings brute force, and the reptilian characters add that cold, lurking tension. When you combine those personalities with mechanics that drop in from above or suddenly expand across the grid, the game starts to feel alive rather than static.”

Q: The game uses a Top Feature Row above the reels. What did that allow you to do from a design perspective?

DG: “The Top Feature Row gave us a way to inject surprises into the base game without interrupting the flow of play.

Instead of waiting for a bonus round to change the state of the reels, features can drop in from above at any moment. That row can introduce Expanding Wilds, Win Multipliers, Wild Converter symbols or even Super Scatters, which means the outcome of a spin can shift after the reels have already landed.

From a design perspective, that’s very powerful. It keeps players engaged because there’s always a possibility that something unexpected will happen just after the reels settle. It also creates those moments where multiple enhancements combine in the same spin.

It also means the base game isn’t just a setup phase - it delivers real action from the start, with momentum building instantly rather than waiting for a bonus trigger.”

Q: Expanding Wilds, multipliers and converters can all appear during play. How does that affect the pacing of the game?

DG: “It changes the rhythm quite a bit. In a traditional slot, most of the anticipation sits in the bonus trigger. In Zoomania, the excitement can appear almost anywhere.

A drop-down Expanding Wild can suddenly stretch down a reel and reshape the grid. A Win Multiplier might appear on the Top Feature Row and amplify everything that just happened. Or a Wild Converter might transform a random symbol into a Wild in a split second, creating wins that weren’t visible just moments earlier.

Because these effects can stack together, the game moves between calm and escalation very quickly. You can have a spin that looks fairly ordinary at first, and then a few enhancers drop in and the entire outcome shifts.”

Q: Zoomania includes several bonus paths including the extremely rare Beast Mode. What differentiates these experiences?

DG: “Prison Break is the entry point. It’s triggered by 3 Scatter symbols and awards 8 free spins, with additional Scatters increasing the total. It introduces players to the enhanced mechanics but still keeps things relatively controlled.

Feral Instinct pushes the game further. When Scatters combine with Super Scatters, the Top Feature Row expands and additional enhancers become active during the Free Spins. At that point the reels start to feel much more aggressive, because multiple modifiers can land at once.

Then there’s Beast Mode, which is the rarest and most extreme outcome. It’s triggered by landing three Super Scatters on the Top Feature Row. During those Free Spins, the row is fully populated with enhancers every spin and a global multiplier system comes into play.

It also means the base game isn’t just a setup phase - it delivers real action from the start, with momentum building instantly rather than waiting for a bonus trigger.

That combination can produce some very intense moments.”

Q: Zoomania leans heavily into unpredictability and feature stacking. How do you design that kind of controlled chaos without losing balance?

DG: “It comes down to layering mechanics carefully rather than just adding more features.

When we talk about chaos in a DEGEN game, it’s not randomness for the sake of it. It’s about creating situations where the game can escalate in interesting ways while still feeling readable for the player.

In Zoomania, the Top Feature Row acts as the catalyst. It introduces modifiers that interact with the reels in different ways. Because those elements affect the grid differently, their combinations produce a wide range of outcomes.

What matters is that players can still understand what’s happening when those moments occur. When the reels explode into a bigger win, it should feel surprising but also logical in hindsight.”

Q: Zoomania feels quite different in tone from some of the darker worlds in the DEGEN universe. Was that contrast intentional?

DG: “Absolutely. A lot of the DEGEN catalogue leans into darker environments, whether that’s the post-apocalyptic wasteland of Rust and Riches or the fractured, high-tension world of Covert Chaos. Those settings naturally carry a heavier tone.

With Zoomania we wanted to explore something visually brighter and more animated, but still keep that slightly eerie edge running underneath it. At first glance the animals feel colourful and energetic, but there’s a sense that this world isn’t entirely tame and what it seems.

It’s brighter on the surface, but still very much DEGEN underneath - unpredictable, volatile, and always one step away from breaking loose.

That balance was intentional. It allows the game to feel visually different from other DEGEN titles while still sitting comfortably within the same universe. The surface might be more vibrant, but the unpredictability and underlying intensity are still very much part of the studio’s DNA.”

Generic Q&A (November 2025)

The generic interview covers why DEGEN was founded, what he’s learned from the first releases, a closer look at those games, player feedback on design and upcoming releases.

Q: What was the biggest reason for founding DEGEN?

DG: “We started DEGEN because we felt something was missing. The industry leans heavily on safe formulas and familiar loops, and after years of playing and building games, we knew there was room for a different approach. DEGEN was born from that frustration and from the belief that slot gaming can push further creatively than it currently does.

We wanted to bring a new point of view to the reels. Something with personality, edge, and a bit more ambition. That’s still the core of what drives us today.”

Q: What lessons have you learned from your first few releases? 

DG: “There is a real appetite for change. Each of the first four titles has pushed the limits in one way or another, whether that’s through their volatile gameplay or unique themes. Players have joined our movement because they want something different. They have become invested in our vision.

The biggest lesson we have learned is to trust our gut. Our games have taken some big risks thematically, and they have paid off. We are not here to play it safe.”

Q: Raiders Riches, Hacker’s Haven, Wild Gangs and Rave Riot are all distinctly different games: what ties them together?

DG: "Each title captures a different aspect of our bold creative process. Raider Riches blasts the player into the cosmos and is packed with highly volatile action. Hacker’s Haven is pure digital anarchy. Wild Gangs drops them in the middle of a violent turf war, and Rave Riot cranks the volume and fries the senses.

What links these games isn’t their individual themes; it’s their attitude. There is no compromise, just disruption.”

Q: How important is player feedback in your design process?

DG: “We are a studio that builds games by gamers, for gamers. We track what players love, where they drop off, and what features hit hardest. Players are tired of the current gaming landscape, and their experiences can help us shape our products.

Every DEGEN release should feel like an event. By democratising the creative process, we become a voice for the voiceless and a vessel for change. Players are the most important aspect of the gaming industry, and their needs have been ignored for too long. We are here to change that.”

Q: Can you give us any teasers about the upcoming themes DEGEN is going to explore?

DG: “We are keeping our cards close to our chest. What’s coming next is louder, bigger, and bolder than anything that has come before. We’re continuing to dial up the risk, lean into daring themes, and challenge players in new and explosive ways. If you thought our first four titles were exciting, you’ve seen nothing yet.”