PartyPoker's "Next Generation" Software to Launch in August PartyPoker's "Next Generation" Software to Launch in August
Key Takeaways
  • The new socially-focused poker product is in the final weeks of testing.
  • The new software was first announced in August 2012 and slated for a Q1 2013 launch, but pushed back for unspecified reasons.
  • There will be a “unique set of social benefits to players,” with greater focus on social aspects of the game, featuring “missions and achievements.”

bwin.party’s major overhaul of its poker product is now in testing and will get a full rollout next month, the group announced Wednesday.

The new product was first revealed to be in development in August 2012 and was initially slated for a Q1 2013 launch, but it was pushed back for unspecified reasons. It is seen as a major part of the group’s refocus on “value over volume”—focusing on recreational players over high-volume grinders.

As exclusively revealed by pokerfuse PRO earlier this month, the software product is coupled with a complete rebranding, a new logo that signifies “new beginnings” and a “clean break from the past.”

Few details on the new product are known, but there will be a focus on social aspects of the game, and it will include certain gamification features more common in free-play sites.

As also reported in PRO, it will include a “unique set of social benefits to players,” with greater focus on social aspects of the game, featuring “missions and achievements.” Though no further details are known, it appears to be the most aggressive attempt from an online poker provider yet to marry the social gaming experience with real-money gaming.