Buckle Up

How to play Buckle Up

Harrison Barrett, VP of business development, spoke to the iGB team at iGB L!VE 2026 to discuss the evolution of Soft2Bet’s MEGA platform, which started out as a purely gamification layer but has become “much more compelling than simply leaderboards, missions and point-based rewards”.

As Barrett puts it, MEGA is “ultimately a retention tool that helps our partners move away from heavy bonus and costs”.

With ice hockey and UFC-themed initiatives driving engagement in North America and a 45% lifetime value increase seen with the launch of MEGA Shoot, a player-versus-player simulation penalty shootout game initiative which launched during the World Cup, it is an exciting time for the Malta-based platform provider.

How to play Buckle Up

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, a long-hyped piece of legislation establishing a federal framework for cryptocurrency, failed to clear a key Senate vote this week and now looks dead for 2026. It represents a resounding defeat for crypto stakeholders with multiple ramifications for the gaming industry.

At least 60 “yes” votes were needed to move the legislation towards passage, but the final tally of 49-50 didn’t even reach a majority after four Republican lawmakers broke ranks to oppose the market structure bill. With critical midterm elections approaching in November, there is little chance that the issue will be picked back up in the balance of the Congressional session.

Notably, ethics concerns may have played a critical factor in the rejection of the bill. Lawmakers from both sides did not feel that an updated version of the text released on Sunday went far enough in addressing concerns related to senior officials maintaining or endorsing crypto business ties. However, a group of Republicans claimed they made a series of concessions when US President Donald Trump agreed to modifications on Sunday night that contained stronger ethics measures, the Associated Press reported. The 11th hour concessions were not enough to appease potential swing voters among Senate Democrats.

How to play Buckle Up

Within this shared model, there was a clear preference for personalised interventions over generic ones. 

Tailored, behaviour-triggered messages were seen as more effective than generic warnings, but many participants simultaneously expressed mistrust towards operators collecting behavioural data.

Finally, the study found that these needs and preferences varied widely by product type.