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Fortune Surge Q&A with Craig Asling from Booming Games
Craig Asling, Director of Games at Booming Games, has extensive experience in the online casino industry, having worked for 10+ years at various game studios.
We had the pleasure of discussing Booming Games‘ latest release, Fortune Surge, with him.
Can classic 3-reel slots still be relevant, and how will Fortune Surge attract and deliver entertainment to players? We asked Craig.
CasinoWizard: Hello Craig! Let’s talk new games, specifically your latest release, Fortune Surge. Can you give us an overview of what the game’s all about and its win potential?
Craig Asling, Director of Games at Booming Games: Fortune Surge is our take on a classic three-reel slot, combining an immediately recognisable format with the pace and feature depth players expect from a modern release. It uses a compact 3×3 grid with five fixed paylines, so the core gameplay is very easy to understand, but there is plenty happening beneath the surface through its Coin Stack, instant cash prizes and Fortune Surge Bonus.
Despite the streamlined layout, the game offers maximum win potential of 2,000x the bet. That balance was important to us: we wanted Fortune Surge to feel accessible from the first spin while still creating genuine anticipation and meaningful win potential.
CasinoWizard: Three-reel slots are quite few and far between in 2026, with many studios opting for more modern releases. What was your reasoning behind creating something with a bit more of a classic feel?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: There is still a strong appetite for games that players can understand almost instantly. Three-reel slots have a clarity and pace that remain very appealing, particularly in a market where some games have become increasingly complex.
For us, returning to that format was not about looking backwards. It was about taking a proven foundation and asking how we could make it feel relevant to today’s audience. Fortune Surge delivers the familiarity of a traditional slot alongside contemporary visuals, strong audiovisual feedback and modern feature mechanics. The result is a game that should appeal both to players who enjoy classic slots and those looking for a more feature-led experience.
CasinoWizard: While this has all the makings of a classic slot, there are some more modern twists when it comes to features and mechanics. Could this sort of slot still stand on its own two feet without those features?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: Absolutely. A strong three-reel game can still succeed through good mathematics, satisfying pacing and clear win presentation. Simplicity is a strength when it is supported by a carefully balanced experience.
That said, the modern mechanics in Fortune Surge give the game more personality and create additional moments of anticipation. The Coin Stack provides a visible sense of progression, while the Fortune Surge features add changes of pace and stronger win opportunities. The classic format makes the game approachable; the features provide the depth and excitement that encourage players to keep exploring it.
CasinoWizard: Fortune Surge features iconic symbols such as BARs, bells and cherries. Does a classic slot have to retain these core elements to preserve its charm, or could you introduce more modern elements and still succeed?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: Those symbols offer instant recognition. Players see cherries, bells and BARs and immediately recognising the type of experience they’re about to have, so they are a very effective visual language.
However, I do not think a classic slot has to use them. The charm comes from the complete experience: the reel configuration, clarity, pacing, sound design and the satisfaction of each result. A studio can introduce an entirely modern theme and still preserve that classic character, provided those fundamentals remain intact.
With Fortune Surge, we chose traditional iconography because it fits the game’s identity and provides an effective contrast with its more contemporary mechanics. Familiarity draws players in, while the features give them something new to discover.
CasinoWizard: Despite being a three-reel slot, you’ve not been shy about adding features and mechanics. Can you explain how the Coin Stack and Fortune Surge features work?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: In the base game, Scatter Coins that land on the reels are added to the Coin Stack, building anticipation as players spin as it can activate at any time, triggering a Fortune Surge Bonus.
The Fortune Surge Collect feature is naturally activated when a Collect Coin lands on the centre reel alongside one or more Scatter Coins on one of the outer reels. The Collect Coin gathers the relevant values and awards an instant cash prize.
If Scatter Coins land on both reels one and three with a Collect Coin on reel two, the Fortune Surge Bonus is awarded. During the bonus, up to three Collect symbols can lock into position on the centre reel. Every new symbol resets the respin counter, and every Scatter Coin or Prize Pot that subsequently lands is collected by each locked Collect symbol.
That creates the feature’s central excitement: the more Collect symbols that become locked, the greater the potential impact of every new coin or prize landing on the outer reels.
CasinoWizard: Fortune Surge has two Bonus Buy options, priced at 75x and 250x. How important is it to include Bonus Buys in new slots, especially now that streaming is so prevalent within the slot community?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: Bonus Buys are valuable because they give eligible players greater choice over how they experience a game. Some enjoy the anticipation of triggering a feature organically, while others prefer immediate access to its most concentrated gameplay.
That immediacy naturally works well in streaming, where feature rounds can create entertaining and highly shareable moments. However, streaming is only one consideration. A Bonus Buy must still fit the game’s mathematics and provide a clear, differentiated proposition.
We do not believe every title needs one simply for the sake of it, and availability will always depend on local regulation. When Bonus Buys complement the design, as they do in Fortune Surge, they provide another useful way for players to engage with the game. Here, the two options offer access to different levels of the experience, priced at 75x and 250x the bet.
CasinoWizard: What makes Fortune Surge stand out within Booming Games’ current portfolio, and what can players look forward to from the studio next?
Craig Asling, Booming Games: Fortune Surge stands out because it achieves a great deal within such a compact format. It has the immediacy and visual familiarity of a classic three-reel slot, but its collection mechanics, respin structure and multiple Collect symbols give it a much more dynamic character. It demonstrates that a game does not need a large grid or layers of complicated rules to offer depth, pace and significant win potential.
Looking ahead, players can expect us to continue building a varied portfolio. That means new ideas and mechanics, further development of proven concepts and titles that serve different player preferences and markets. Our focus remains on creating games with a clear identity, accessible gameplay and memorable entertainment value—and Fortune Surge is a strong example of that approach.
