The casino game supplier Stakelogic is one of the first companies to breach the Gambling Commission’s directive on slowed-down slots.
The regulator’s Remote Technical Standards (RTS) have been updated to make it a licence requirement for a gap of at least 2.5 seconds to be implemented between spins in slot games supplied to UK casinos.
However, in testing, Stakelogic breached this rule with 16 of its games… hence the sizable fine dished out by the Gambling Commission.
Timed Out
Stakelogic supplies their slots and other games to casinos in the UK and beyond.
But they systemically failed to slow down their slots in line with the RTS changes… with a mechanical stopwatch said to be the cause.
One of its flagship slots, Tiger Temple 88, is readily available at UK licensed sites. But, for two months in May 2025, it was running too quickly – just 1.97 seconds would pass between players being able to hit the spin button.
After identifying the flaw and reporting it to the Gambling Commission, an investigation was launched into the rest of their game catalogue.
And that revealed that as many as 15 other Stakelogic games were breaching the 2.5 second threshold, with timings of 0.001 second up to 0.67 seconds faster than the limit recorded.
Troublingly, these slots were available to players at UK casinos for a time period from October 2021 to October 2025. Once the failing had been realised, all of the games were removed from their host sites.
Perhaps more alarmingly still, the breaches were recorded because Stakelogic had timed their games using a manual stopwatch – rather than a digital version which might just have provided a more accurate recording.
The director of enforcement and intelligence at the Gambling Commission, John Pierce, described it as ‘unacceptable’ that the firm had relied upon a manual timepiece for such as important part of their delivery process.
“After reporting this error to the Commission, Stakelogic immediately self-suspended the use of the affected games until the error had been rectified,” Pierce said.
“They have subsequently taken significant steps to assure the Commission that they now have robust policies and procedures in place to prevent future breaches from occurring.
“We would urge all operators to take careful note of this case and ensure they have effective testing practices in place to ensure they are meeting all the standards we require.”
The £122,835 fine, which is the first regulatory notice on Stakelogic’s account, is the largest given out for an RTS failing.
Slow Down
It was back in 2021 that the Remote Technical Standards, by which all UK licensed game providers must abide, were altered.
At the time, there was no minimum speed limit in place, which meant that developers could – in theory – release games in which players could hit the spin button at almost constant intervals.
Land based slot machines, meanwhile, already had a 2.5 second limit in place, which had been effective in limiting the intensity of gameplay.
A consultation was launched that proposed for online slots to be aligned with their physical counterparts, with research studies linking game speed to problem gambling behaviours – particularly when players are able to spin the reels with minimal delay between turns.
Of those that responded to the consultation, 65% agreed that a minimum spin speed should be introduced; some argued that a limit slower than 2.5 seconds should be implemented.
However, after considering all angles, the Gambling Commission amended section 14D of its RTS guidelines to introduce the 2.5 second rule.
“We acknowledge the concerns expressed by some stakeholders that 2.5 seconds may not be long enough to introduce sufficient friction, but it is important to consider the requirement as part of a wider package of measures designed to reduce the overall intensity of gameplay and protect consumers from harm,” the regulator’s statement read.
The definition of a game cycle, i.e. the length of a spin of the reels, was also amended to reflect the new era. “A game cycle is initiated by player action such as depressing the start button and the next game cycle cannot be started until the previous one has been completed.”
This followed a prior change introduced in 2020, which saw the ‘bonus buy’ feature outlawed in slots at UK licensed casinos in a bid to lower the amount players were spending to access free spins and prize wheels.
Other features that have been prohibited in online slots include auto play and ‘congratulatory’ messaging when the prize payout is lower than the player’s original stake.