The Camelot Group has announced that it will enforce an 18+ age restriction on all its UK National Lottery products from April 22, six months ahead of the UK Government’s October deadline to introduce the measure.

From that date, anyone under the age of 18 will no longer be able to purchase any of the national lottery operator’s products, whether that be online or in a retail environment.

The UK Government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) announced last December that it would be raising the minimum age to play the lottery from 16 to 18 years following the release of its “Review of the Gambling Act 2005 Terms of Reference and Call for Evidence” policy paper.

Originally, online lottery sales to under-18s were to be banned first from April, with a deadline of implementation across retail by October 2021, but now Camelot has acted to enforce the age limit across all verticals sooner than required.

A Camelot spokesperson said: “From 22 April 2021, players must be 18 or over to play National Lottery games online, in-store and on the app. This is in line with the government’s decision to raise the legal minimum age to play The National Lottery, which we fully support.

“Encouraging healthy play is at the heart of everything we do. Remember, you can set limits for the amount you deposit and spend each week, moderate your Instant Win Games play limit or even take a break from playing.”

Betsoft Gaming has extended its ongoing collaboration with the government-owned Finnish gaming company Paf to the Spanish market. The renowned content provider’s award-winning portfolio is now accessible on Paf’s Spanish platform.

“Paf is a trustworthy operator with a substantial customer base. We look forward to growing our business relationship together. The Spanish market is important to Betsoft, hence our commitment to translation and localisation of our games. We are delighted to see our portfolio going live on Paf.es,” Anna Mackney, Sales Executive at Betsoft Gaming, said.

“Paf is all about giving our clients great entertainment and promoting socially aware and responsible gaming. The games we showcase must reflect this, as our clients trust us to provide both quality and integrity. Partnering with companies like Betsoft is part of our commitment to ensuring this. We are very happy to launch their leading, certified titles across our Spanish platform,” Eric Castro, Head of Content and Casino Games at Paf, said.

Pragmatic Play, a leading content provider to the gaming industry, has unveiled its newest hit, Floating Dragon Hold and Spin.

The Asian-themed, 3×5 slot is packed full of features and fun, with three separate triggerable modes for players to enjoy. The first is the Fish Money feature, which sees each Fish symbol have a cash value attached and can be collected if the Lady lands on the reels. If multiple Lady symbols land, then the value is multiplied by the number of them.

To trigger the Free Spins mode, three or more Scatters must land on the reels. With four stages possible to progress through in the Bonus Round, players must land Ladies on the reels, which continue to collect Fish as in base play. If Four or more ladies are on the reels at the same time, players will progress to the next round. If no Fish land on a spin, then a Firecracker will be thrown onto the reels, guaranteeing a winning spin.

The Hold and Spin mode is initiated if a stack of Three Coin symbols land on the central reel, which then sees them remain on the grid as the four remaining reels rotate in search of more coins. Players get three respins, which can reset if a coin is found on a spin, while there is a minimum guarantee of 20x a player’s stake awarded during the mode.

Floating Dragon is Pragmatic Play’s newest slot hit, joining leading products Wolf Gold, Sweet Bonanza and The Dog House Megaways ™ in the provider’s high-powered collection of titles.

Yossi Barzely, Chief Business Development Officer at Pragmatic Play, said: “We’re consistently looking for innovative new additions to our portfolio and are thrilled to launch our newest Hold and Spin hit.

“Our entire product portfolio continues to grow at an impressive rate as we look to continue to expand globally, with this release marking another positive step for us.”

Pragmatic Play currently produces up to five new slot titles a month, while also delivering Live Casino and Bingo games as part of its multi-product portfolio, available through one single API.