Q:
As promised yesterday, here's much of your feedback from the previous Reader Poll, regarding which vanishing and obsolete casino games you miss the most -- some of which we'll investigate on your behalf, as soon as time permits.
A:
- Double Exposure blackjack.
- I miss Triple Shot, which was only available in Harrah's, to my knowledge. Three card games in one, it was too much fun! I believe it disappeared due to legal problems over who owned the game. This is my favorite poll in quite some time!
- Keno - live and video.
- I really miss the original Lord of the Rings machines that remembered you and how far into the game you had gotten. According to Caesar's' slot finder, the only Caesars casinos that still have the machine are Caesars Las Vegas and Harrah's Reno.
- I Dream of Jeannie slot machine. Only one we can find is at TI and its always occupied. You would think if it's that popular, there'd be more. Used to be one at Mirage too, but it's gone.
- I always wanted to try "Vegas Rules Solitaire" (aka Klondike). Did that ever really exist in Vegas? I heard you could buy a deck for $50 and get paid $5 per card in the accumulation rack. [Ed: You can find the answer to this one in the Question of the Day Archives.
- All American video poker. Difficult strategy to learn but if you do, a great game to play.
- Spanish 21. Cosmopolitan had it when they opened but I couldn't find it when I was there last month. Fitzgeralds had it but it went away when it became the D. Excalibur has it, but they don't have the match-the-dealer side bet and that's where you make your money. As far as I know, The Venetian and Palazzo are the only casinos that currently have Spanish 21.
- 3-5-7 Poker! It was a great table game which I would almost always play whenever I saw it. When I first moved out here, 7 years ago now, I had an amazing night at the Fremont where I won more money at that game that night than I ever have since at any other table game. It was a fun, social game. I truly miss it and never really got a good explanation as to where it disappeared to. (Lawsuit? Casino not winning enough money??) Bring it back!
- I miss a game called "Pyramid Dice" At least 20 years ago I played it in Lake Tahoe. Unlike a crap table, it was unintimidating to a novice and was a great game. For me to remember it after 20 years, it really made an impression. It was the first time I ever played a "dice" game and eventually led to my playing craps. It's not around anymore.
- Emperor's Pai Gow: This game can still be found but it is getting harder and harder to find!
- Harley Davidson slot machine. Miss it terribly!
- The game I miss the most is Phantom Belle Video Poker with a bonus payoff game. It was found on the old Odyssey machines from Silicon Gaming (I think). I prefer the Jacks or Better version but there was also a Deuces Wild version. The pay table was bad but there was a playoff card that if it showed up, you went head to head versus 1 of 3 characters. If you won the head-to-head matchup, you would get a progressive jackpot. I was so addicted to the game that I once refused to leave the machine, that had a large bonus jackpot, when Treasure Island cashier's cage was being robbed. I would love to know if there are any still around.
- We liked the Queen's Ransom [giant multi-player slot] at The Four Queens downtown.
- Although I'm mostly a video poker and craps player these days, I mourn the loss of the old pull-handle three-reel slot machines. The modern video slots look cheesy to me, and ultimately I feel like I'm playing an Atari game from the 1980s on my home TV. As a result, I never - ever - play them. They're more expensive and far less satisfying than the old pull-spin-thunk-thunk-thunk.
- Slot machines named Star Trek and (you can't find many of these now) It's a blast. Just love those sheep.
- Men In Black Slot Machine Most fun game ever!
- To answer today's readers poll about games we would miss. I live in Jersey (UK) and visit Vegas every year and have been doing so for about 20 years. There used to be a slot machine (which I only ever saw in The Flamingo), which was called Jockey or Jockey Club and it was simply a horse racing game you could bet and but the visual effects were brilliant. This was back in 2001 but I haven't seen it since and really miss the game. Don't know if you guys have ever heard of this slot machine?
- Blackjack Switch.
- I enjoyed playing some of the silver strike slots, and was exciting to win them. I did not redeem them but have kept the ones I won.
- Austin Powers - the original version.
- The Addams Family slot machine! Ba-ba-ba-bump click click!!!
- My girlfriend and I used to play a 5 quarter Family Feud that we found at MGM, Boardwalk, and Mirage. (I am sure other casino's had the game but I know those places did for sure.) We could play for hours and when one of us got the questions the other would stop playing so we could answer the questions together. Now we can't find it anywhere.
- It would be a an interesting study to see what would happen if one of the big name casinos (i.e. Bellagio, Venetian, Wynn..) made ALL of their roulette wheels single zero for one year. I know some offer one such wheel, but they're normally in the high rollers area or they're too difficult to get on due to crowdedness.
- We miss those quarter push machines. Most people probably consider those silly but my husband and I always had a blast with those and he has some kind of innate ability to land a quarter in the sweet spot. Ah, the good old days. :-) [Ed: You're not alone: Look below!]
- Well this is a first for me. I just had to reply. I miss Flip It. not sure what the real name is. I know it was a sucker bet but so many fond memories of my Dad and I playing this game. You would put your coin in the slot and it would flip up and if it didn’t hit the baskets at the top to win big (which was almost never) you could still hope that the scraper would push coins into spill area and they would drop into the tray. You would anxiously wait and watch as the scraper would nudge and nudge those coins and they would dangle tantalizingly over the lip but they just wouldn’t drop, seemingly defying gravity. You would try and gently nudge the machine and that would work sometimes and a few of those coveted coins would drop. Lots of fun for very little money. My Dad almost got thrown out because the machine jammed and when they opened the door many, many dollar coins fell into the tray they tried to pick them up and my Dad said "Nope, in the tray they are mine." Later that same day, one of the coins went into that coveted hoop type thing at the top and again the same thing happened they accused him of tilting and rigging the machine and called security. We decided it might be best if we left. Great times ;-)
- I would LOVE to find more Bally Gamemakers with Let-It-Ride and/or Pick 'Em on them. The only two I can find are at the Fremont downtown. Can you help me?
- Big Split Poker is the one that I will truly miss if it disappears completely. I have only found it at Planet Hollywood, but it is probably my favorite. You're not likely to get rich on this machine, but it can give a lot of play time for the dollar, and you can certainly come out ahead. Best of all, it really is engaging, as it takes some attention to be sure you're maximizing your wins. Another interesting poll, thanks!
- There is a particular Elvis slot machine that, as far as I know, is still only available at the Four Queens (I hope so, at least). You play 60 cents and get a shot at three possible screens, which is what makes it so interesting. The first screen pays out 1X. If you win anything, you progress automatically to the second, which pays 2X. If you win there, you progress to the third, which pays 4X. It is a very cool game, albeit an older one, and also has great bonuses with Elvis footage as he sings. I've never seen another machine that plays in this style with the advancing boards. It has disappeared from the Hard Rock, Golden Nugget and Biloxi's Hard Rock. I am going to hate when it's gone for good from Vegas!
- I miss the giant sit-down Wheel of Fortune game where many people could sit down and play at once. I think the denomination was pennies or nickels. There are still a few around but they're not the same in what you could select.
- This was really a three-way tie for me between Sigma Derby, Coin-in slots and Sic Bo. Sigma Derby is just a classic game with a fun slower pace, real dirty quarters as the only units, and a different style completely from any other games offered in Vegas. Coin-in slots were simple more fun and personal to me than newer machines. I loved getting a pocket full of quarters and wandering the casino floor randomly dropping one in here and there. Not to mention the fun and noise of the coins when you hit a winner! The old casinos cups also made a very affordable (free!) souvenir on my early trips to Vegas. Ultimately, however, I chose Sic Bo since it always seemed to be an undervalued game. No skill, no strategy, just the best game to sit down with $100 and take advantage of the free drinks while randomly tossing out $1 chips on the board. My group of friends and I had a great time goofing around, a bit drunkenly, at the NY-NY Sic Bo table in the past.
- I would like to see the table game Flop Poker. It is played at some Biloxi and Atlantic City casinos.
- The game I would like to see come back is the dice game Bar-boot. The old Aladdin in the '70s had it.
- It would be great to see lower limit Pai Gow tiles. Most PG tile games now are $50/$100 minimums and not seen much except on the Strip. I took the time to learn this odd game many years ago, and after practicing at home, found a $10 game one day at the old Sands. After winning a few hands, I suddenly had several older Asian men appear, topping my bet with theirs in the betting circle -- something I've never seen before or since. I guess I had the magic Chi or something. Sadly, I'm now relegated to play online PG tiles for the fun of it, as the game has gotten too expensive for me to play in Vegas.
- I miss Keno. The keno girls while you were eating -- laid-back fun.
- I miss the giant sit-down Wheel of Fortune game where many people could sit down and play at once. I think the denomination was pennies or nickels. There are still a few around but they're not the same in what you could select.
- It's not so much the coin-in slots I miss...it's the coin-out slots! Sliding a $20 bill into the machine is much better than dropping in 80 quarters...but the sound of my winnings hitting the hopper and the excitement it would bring me and the people around me can never be replaced by the stupid sound that plays as my ticket is printed...I want the bucket of quarters...I want to stand in line and watch them get counted...and I want the free souvenir coin cups that I would collect as a kid each trip to Vegas.
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