Aha! This is a most timely question, since Chinese New Year is looming. We also recently received a missive from our friend VitalVegas, who wanted to pick our brains about some commemorative NFR chips he'd heard about, which prompted us to dig into the most recent Chip & Token Reports published by the Nevada State Gaming Control Board. We were surprised by what we found... But we'll get back to that in due course.
As is customary, we'll be posting a guide to the entertainment and more notable culinary aspects of Las Vegas' Chinese New Year celebrations a little closer to the time, since a lot of festivities have yet to be announced or confirmed. (You can rest assured that there will be decorations, dragon dances, Asian-headliner performances, food fests, and more.) Historically, however, one of the more popular aspects of this annual Lunar New Year celebration in Las Vegas has been the issuance, by multiple casinos, of collectible commemorative chips. It was a tradition we covered closely for many years and, back in the day, the number of participating casinos was easily in double digits. Then, in 2013, things got a little strange and, for reasons that we could never fully get to the bottom of, the practice of issuing special chips, especially of the "lucky" $8 denomination variety, is now practically extinct.
We realize that this was not the specific question you posed, but the answer to your query is the same as it would be for Chinese New Year, NFR, and any other type of limited-edition "novelty" chip or gaming token -- or even for a completely no-frills standard chip, for that matter. We've covered this in depth in the past, most recently last year, so we won't go over all the same ground again (anyone interested in the epic saga should check out the Question of the Day Archives 1/27/14). Suffice it to say that it's a gaming-regulation violation to sell any casino chip. They have no intrinsic worth and are simply representative tokens of a certain cash value, to be redeemed later by the casino that issued them. They are not meant to be used to tip or to purchase anything, nor are they supposed to leave the property to which they belong. (See Regulation 12 of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board for the complete lowdown, should you care.)
Hence, for a casino to refuse to "sell" you a chip simply means they are complying with the rules. (Binion's and Four Queens are under the same ownership, so it makes sense that they'd act consistently.) If you wish to obtain a chip with the intention of keeping it, then you need to play the game, as it were, and technically "buy in" for that amount -- it's basically a matter of semantics, but if you make it clear that you plan to violate a gaming regulation, a well-informed cage will be obliged to deny your request.
Still, while that's the letter of the law, it's a fact that not all cashier's cages are well-informed, plus it's a another fact that, in many instances, blind eyes are turned toward what is a pretty minor and harmless infraction in the general scheme of things. Such was the case with the commemorative chips issued each year to celebrate Chinese New Year and what makes these a particularly good case study is the fact that often they are/were issued in "lucky" $8 denominations -- not a normal value for any chip.
Last year, for reasons that remain unclear (but which we hope were not anything to do with us perennially shining a light on the subject in this column!), most casinos ceased to offer these celebratory chips. The cages we consulted (and other sources) collectively "blamed" Gaming Control; the latter professed to no change of policy. Whatever the cause, the bottom line was that barely any commemorative chips were forthcoming in 2014.
This year, we expected more (or rather less) of the same, but were surprised to find that a number of casinos will still offer Chinese New Year chips that are valid for use in the casino. Interestingly, however, those few examples of $8 chips that were approved this year are exclusively of the NCV ("no cash value") variety. Here's what we've learned:
Note that often there's a cap on how many of these chips an individual can obtain at the cage (another giveaway that they're not treated as regular chips, even though they should be) and the rarer they get, the more collectible these become, so arrive early if you don't want to miss out. Just remember to make it clear that you are buying in as opposed to buying, so no one gets in any trouble and you don't get shut out.
