According the lead slot-machine authority Frank Legato, what you probably saw was International Game Technology's Texas Tea Pinball. It looks like this but what you saw was evidently an experimental version. According to Legato, Texas Tea Pinball is still being tweaked and is not available to casinos yet. There's no video of it online and the IGT website does not show it among the many sample games that can be previewed on the Internet.
That doesn't mean it failed to garner attention on the show floor. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that it "took a time-tested video spinning reel game and added traditional pinball as the bonus challenge. Skilled pinball players can cause an oil gusher and earn large rewards." Casino Journal added that the game "received positive operator feedback." The Motley Fool, searching for skill-based slots, was less impressed, calling it one of several "low-risk, no-brainers."
The game is the latest in IGT's Texas Tea subgenre of games, based on a concept licensed from Norris Pinball. Game graphics include armadillos and oil derricks, not to mention virtual host Texas Ted. A non-pinball Texas Tea game can be seen here.
Texas Tea Pinball isn't the first game to attempt to marry the slot and pinball genres. According to Legato, Konami had its own variant, Jackpot Island. Introduced in 2011, it was a true hybrid, incorporating pinball flippers on the sides of the game cabinet. If you squint hard, you can see them.
Konami literature proclaimed, "In the bonus round, the player launches and manipulates a pinball to win extra credits. The game adds a new element of excitement and combined with the excellent graphics more in-tune with a video game, will target a younger gaming demographic in the casino."
Jackpot Island, complete with a video demonstration, is still in the Konami catalogue. As the casino industry is pressured to incorporate more skill elements into slot games, we may see additional games like it and Texas Tea Pinball but two games in five years doesn't constitute much of a trend to date.
