Mike FriedmanEvery year, my wife and I go to Las Vegas in October for vacation. The weather can’t be beat and the city isn’t particularly crowded. This year, our trip coincided with the Global Gaming Expo, otherwise known as G2E. G2E is a great venue to learn about the future of slot machines and gaming technology.
G2E describes itself as “the largest gathering of global, commercial and tribal gaming professionals in North America.” The trade show does cover table games, casino equipment, back office technology and pretty much anything else you can think of (although I’m not sure why Omaha Steaks was there), but the main focus for most of us are the slot machine demonstrations.
Over the past several years, however, demographics have turned against the machines. Millennials represent the largest demographic of generations old enough to gamble, and they have shown a much greater preference for table games, not to mention all the other activities that the city has to offer. So for the past several years, casinos have been trying to up their game on the technology front and reorient themselves to a crowd that wants to do more than pull a handle. Here are some of the most interesting themes that vendors were showing:
The Future Of Slot Machines
Updated Graphics for the Machines
A few years ago, the biggest innovation was adding real-life “themes” to the game, ranging from Wheel of Fortune to The Simpsons. Games even added videos from the shows to gameplay. And that hasn’t gone away entirely. For instance, one of this year’s hits goes back 25 years:
Innovations – The Future of Slot Machines
But the essential digital experience of the game hasn’t changed. Most of the graphics still look like something a bit more advanced than Atari. That’s beginning to change, though, as manufacturers are starting to redesign the visuals to appeal to the next generation. A couple of the future of slot machines innovations that I saw included cartoons…
Catapult King from Gamblit had graphics that looked more like the app Clash of Clans and less like a traditional machine. It was full-on cartoon and had excellent 3-D technology. Look at the picture above and try to figure out where the stand ends and the screen begins.
The most interesting new design, though, came from Aristocrat, which has introduced comic book visuals on the top box:
It’s going to take some time to figure out how to integrate the story line into the overall game, something WMS tried less-than-successfully with its Star Trek machines several years ago, but the design element is interesting enough that it’s going to keep players coming back.
Gaming Technology
Skill-Based/Skill-Enhanced Machines
One of the traditional knocks on slot machines is that there is no skill involved. You simply pull a lever and hope for the best. They’re now looking at options where you can actually influence the game.
Manufacturers have previously taken shots at introducing skill elements, but they have generally ended in frustration because the games weren’t imaginative enough (Ripley’s Believe it or Not) or the controls were difficult to use (I’m looking at you, Frogger.). And they’ve always presented regulatory issues.
Some of the newer games and gaming technology that I saw, though, look like they have a better shot at success. In some cases, they have bonus rounds that look exactly like games that you are already playing:
These machines follow on the tradition of taking a pop culture theme and turning it into a slot machine. Does this look familiar to anyone?
The game will randomize the amount you win but, according to the representatives that I spoke with, getting a better score on the “game” portion of the bonus will generally result in a higher payout.
So apparently, all those hours that you spent playing video games might actually turn out to be worth something!
Sports Betting Technology Is Better Than Ever
Okay, so it’s not a slot machine, but the gaming technology and kiosks for sports betting look better than ever. Even in the past year, the casinos have made huge leaps in terms of what you can do without having to head to the desk every time. And, as sports betting becomes legalized in more jurisdictions, self-serve kiosks will play an increasingly important role, by saving time for customers and labor costs for the casinos.
So Where Do We Stand with Slot Machines?
Casino technology and the future of slot machines is always evolving, and what I saw at G2E certainly doesn’t change that notion. Manufacturers will continue to search for new ways to sell to the next generation of gamblers, and I expect that the line between the types of games that you find on your phone and what you see on the slot floors will continue to blur, possibly to the point of eliminating the difference altogether.
