p30-38 community gaming.qxd:Layout 1 24/03/2009 08:29 Page 34
COMMUNITY GAMING
Playing together
Community Gaming has moved from hard-wired slot tournaments of a
few years ago, to the imminent, totally flexible, server-based slot
floor… and it is offering new layers of attraction to players, while
giving operators new tools to manage customer relationships more
powerfully, as Graeme Kidd discovers.
P
eople enjoy playing games together in friends. Community Play is the IGT community
groups, according to Kurt Quartier, IGT’s product, and Super Spin, which has now established
President of International Casino Markets, itself internationally, was the first.”
who looks after Europe, Asia, and Latin WMS, too, is chasing that social aspect of
America for the company. His global community gaming, which involves “leveraging what
perspective leads him to assert that there are no the players’ expectations are and doing new things
geographical or cultural boundaries to group with it,” as VP Game Development for Worldwide
gameplay… “Everybody plays card games. Everybody Studios, Phil Gelber explains.
plays board games,” he says. “The games themselves “When the big event happens, everyone is in it
may differ slightly, but it’s human nature to want to together, they are all cheering together, it starts to
play a game in a group.” become like a live craps game where everyone wants
Traditional table gaming lends itself naturally to the big outcome, because everyone wants to have a
group or community play. Since the earliest slot share in the win. Or in the case of a competitive
Tournament games sought to deliver a similar game, where one person is going to win big, it’s kind
community element to the slot floor, of a special moment for that player.”
community play has proved popular, and “The community game is usually a lively bank in a
has been generally casino on a Friday night, with people yelling at it. It
well-received by creates that kind of vital experience at the bank. That
players and by was one of our initial design goals three and a half
operators. years ago. With Monopoly Big Event what we wanted
Quartier says: was a Craps-like experience, we wanted people angry
“It’s an and yelling, building excitement. It was a wild-fire
extension of success for us, and we have continued to build and
what has leverage on that.”
happened with Generating that excitement is important: “we put a
multi game lot of production values in, 3D effects – it gives a
Roulette little more entertainment,” Gelber says. But It’s also
stations, about encouraging players to spend more and spend
Baccarat faster. WMS keeps in mind the gambling experience,
stations, and the operator’s priorities: “…the more the player
horseracing bets, the higher the multiplier,” says Gelber. “If you
stations – where are big gambler, you go in with a big multiplier, so
people are all in you have your upside, versus someone who just wants
that same game to come in, spend a bit less and dabble, but still share
together. in that experience equally.”
Community Play is “An algorithm monitors where your consistent bet
eBay video slots in larger-than-life just extending that to video slots.” has been, how fast you are playing, and that gives you
configuration. Based on the world’s
“Players like the element of competition,” he says. the multiplier. The multiplier moves dynamically
most famous electronic marketplace,
“They like being in contact with other people – you depending on your speed of play and how much you
eBay Video Slots feature a
are not just sat there by your lonesome self. Why do are betting.”
Community Play Free Spins bonus
and big-screen reels.
people go to casinos? Not just to gamble. It’s also to
meet, greet, socialise and so on. That is an important Adding skills to gameplay
aspect of the physical community games. It’s fun Skill-based gaming and time-based gaming may be
playing Wheel of Fortune Super Spin with a couple of features of future community slots – IGT’s acquisition
30 APRIL 2009
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54