G2E ASIA 2011
simultaneously. For example, if they select Roulette as their game choice, they can choose two wheels, and just keep playing. It means downtime for the player is at a minimum and stimulation is at a maximum. Alfastreet’s Albert Radman told us: “This will be placed in large numbers around Asia in the very near future. We already have an installation in Marina Bay, Singapore, of 40 units, and it’s working well.” As for the company’s continued success in
the Asian region, Albert says they know what they are doing and what they must do to sustain it: “We know the customers and we know how to please them: with complete support for a beautiful product.”
Exciting developments at Atronic, aside from
their excellent slots, are on the systems side. The company’s new CEO is very focussed on innovation, and it’s already showing in the company’s offering. What we saw at G2E Asia is available shortly – or even already – and uses genuine imagination and innovation to help the casino operator streamline their operations even more effectively. Of note was FloorMaster, a piece of software which communicates to the back office the whole gaming floor, who is playing the slots, how much has been bet, how much lost, duration of play, and much more. It communicates everything about the gaming floor, in real time. Another innovation on the RGB stand for
Atronic was VIVO – Virtual In, Virtual Out, a cashless system which allows players to use an iPhone alongside RFID technology to cash in and out; gaming with a virtual wallet. With the emergence of mobile commerce, this could grow and grow. It also reduces cost over time, as there is no need for a printer or paper in a TITO sense. The company was also showcasing a social
networking-style gaming innovation within the casino, so players can set up an avatar and challenge other players in the property. Then players can use another Atronic Systems creation called myBar to buy another player – or themselves, of course – a drink. myGuest is a further innovation from
Atronic, a tool for a slot manager working their floor to work on their smartphone so they can see information about the players on the floor; player level, coin balance, status in player tracking terms… myGuest is a great weapon in the fight to retain customers by increasing guest service levels. And if that’s not enough, myChoice is a way
to get customer feedback on games. The slot machine has an RFID tag on it which the customer’s smartphone can then touch to download and rate the game. Everything is
recorded to the casino’s central server, and it’s a quick and simple way for customers to tell the casino what they like and don’t like.
Inspired Gaming Group
brought their Sabre cabinet to Asia to make its debut with GLI-compliant Multi-Win Roulette content,
alongside the not- yet-approved Multi-Win Baccarat. Sabre’s a great- looking cabinet, and combining it with Asia’s number one card game should result in some success for Inspired. The playing interface is really crisp and intuitive, simple enough to pick up easily but slick enough for a player to be impressed – and it gives the player the potential to bet across four wheels or games simultaneously, which should certainly appeal to the Asian market. The player can play one of four types of Baccarat, which should increase the appeal. There are two core types of Baccarat – commission and non-commission, but in our variant on Sabre we have commission, non- commission (Super 6), and a side-bet (based on drawing pairs) commission version, plus a side- bet non-commission version. Sabre gives Inspired an excellent platform to develop their side bets for Baccarat, expect developments on this before next year’s G2E Asia. Their stand was extremely busy; Inspired is
doing very well in Asia, particularly outside of Macau in Laos, Vietnam and many other emerging gaming markets.
Bally’s presence was predictably large, considering the size of the hall; slots dominated with several titles displaying the creativity the company is famed for. The show saw the Asian launch of the extremely impressive Pro Series
cabinet, with the Alpha 2 platform, and the superb iDeck technology, rendering the button panel a touchscreen – and therefore completely customisable, which is particularly important when you factor in server-based gaming. The ‘spin’ button has been retained though, as it’s the one constant through slot machines. Much of the Bally offering had been seen at G2E in Las Vegas late last year, but there are some improvements and refinements; the company has taken the care to translate all of the in-play screens to Simplified Chinese, along with all help screens, for the local market. Cash Spin, which has been doing well for
Bally internationally to say the least, was also available for the Asian market. It’s a wonderful looking slot, bright, colourful and instinctive, even with touchscreen technology in use for spinning the bonus wheel. Importantly for the Asian customer, Bally has added the option for the player to choose their own volatility for the game. As slots continue to pick up in Macau and across Asia, expect this to lead the charge.
Cammegh used the show to meet potential
new customers and to grow the reputation of their Roulette wheels and associated tools. Cammegh play the long game, as Richard Cammegh explained: “We’ve been building our brand, building awareness in this region, and building relationships over time; that’s what we do here.” On the stand they were showing the Slingshot 2, Crystal Wheel, and the new Mercury 360, which they say is the most sophisticated wheel they have ever done. It includes an Ethernet port so the wheel can give play statistics across a network, plus a built-in electronic level sensor for easy setup, and the display model included their random rotor innovation, which increases security. Speaking of which, there is a tamper switch within which records any suspicious activity with the wheel, and Wheel Manager software is included. The wheel also remembers every spin in its life and records it all for checking, so suspected dealer collusion can be investigated using the wheel’s records alongside security cameras.
TransAct’s Epicentral Print System was front and centre for the thermal printer company, as they offered personal demonstrations to customers to highlight the potential for marketing directly into the customer’s lap as they play slots. The system works with any slot machine and uses the Epic 950 TITO printer, regardless of game manufacturer or slot system. The exhibition comes hot on the heels of
JULY-AUGUST 2011 39
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