Exhibition G2E LAS VEGAS 2013
BLADE - THE
CUTTING EDGE Licences dominated the stand, but it was the latest Blade games that have been making the headlines for WMS
The focus of attention on the WMS Gaming stand may have centred on its big brand licenses, including Iron Man, Ferris Buellers Day Off and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but it's the Blade platform that's making the real headlines for the company.
Speaking to Robin Littleworth, WMS Gaming Senior Director Games Studios Game Development, at G2E 2013, he centred on the development of Blade and the latest games that have proved so popular with operators and players from a standing start.
"In creating Blade, we made a product targeted at the core gambler and launched in March 2013 with five different game families with 6x4 and 5x4 configurations, including Great Zeus, Raging Rhino, Lady Godiva etc., which were good brands with well known mechanics," said Mr. Littleworth. "We're still supporting Bluebird, but the Blade product features the latest CPUNXT3 platform with two widescreen monitors, which means that we have the horse-power and architecture to drive next-gen gameplay and visuals, plus we have an ergonomic button panel, modern trim and lighting and amazing sound to complete the package."
In creating the Blade cabinet, WMS Gaming stripped away all the paraphernalia that modern slots have clothed themselves in and de-blinged the cabinet to provide the essentials in the purest, cleanest form. "We know that the avid gambler doesn't want the 'bells and whistles,' attributed to the big brand games, they want to be able to define their own experience, which they can do from the options menu, and they want us to remove the myriad of win-lines cluttering their screen," explained Mr. Littleworth. "For the Blade, we took away the lines, replacing them with dynamic symbols that illustrate the win and don't over complicate the game. Instead, we offer games that are both intuitive and compelling - and available very soon. Everything on the floor
5 4
house average," stated Mr Littleworth. "We also offer an upgrade path for our older Bluebird cabinet to CPUNXT3 and new content for operators looking to make the most of their existing hardware. I'd like to say that the Blade has outperformed the updated Bluebird cabinets, but the truth is that they're performing to almost the same levels. Our hit ratio with these games has been phenomenal."
"We're still supporting Bluebird, but the Blade product features the latest CPUNXT3 platform with two widescreen monitors, which means that we have the horse-power and architecture to drive next-gen gameplay and visuals.” Robin Littleworth, WMS Gaming.
at G2E will be available by June of next year, which includes 14 game families for Blade, 85 per cent of which are new maths experiences. We are offering dozens of new games - not clones!"
One of the guarantees that has helped Blade secure an immediate footprint across the States is the WMS performance plan, through which the company offers free conversions on games that fall below the floor threshold. It's meant that operators have purchased with confidence and to date, WMS hasn't had to swap out any of its Blade games on any floor in the US. "We launched five games and all are performing at 1.55 times the
In addition to Blade's video catalogue, the Blade three reel steppers are targeted at the core mechanical reels players by again keeping things simple. A stripped down button panel, a single line game, a straight-forward mechanical handle, big bright non-transmissive reels and an all-LCD screen than looks like glass, but adds clarity and dynamism to the background, are all part of a slickly targeted machine that aims to launch in March of next year.
Before running through big name licences on the Gamefield XD cabinet, Mr. Littleworth tours the Blade branded content with I Love Lucy and Happy Days showing the kind of volatility games and targeted older demographic licence that cannily brings the latest hi-tech gaming technologies to an audience who's uninterested in the motion-chairs and dynamic surround- sound, but who wants the latest game mechanics that only the CPUNXT3 platform can provide. "We're still supporting CPUNXT2," confirms Mr. Littleworth, "but ideally I'd like to get a CPUNXT3 into those cabinets and really show players what they're missing."
Among the casual games headlining at the front
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