PROFILE WHO’S WHO | Troy Zurawski This month: Design Works Gaming’s CEO and President
How did you first get involved with the gaming industry?
My grandfather moved to Las Vegas in 1947, quickly becoming a pit boss for Binion’s Hotel/Casino. 20 years later, he left his casino management position at the Dunes to open a rare coin store on Las Vegas Blvd. My father followed suit in that business, and later founded a company in 1990 to manufacture tokens for Las Vegas casinos. This was before the ‘ticket in ticket out’ system was introduced across most casinos which made the tokens obsolete. I joined the family business at an early age and went to my first trade show (what has now become G2E) in 1991. Gaming has always been a big part of my life, being born and raised in Las Vegas and surrounded by the industry. I founded DWG in 2005, first designing slot games for land-based casinos and later operating social casino games. We are now taking the next step into RMG in the UK.
What attracted you to this sector? Las Vegas is what the gaming sector is all about. Growing up there means you will always somehow be working for the industry, as my family did, as managers, dealers or as a bartender at a casino. My first experience with slots was visiting my grandparents as a child. In Nevada it is common to have slot machines in your home and I was intrigued by the mechanics of the game and mesmerised by the
reels and trying to get matches. That affinity made it an obvious choice for me to join the family business and work with products that I love and later setting up my own company to develop slots.
What were you doing prior to the gaming industry?
I was at school. I studied at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. But before founding DWG and after leaving the family business I joined Suburban Graphics as a Director of Art in Las Vegas. After that I joined Atronic in Arizona, an Austrian company now part of IGT, where I was a Game Development Manager. I moved to Arizona, where DWG is now based, as Las Vegas changed following a boom in both people, investment and growth of the strip which saw the famous megaresorts being built. The old classy Vegas disappeared, and the city became a bit of an amusement park. Moving to Arizona, I was still near the gaming hub that Vegas still is.
What are you responsible for in your current position?
As a CEO and President of DWG it is my duty to oversee the entire management and vision, but I am also the Executive Game Designer for the company. Lately, my focus has been on establishing our UK arm where we will launch RMG for the first time. We have hired Andy Harris, former Realistic Games CEO, to head up the UK business. We’re hoping to have a licence and be up and running shortly.
What have been the biggest industry changes you’ve seen in your time?
I would have to say that the biggest change has been the ease of access to the products. What we are doing now is trying to bring casino games into people’s home rather than asking them to come to us. What we are trying to do is no different to Amazon, or other retailers that are trying to make it as convenient as possible for the customers to access a product or service.
What are the biggest positive factors for your sector right now?
The biggest positive factor is the accessibility to data, and if you’re not thinking that, you’re not thinking correctly. We use the data to improve our products and deliver what the players want. Back in the day we would sit in a room and brainstorm about what games could possibly be a hit with players. Now we use the data we have to see what themes, designs and math work and what demographics they are successful in. We can also trends such as popular TV shows, music etc.
70 JUNE 2019 CIO
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