Without a doubt, the opening question when any two gaming pros gather for the next few weeks will be: “What did you think about G2E?” My go-to answer about this year’s edition is a single line: it was the best show in years.
photo by Cory Roberts/CDC Gaming Reports
But that’s the shorthand version. If you have time to mull over lunch, here’s a bit more detail:
License deals – Brand names were again everywhere, but few, if any, were new. The jury is still out on how long the last big one, James Bond, will last, but overall brands haven’t really been that strong for several years, Wheel of Fortune notwithstanding. Due to their high cost, many branded slots are released in a WAP format with higher fees based on a percentage of coin in. Yet today, most slot directors seem to prefer the less expensive lease model of fee per day. Who can argue with the amazing success of “88 Fortunes,” “Lightning Links,” or “Dragon Links”? Those, and many more, from Buffalo to Dancing Drums, have become major hits with no superstars attached. This trend looks here to stay; the Las Vegas Strip may be the only exception. However, I did hear some grumbling that one or two vendors were boosting the prices on their non-brand leased games, so don’t be surprised if there is some future operator pushback even on those hits.
ETGs – It was five or six years ago that Electronic Table Games were designated as the next big overnight thing. That, needless to say, didn’t happen. Instead, they’ve been slowly and steadily growing after a weak start, and the latest models at G2E were bigger, brighter and loaded with new features. I’m convinced that ETGs will, eventually, be the next big thing – or at least a next big thing – but growth can take a while.
Sports betting – How many more seminars about this topic can you fit into a single show season? I was very pessimistic about this segment in the past; last year, when only Nevada had both bricks & mortar and mobile online betting, the total revenue generated was less than that of 25¢ slots. But now I’m beginning to doubt my doubts. New Jersey has already moved ahead of Nevada in just their first year offering sports wagering, and since New York is still sitting out, Jersey is getting all the Big Apple’s money (sort of reminiscent of how the biggest California lottery stations are all on the Nevada border). But it is still a sign that, with the wider adoption of mobile, this category may yet become a winner worthy of the hype. My only remaining concern is that turf battles (Native Americans vs. card rooms and racetracks, for example) could mean a lengthy delay in California, one of the biggest potential markets.
Facial Recognition – If you didn’t see this at the show, rest assured: these cameras saw you, particularly if you were in the Scientific Games booth. Their almost-invisible cameras were on a number of machines, and the resulting data was fed into the Amazon cloud, where the task of segmenting, identifying, and recording you occurs. UNLV’s Law School has done several papers on the topic, and there was a Thursday seminar on the subject at G2E. The technology, which was so-so a few years ago, is now vastly improved, and the upside to its use is a safer, more compliant and efficient casino. The obstacles that remain are privacy concerns, regulation and laws like the one in Illinois that prevents storage of facial data.
FinTech – G2E 2019 was the first time I’d heard this new acronym for Financial Technology. Everyone – including the AGA’s Bill Miller – assured us that the topic deserves a trendy name (wasn’t “cashless” or “EFT” good enough?). There is no doubt that gaming is way behind in this field, but in fairness, we have some unique challenges, especially with problem gaming. There were some encouraging signs, however. ACS’ PlayOn* cashless gaming system was fully approved in Nevada this year after having worked well in large table game operations in California using PIN Debit for years. JCM Global and Everi both either showed or talked about some prototypes at G2E that could bring slots into the mix. Overall, there were a dozen vendors promoting the topic at G2E, and I think we’ve finally arrived at the tipping point. It’s about time. (*Disclosure – the author has done consulting work for ACS.)
All the Same – I spent some time at the show with a client who was new to gaming. His most interesting comment about slots was that “they all look alike.” And he was right: the giant cabinets, curved LCD screens, multiple progressives and flashy lighting have become standard, and everyone now seems to have a locking reels mechanic and some form of persistence bonusing. From my perspective, it represents greater parity. While some say the Dodgers and Yankees are the strongest teams in baseball, neither one has won the World Series in over a decade (the Dodgers are at 31 years and counting) because there’s more parity in MLB. That’s taken a while in the slot world, but today the next hit game theme or cabinet could come from anywhere. And that’s a good thing.
Returning faces – John Acres and Andrew Cardno are two of the most brilliant innovators in gaming. John virtually invented player tracking; bonusing; progressive displays and more. Andrew brought cartography, visualization and advance analytics to the casino floor. After short absences, both are launching new gaming startups again. While not everything they try works, I wouldn’t bet against either one of them.
Better information – It used to be impossible to get objective information about performance on slot floors, unless it was your floor. Vendors shared only what was in their self-interest. But now ReelMetrics and the Eilers–Fantini group provide solid data for their clients. Such services are invaluable to investors, game designers and, especially, operators. There is no downside to having more, and more accurate, data.
Thank you – to Brooklyn Bowl at the Linq, a great place for a party, and thanks for hosting us, Sci Games. Cheers to Wynn for dropping their parking fees, and please, Caesars and MGM, be next. The best soap dispensers anywhere are in the Sands Expo bathrooms. They give a very generous helping of rich foam. (Unfortunately, when you rinse off, they might deposit another generous helping on your shirt sleeve.) Thank you, El Cortez, for doing a great job of remodeling your hotel rooms and for having one of the best elevated views of the strip anywhere. The “Best G2E Freebie” honor goes to Everi, for the Zoltar squeeze balls that are the perfect density for stress relief and wrist strength. Thank you to the AGA for providing all the G2E Information standard-bearers, all of whom gave great directions, answered even idiotic questions and managed to look fresh at the end of each day. And finally, thank you to the team of great writers at CDC Gaming Reports, headed by Howard Stutz and Cory Roberts, for covering all the events I wish I hadn’t missed.
G2E logistics – With partial automation, registration for the show was easier than ever, despite a new requirement that attendees show ID to register in person. Organizers explained that security concerns are making such things mandatory everywhere. Likewise, the G2E mobile app has improved quite a bit over the years, as have the kiosks pictured at right. The AGA said buyers’ attendance was up 10%, but the number of vendors, approximately 400, remained about the same as in past years. That didn’t seem to make sense with all the new booths this year, like Google Cloud and the dozens dealing with artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, mobile solutions, sports betting and new computer software. Then I realized that mergers and acquisitions have taken a toll on booths. Scientific Games used to be five different vendors. The same goes for AGS, Everi, Aristocrat, Novomatic, IGT and others. Split them all up again, and there would be at least 100 more displays.
The Frank Slot Awards – Aristocrat took top honors – again – and Dollar Storm could be their third mega-hit in a row. But with their greater depth of product, including shufflers, table games, ETGs and lottery, Scientific Games deserves a share of that top spot. IGT is also back on track (newsflash: their core games are good). If the others hadn’t also made great improvements this year, IGT could have moved into one of the top two spots. For Most Improved, Konami and Everi were the finalists. I wound up giving Konami the edge; they showed broader product lines, innovative mechanics, product refinements, and signs of strong future growth. Likewise, last year’s introduction of the Muzo Triple-27 line has put Aruze back in contention.
Speaking of awards, video poker genius Ernie Moody of Action Gaming and Incredible Technologies’ founder and CEO Elaine Hodgson were inducted into the AGA’s Gaming Hall of Fame on Tuesday evening. From a slot perspective, I can’t think of any better choices. The links lead to CDC’s profiles of the two honorees.
As I said earlier, it was one of the best shows in years. Hopefully, I can say the same in 2020. It will be in the same place, but a week earlier from October 5th to the 8th.
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