With the year’s end fast approaching, it’s a great time to consider where we’ve been and where we’re heading. Here’s a conversation between CDC’s Buddy Frank and four industry experts on the state of video poker:
- Jay Fennel, Corporate Vice President of Gaming for Golden Entertainment
- Mike Fields, Executive Vice President of Action Gaming and VideoPoker.com
- Bob Dancer, premiere video poker writer and teacher
- Darnell Johnson, IGT’s Director of Video Poker Product Commercialization
CDC – Jay, you’re one of the largest purchasers of video poker games in the country. What is the state of video poker today?
Jay – Honestly, today video poker is a little stale. We’re always looking for new content, and we’re not seeing a lot of it lately nor do we see others doing much with it. We’re actually seeing more interest recently in video keno.
Mike – Certainly the status of the market is that the footprint is shrinking for two reasons: first there is pressure from the players seeking more, or different, entertainment options. And secondly, there’s a migration within the video poker community from single-hand games to multi-hand games where there’s more volatility and entertainment within the video poker environment resulting in some shrinkage in Game King but an increase in multi-hand themes. However, I will say to Jay, that the tavern market is very different from the casino market. Bundled, multi-hand products, like “All-Star II” and “Super Star Poker” are doing very well. And, in the casino market where they are offered on new cabinets like the CrystalSlant Poker, we’re getting great response from players that these packages are more exciting and more entertaining.
Jay – I agree. The casino floor is very different than the tavern environment, and we have a lot more options today.
Bob – Good players are bemoaning the state of video poker because pay tables are getting tighter, the slot clubs are getting tighter and casinos are more willing to restrict players than ever before. For video poker to continue to be successful there must at least be a belief from the players that they can win. They must believe that they can beat the game. But much of that belief is going away today.
CDC – Doesn’t that seem somewhat ironic that even the tightest video poker pay table offered is still looser than the popular video reels that are dominating casino play today?
Jay – I agree that even the tightest pokers are better than our reels, but it’s always been the case playing the games that require the most skill are always looser and the opposite that the tightest games don’t necessarily require anything but luck. However, these games often have the highest entertainment value with exciting bonus rounds.
Bob – It takes a long time to gain the skill required to play video poker at a level where you can get really favorable odds. For players to go through the time, effort and money required to gain those skills, it’s frustrating to find less favorable pay tables.
CDC – But I see players today who will often play a tight game like a 7/5 Jacks or Better when there’s a 9/6 just a few feet away. Despite all the books you’ve written and classes you’ve taught, do players just not know?
Bob – There will always be newcomers. There are only 20% of players who can hold their own against the house and only 3% of those who can really threaten a casino. But even those knowledgeable players are not only looking for good pay tables, they also want a good players club with generous points and other benefits.
Darnell – I respect everyone’s opinions today, but the video poker segment is not as soft as many may think. We see it as strong. Data from Eilers & Krejcik and others shows that 8% to 10% of the entire slot market is video poker today, and it’s been very stable. The bar top landscape has great opportunity. At G2E, we launched a new cabinet, the PeakBarTop, and have a new software pack for both the Game King and the Super Star. We’ve also launched Cobalt 23 at G2E and CrystalSlant Poker earlier this year. These moves provide players and operators with many of the things they are looking for from stronger Video Slot content, new Keno themes, Blackjack options, Roulette and proven Video Poker content all on new cabinets.
Mike – We’re also seeing the trend where companies like Aristocrat want to exploit their slot content with great titles like “Buffalo.” They are actually trying to change the composition of, or intent of the bar patron, since at the end of the day, the goal is to drive as much revenue with high holding games as they can. With that thinking, more slot games make sense. But there has to be a balance. While I absolutely love “Buffalo,” my belief is that a typical bar top player is looking for his money to last through two quarters of football and maybe two beers. That’s pretty standard for video poker, but it’s not something that will happen if you’re playing “Buffalo.” You’d have to be lucky to make it to the end of the first quarter. Again, there’s a need for different products for different players.
Jay – Right, we must have variety. I’m looking forward to the new bar top cabinets from Aristocrat and Scientific Games. And even the new IGT box. As Mike said, there’s not just one type of player, and we have to have games that appeal to everyone. And, it also has to be sustainable. A lot of video poker has gone high end, but we also need games that produce more sustainable revenue over time. We need both.
Darnell – At IGT, we believe many operators will look to leverage conversions and upgrades to bring in new players. We also believe that operators are still defining the right strategy around slot content on the bar and how to properly market that content to the player.
CDC – Darnell, what do you think operators are looking for when buying a new video poker, especially since your earliest IGT Game Kings are still doing very well at many locations.
Darnell – You’re right. We did a really good job on those earlier cabinets. But we also recognize that the market is changing now. We think that now is time for new form factors; it gives the same level of experience but appeals to more customers by offering enhanced features and impressive graphics.
Jay – When “Triple Play” came in 1997, I remember that senior management first only wanted to offer that product in quarters. But it was so strong that we quickly lowered it to nickels. While there wasn’t a lot of variety at first, we just made those simple changes that really worked well. Folks jumped on it, and it really took off. Some folks love “Ultimate X,” others like the single line game until they make a hit, then they move to the richer games. We just try to please everyone.
Darnell – I agree. There is still a strong following of traditional single-hand games and the multi-hand games.
CDC – We’ve noticed that it’s hard to find the simple Jacks or Better game in Las Vegas. Why?
Bob – You’re looking in the wrong casinos. There’s still plenty here if you know where to look. At G2E, I played all the new cabinets: IGT, Aristocrat and Scientific Games. All three were impressive. But there are certain reasons that make some players nervous. We’re recommending that players stay away from the bar top machines with cameras.
(Editor’s Note – The small cameras on the new Scientific Games bar top games were an option to their system and are not standard on that game or any of their cabinets.)
Bob – Jay and others have been talking about games, not pay schedules. With “Ultimate X,” whoever invented it is a genius. But it is extremely difficult to play. Each slot director chooses a level of looseness, say 99% or 98% payback if you are playing “Bonus Poker” or “Double Double,” and the house makes a certain amount on these single line games because most players are only off one or two percent from optimum. But with “Ultimate X” and its many new versions, while the game is fun and has volatility, the house holds much more because these games are harder to master. I think you are going to (lose) some players.
CDC – There’s been a lot of hype about new skill-based games. How does that make you feel when video poker has been around for years and is still one of the strongest skill-based games?
Mike – Video poker is the only game where the pay table is right in front of you. It’s not sexy, but no one has been able to duplicate the success and longevity of video poker.
Bob – I thought live poker and blackjack were the original skill-based games, and they still do pretty well today. But I do think slots may lose some of their revenue to mobile sports betting, which is becoming legal in more and more jurisdictions.
Mike – On the contrary, many of us think sports betting will actually grow the gaming wallet. It will provide other options on the terminal that’s already right in front of you.
Jay – I agree. Sports betting will give the traditional gamer some new excitement, and for operators, we think that when a player has a sports bet win, a good portion of that might be wagered on slots.
Darnell – Video poker was the first true skill game in slots, and we all think that sports betting is showing strong interest. We are producing hardware today that can accommodate both audiences in the future. The next step will be for the operators to educate the players, and it may take some time period to make sure that happens. We are adding more and more skill elements to our video poker games, because when operators request this, they are generally looking for something that attracts a younger audience.
Mike – The flaw in chasing this unicorn of skill or mobile games that we’ve seen so far, where you pay to hit a golf ball, shoot a basketball or whatever, is that you soon learn when playing that you’re not getting better. It’s just not the right formula yet.
Darnell – I agree.
Jay – Who is that future player? Certainly, we all agree that they’ll be using their phones or other mobile devices. But we think we can use that for marketing purposes and combine it with existing products. By tying into the systems, these mobile devices could produce bonuses and other rewards for traditional play.
CDC – What other trends do you see that could make video poker better in the future?
Darnell – The biggest trend we like is adding more volatility to the games. Many of our newest games validate that idea, so we are trying to continue to provide more volatile versions of poker and keno. We’re keeping an eye on that trend.
Jay – With the increased horsepower of the new equipment, we’d like to see new twists on older games. Something like holding a card over multiple hands, or more bonuses based on the number of hands played, or maybe something based on the “color” of the hands.
CDC – Progressive are the hottest trend in video slots, do you look for more of that in video poker?
Jay – Progressives are great, but it’s harder to do with the more limited poker pay table options.
Mike – The onus is on us is to provide new content. I second what Darnell is saying, that you’ll see more volatility. We are looking to blend some of the trends of popular video reel games like “Scarab” or “Buffalo.” We’re also looking forward to making it easier to get cash to our players as the electronic fund transfer technology matures. We’re already seeing strong improvement in form factors. The new cabinets are dramatically better in terms of high definition and clarity. Players have commented frequently that they can see the cards much better on these new cabinets with high definition. We’re also exploiting proven poker themes like the “Super Times Pay Wheel Poker” and other variants on the newer devices.
Bob – We just have to give the players a good gamble. That can include volatility, but it also has to mean some relatively loose pay tables. I don’t see anyone going back to the good ole days, but we can still be loose with the new bells and whistles.
