Slots May Finally Go High Tech

Filed in archive Casinos on January 4, 2006

Its interesting to watch how slow moving the slots industry is at times. With rows of old-style 3-reel mechanical slots still taking up the majority of gaming space at many casinos, the slots industry often seems to be stuck in an timewarp as many other industries finally get to grips with technology.

Video-based technology finally began to make its way into casinos a few years back - but server-based technology - whilst being available for years - has yet to be realised by casino operators and slots manufacturers - barring a few smaller companies. But to be fair - its not just the manufacturers that have been slow to look at new technology - it seems to have been just as hard for those poor old regulators to get their head around those small things such as Windows and Central Servers

Traditionally, updating slot machines on the floor is a laborious task - engineers need to be called, boxes need to be removed, components changed and game-time is lost.

However, server-based slots allow new games to be downloaded at anytime - or the player to choose which game they'd like to play with whatever denomination they choose. Its more like personalised slot playing.

The top Nevada players in server-based games --- Reno-based slot machine behemoth International Game Technology and Las Vegas rival Alliance Gaming --- are excited to bring the technology to the market, but aren't talking much about how it will change a slot player's experience. They don't want to tip their competitive hands.

In the early stages, the focus will be on how the technology can make a slot floor more profitable for operators.

"Today, if I have a slot floor with 2,000 machines and I want to make changes, I'd have to go to each and every one of them, open them up and change out the components," IGT spokesman Ed Rogich said. "Not only does that take a lot of time, but the machines are down for that period of time."

...But with server-based games, every machine is electronically linked to a central computer file server and changes can be made in the time it takes for a software download. With the large bandwidth most slot systems use, changes can be made almost instantaneously.

Of course, the issue is whether thats what players actually wants - many still miss the sound of hundreds of quarters dropping - replaced quickly by ticketing and vouchers. There's also the problem of teaching non-technology players how to manipulate the menu systems that server-based gaming may require.

And at the end of the day - the casinos are only going to offer whatever brings in the most profit - new technology will just have to wait in line

Article: New technology promises gambling as you like it