Aruze Gaming accepts no compromises in game and product development
There’s a saying that practice makes perfect. But in the case of gaming equipment manufacturer Aruze, founded in Japan, it’s more a case of perfect makes perfect. Steve Walther, Vice President Marketing, Aruze Gaming America Inc, explains how the company is continuing the Japanese tradition for excellence in product research, development and delivery.
Inside Asian Gaming: What’s new from Aruze at G2E this year?
Steve Walther: We have 50% more product this year than we did last year, and an almost 100% new line up of games. Despite the range of our game library we’re very focused. We could come out with 300 titles and know that only 20 are going to work. Instead, we release 15 titles and know all 15 are going to work. We’re very deliberate about the titles we release, and the quality of the work. Our chairman [Kazuo Okada] has no compromises in terms of what product goes out the front door. Even if we’ve sunk a significant amount of money into it he’s very happy to stop the development of a project until it reaches the quality where he’s proud of putting Aruze’s logo on the product.
There are still some old favourites like Jackpot Battle Royal™ [a G-LINK® linked game] and Lucky Sic Bo™ [multi-terminal game] etc, but predominantly we have a new line up of games. Our G-DELUXE multiple bonus games that your readers may have seen with Bow Wow Bucks™ and Vampire and Beauty™ last year is rocking right now in the market. We have new products like Oiran™ telling the story of the elite of Japan’s geisha. We also have Chinese Queen™, which is based on the story of Yang Guifei. She was a woman who was wooed by an emperor of China and became an imperial consort. So we’re telling more stories through our games and we’re getting more intricate with our top boxes and our engaging interactive displays. We’re bringing the game closer to what people want to see.
At the very front of our exhibit area is our Paradise Fishing™ product, which I believe is the pinnacle of entertainment because not only does it bring the exciting graphics, the sounds of the communal, competitive gaming that’s associated with link-style gaming in today’s market, but also we added a feature there called Reel Feel™ Gaming Technology. When you hold on to the reel that’s built right into the slot machine, you can actually move the worm up and down on the screen and when the fish strikes the reel, it [the reel] actually vibrates and shakes and you can actually feel the ‘fish’ being pulled in.
By adding that touch effect were you trying to create a home gaming-type experience?
It’s about adding that additional opportunity of touch to the game. You’ve got the sounds, you’ve got the visuals, you’ve got the music, you’ve got the thrill of the game, and now you’re literally putting something in the palm of a player’s hand to give them that extra gaming experience.
How important is it that your games really stand out on the floor?
You can’t walk by the corner where this year [at G2E] we have Paradise Fishing without stopping and taking a look. The detail on the graphics is such that fish that are swimming around at the front of the display then go to the ‘back’ of the ‘tank’. It’s a very realistic experience and a very fun one too.
You’ve seen the effect of putting the action into the players’ hands with the ‘bash button’ on Lucky Sic Bo. You’re now seeing it with Shoot to Win Craps™ out now in Macau. There’s also our Lucky Big Wheel. It’s a Big Six version of the game where the people that are betting actually pull the handle to make the wheel spin. That’s another example of giving that extra angle, that extra flair on the gaming floor. Gaming is no longer just about winning combinations and presenting the result. Gaming is more about the complete entertainment experience.
Are you going after particular competitors with this entertainment strategy?
We’re looking to carve out our own niche on the gaming floor. Or you could think of it as a beachhead, so-to-speak. We get known as a provider of high value high entertainment engaging games, and we start to expand our market share around the globe. A number of our competitors are experiencing momentary identity crises. What do they want to be, how do they want to do it? When there’s turmoil [in the market], there’s opportunity to move in and carve out your own niche.
We have a very strong visionary leader [Kazuo Okada] and he’s been featured in your magazine as such. He’s got a clear vision of providing greater value back to the players and thus generating greater value for the enterprise. I think we’re demonstrating that here with a lot of the products that we have, in terms of the potential for interaction, the stories, the engaging nature of the games.
Tell us about the recent installation on the floor at The Venetian Macao.
We’ve actually carved out an Aruze ‘area’ where we’ve banked into that area our multiple bonus games, some of our standalone product, some of our classic free game style games with the features, and we’ve moved in some of our Lucky Sic Bo and some of our Shoot to Win Craps. The bottom line is you’ve got an amazing area that’s dedicated to Aruze product. And when people are waiting to play one style of game, they’re easily entertained by another style of game. It’s really lifted up the performance of that area from a banking and a grouping perspective.
How did that strategy come about?
It was just about getting to know and understand your customer. It’s something I would advise for all operators that read your magazine. Have that dialogue with your general manager to discuss what the needs are for your casino floor. Somebody is going to be able to fill those needs. We at Aruze have a broad portfolio.
In this case we looked at the situation and saw there was an area of the floor that wasn’t performing as well as it might. We knew there were a few products that could bring some traffic to it. Once we bring traffic to it, what do we do with the overflow? That was another question. That’s exactly what we identified in this case. At the start the hook was Lucky Sic Bo but now the multiple bonus games are having a life of their own. And why should we let Lucky Sic Bo’s popularity benefit another manufacturer’s game if it happens to be nearby?
If you look at what Aruze can offer a casino from a catalogue perspective, we’ve got the link games, we’ve got the standalone games, we’ve got the entertaining bonus games, we’ve got systems technology that we’re working on for currency and credit delivery. We’ve got a variety of multi-station games from a random number generator to an electro-mechanical random number generator. We really cross the gamut of what Aruze as an organisation can provide to an operation. It’s almost like we’re a best-kept secret ‘diamond in the rough’. But as that ‘diamond’ gets discovered our popularity grows.
