Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | April 2014 26 seating—with a one-of-a-kind alternative to the traditional Chinese game that continues to intrigue players with the illusion that they, not an electro- mechanical wobble plate, can determine the outcome of the roll. Extras include a progressive side bet and a feature that provides players a chance to double their win. and roulette hybrids quickly established themselves as mainstays of the market and have been making inroads region-wide. Fusion improves on the formula with even more options—from a fully electronic version to multi-terminal and multi-game configurations that can be linked to virtual, hybrid and live games. Modular, scalable, designed for customization, it provides operators with a wealth of stylish, space-saving options, from the smallest environments to the most expansive stadium-style layouts to single-terminal “satellite” deployments for remote play anywhere on the floor via a direct feed. Fusion is compatible with SAS and TITO play and like Rapid supports a full suite of player-tracking and accounting and auditing tools. Honorable Mention | Jumbo Technology – Long Dragon Baccarat Long Dragon Baccarat has made a sizeable impact in the region by marketing directly to the age-old belief that outcomes move in trends waiting to be exploited by gamblers with the patience and savvy and imaginativeness to spot them. Its multi-terminal platform links a player to up to eight active tables and each is conveyed in a rich virtual environment brought vividly to life on a 47-inch widescreen. Long Dragon is versatile as well, SAS-compatible, supportive of both cash and ticket play and available with an optional side bet and a “mystery” jackpot. It even features a configurable “squeeze-card” function. The player interface has been thought through with similar precision. The 15-inch touchscreen is easy to navigate, the play buttons are extra-large and “re-bets” can be made automatically. Ticket printers, bill validators and electronic displays are the foot soldiers of the slot revenue wars. They exist to keep the cash flowing and the tickets printing and the lights and colors flashing, millions of times a day, every day, without a problem or hitch. They are the first point of contact between the player and the game in most cases and almost always the last. Their value is part and parcel of their reliability and functionality and the ease with which they can be installed, used and maintained, and in these capacities they are vital to the performance of their host, which means the best ones are the ones you never notice, and our judges assessed them accordingly, and what they came up with in the process is an array of technologies that never cease to amaze us in the process of describing them. Aruze Lucky Big Wheel Aruze Lucky Sic Bo Jumbo Technology Long Dragon Baccarat SHFL Entertainment Fusion Best Multi-Terminal Innovation | Nominees Winner | SHFL Entertainment – Fusion When Singapore’s two resort casinos opened in 2010 under statutory limits on slot numbers and casino square footage it provided SHFL a rare opportunity to showcase the reputation it’s long held in the US as one of the great innovators in table games. SHFL seized it. Its Rapid series of electronic baccarat, Sic Bo ELECTRONIC GAMING PERIPHERALS Winner | MEI – Cashflow SC The Cashflow SC was our judges’ top pick among bill acceptors because, quite simply, it is unsurpassed for security, speed and efficiency. Compact, easy to install and maintain, it combines RFID-enabled data-gathering with the transmission capabilities of MEI’s Easitrax Soft Count in a platform that is also backwards-compatible with its JCM iVIZION MEI Cashflow SC Best Electronic Gaming Peripheral ‒ Bill Acceptor | Nominees heir-apparent, the SC Advance, so operators never have to wonder whether they’re getting the state of the art in first-time acceptance rates for valid street-grade banknotes. There’s more too: like faster bill-to-bill speed, comprehensive bar-code recognition, expanded memory to allow for recognition of more currencies and denominations and a USB 2.0 upgrade to speed up communications with the host machine and allow also for the addition of even more functionalities. Honorable Mention | JCM – iVIZION The heart of the iVIZION is its unique Contact Image Sensor Technology, which delivers better than a 99% acceptance rate on valid banknotes and near-total counterfeit protection. Two high-speed processors, a sealed note path and a patented, removable stacker mechanism ensure the green stuff always flows smoothly, quickly and efficiently, while the RFID ICB cashbox has the data-capturing and transmission well in hand. The iVIZION has deservedly secured its place as the flagship for JCM’s fleet of “intelligent validation” technologies and as a fixture in casinos worldwide. FutureLogic GEN2 Universal TransAct Epic 950 Best Electronic Gaming Peripheral ‒ Printer | Nominees SupplierAwards 2014