Eilers & Krejcik Gaming (EKG) has announced the winners of the third annual EKG Slot Awards, with Aristocrat once again dominating the field.
The EKG Slot Awards were created by EKG, a top slot industry consultancy, to recognized excellence in slot machine gaming development within both the land-based and interactive sectors. There are 21 categories of awards for which the consultancy received nominations, and the winners are determined by votes from more than 100 qualified slot directors representing over 300 casinos from across North America.
Interactive gaming winners are determined by a vote of a distinguished panel of industry experts.
The 2020 EKG Slot Awards were conducted despite the Covid-19 pandemic, which prevented the in-person award banquets o the first two. However, the change in format did nothing to affect the results: For the third year in a row, Aristocrat Technologies took the top award of Best Overall Supplier of Slot Content. It was one of nine awards logged by Aristocrat in the competition.
Coming in second as far as winning companies was Everi Holdings, which claimed four EKG awards.
In the other main result of the competition, slot legends Scott Olive and Charlie Lombardo were announced as the new inductees to the EKG Slot Awards Hall of Fame.
Aristocrat’s dominance of the awards covered a wealth of different slot categories. In addition to the top prize, the company won Top Performing New Video Reel Core Game for Buffalo Chief; Top Performing New Premium Game for Cash Express Luxury Line Buffalo; Top Performing New Premium Cabinet for Mars X; Top Performing Core Video Reel Game for Buffalo Gold Revolution; and two awards Top Performing Premium Game and Top Performing Proprietary Branded Game, for Dragon Link: Happy and Prosperous. Aristocrat also got the nods for Most Improved Supplier-Premium and Top Social Casino Company.
Everi, for the second year in a row, took the award for Top Performing Core Mechanical Reel Game for the unique Cash Machine. Everi also won the award for Top Performing New Cabinet for Empire Flex, Top Performing Third Party IP Branded Game for Smokin’ Hot Stuff Wicked Wheel, and Most Improved Supplier-Core.
Among other highlights on the land-based side, Scientific Games won for Top Performing New Mechanical Reel Core Game with Dancing Drums Reels. IGT once again won for Top Performing Video Poker Game, with All Star Poker 2. As is typical, three of the top five nominees in the video poker category were IGT games.
Interblock took the award for Top Performing Electronic Table Game with its roulette ETG. In the skill-based EGM category, Gamblit Gaming’s Cannon Bears treasure took the award for Top Performing Interactive Electronic Gaming Machine-Skill. The Top Performing Game from an Emerging Supplier was Dice Seekers Heroes and Villains from Gaming Arts.
In the real-money online gaming category, Big Time Gaming won Best New Online Slot for Extra Chili, and SG Digital’s 88 Fortunes got the nod for Top Performing Online Slot. In the social gaming category, in addition to Aristocrat’ top award, IGT’s Double Down Casino won the award for Best Use of Land-Based Content in a Social Slot Game.
Gaming Legends
EKG added two names to its Slot Awards Hall of Fame. Joining inaugural inductee Joe Kaminkow and last year’s inductee Ernie Moody are former Aristocrat game design whiz Scott Olive and longtime slot executive Charlie Lombardo.
Olive, founder and principal of content supplier HRG Studios, created some of Aristocrat’s most storied titles when he worked for the supplier from the late 1990s until 2007—including the groundbreaking Hyperlink progressive jackpot system with games such as Cash Express and Penny train. He co-founded True Blue Gaming in 2007 with former Aristocrat colleague Kent Young.
After Aruze Gaming acquired True Blue Gaming in 2009, Olive founded HRG Studios and went back to creating hits for Aristocrat under an exclusive contract. Among the most notable success stories of his second stint with Aristocrat is the mega-hit Dragon Link, with its Hold & Spin mechanic that is arguably today’s most copied game mechanic. Olive’s other recent Aristocrat hits include Dollar Storm and Buffalo Link.
Olive was inducted via video by Aristocrat CEO Trevor Croker.
Lombardo, the first gaming operations executive to be inducted into the EKG Slot Awards Hall of Fame, is one of the deans of the U.S. slot business. He started his career in the 1970s as a slot mechanic at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and worked his way up the slot operations ranks, eventually becoming senior vice president of slot operations at Bally’s Las Vegas. One of the first operators to open his slot floor to new suppliers, Lombardo worked with slot manufacturers on proprietary games for the Bally’s floor, and designed the slot floor for Bally’s new sister property Paris Las Vegas.
Caesars Entertainment ultimately made Lombardo vice president of slot operations for Bally’s, Paris and Caesars Palace, before he accepted a position as senior vice president of gaming operations for the Seminole Tribe in Florida. While with the Seminoles, he developed the slot floors of the two Hard Rock casinos and significantly expanded the slot floors of all the Seminole casinos. Lombardo serves the tribe as a consultant to this day.
“On behalf of everyone at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, I would like to congratulate all of the individual award winners as well as this year’s Hall of Fame Class,” said Todd Eilers, principal at Eilers & Krejcik
Gaming, LLC. “I would also like to thank our board of advisors, official voters, and our event sponsors.”
A complete listing of the winners for 2020 EKG Slot Awards is below.
Land-based Awards – 2020
- Top Performing NEW Video Reel Core Game
- Buffalo Chief – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Diamond Trails Safari Winnings – Konami
- Drop & Lock – Deep Sea Magic – Scientific Games
- Money Storm Classic Hits – IGT
- Red Silk – AGS
- Roller Wheel Jungle Roll – Incredible Technologies
- Wicked Wheel Panda – Everi Holdings
- Top Performing NEW Mechanical Reel Core Game
- 3x Wild Diamonds – IGT
- Dancing Drums Reels – Scientific Games – 2020 Winner
- Jixing Gaozhao – Aristocrat
- Triple Wild Dragon – Everi Holdings
- Top Performing NEW Premium Game
- All Aboard – Dynamite Dash – Konami
- Cash Express Luxury Line Buffalo – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Fortune Coin Boost – IGT
- Golden Wins Deluxe – AGS
- Hong Kong Double Deluxe – Incredible Technologies
- The Vault Egypt Gems – Everi Holdings
- Willy Wonka – Everlasting Gobstopper – Scientific Games
- Top Performing NEW Cabinet – Core
- A Star Curve – Ainsworth
- Empire Flex – Everi Holdings – 2020 Winner
- Infinity Summit – Incredible Technologies
- Orion Curve – AGS
- TwinStar Matrix – Scientific Games
- Top Performing NEW Cabinet – Premium
- Dimension 49j – Konami
- Infinity Pilot – Incredible Technologies
- Mars X – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Orion Starwall – AGS
- Peak Slant 49 – IGT
- TwinStar J43 Motion Wheel – Scientific Games
- Top Performing Core Video Reel Game
- Buffalo Gold Revolution – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Dancing Drums – Scientific Games
- Fortune Coin Free Games – IGT
- Rakin’ Bacon – AGS
- Super Charged 7’S – Quick Spin – Ainsworth
- Wheel Of Prosperity Dragon – Aruze
- Wicked Wheel Fire Phoenix – Everi Holdings
- Top Performing Core Mechanical Reel Game
- 88 Fortunes Diamond – Scientific Games
- Buffalo Gold – Aristocrat
- Cash Machine – Everi Holdings – 2020 Winner
- Quick Hit Triple Blazing 7s Super Wheel – Scientific Games
- Red Hot Tamales – IGT
- Top Performing Premium Game
- Colossal Diamonds – AGS
- Dancing Drums Explosion – Scientific Games
- Dragon Link – Happy And Prosperous – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Jin Ji Bao Xi – Rising Fortunes – Scientific Games
- Lightning Link – High Stakes – Aristocrat
- Smokin Hot Stuff Wicked Wheel – Everi Holdings
- Wheel Of Fortune – Exotic Far East – Cash Link – IGT
- Top Performing 3rd Party IP Branded Game
- Game Of Thrones – Winter Is Here – Aristocrat
- Smokin’ Hot Stuff Wicked Wheel – Everi Holdings – 2020 Winner
- The Price Is Right – Triple Showcase Showdown – IGT
- Wheel Of Fortune – Exotic Far East – Cash Link – IGT
- Wizard Of Oz – Munchkinland – Scientific Games
- Top Performing Proprietary Branded Game
- All Aboard – Dynamite Dash – Konami
- Crazy Money Deluxe – Incredible Technologies
- Dollar Storm – Ninja Moon – Aristocrat
- Dragon Link – Happy And Prosperous – Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Jin Ji Bao Xi – Rising Fortunes – Scientific Games
- The Vault Egypt Gems – Everi Holdings
- Ultimate Fire Link – China Street – Scientific Games
- Top Performing Electronic Table Game (ETG)
- Baccarat – Interblock
- Baccarat Maximum Fortune – Sega Sammy
- Casino Wizard – Gaming Arts
- Craps – Aruze
- Fortune Cup – Konami
- Roulette – Alfastreet
- Roulette – IGT
- Roulette – Interblock – 2020 Winner
- Top Performing Video Poker Game
- All Star Poker 2 – IGT – 2020 Winner
- GameKing – IGT
- Match Card Draw Poker – Scientific Games
- Super Star – IGT
- Ultimate X – IGT
- Winners World – Aristocrat
- Top Performing Interactive Electronic Gaming Machine (EGM)/Skill
- Bust-A-Move – Next Gaming
- Cannon Beards Treasure – Gamblit Gaming – 2020 Winner
- Sweet Spot Golf – GameCo
- Top Performing Game from an Emerging Supplier
- Dice Seekers Heroes and Villains – Gaming Arts – 2020 Winner
- Flags of Fortune – Castle Hill
- Fortune Feast – Bluberi
- Fruit Jackpots Progressive – Lightning Gaming
- Money Party Link Fruity Fruity – Novomatic
- Wealth Rush Incredible Coins – Sega Sammy
- Most Improved Supplier – Core
Everi – 2020 Winner
All Suppliers Considered
- Most Improved Supplier – Premium
Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
All Suppliers Considered
- 1 Best Overall Supplier of Slot Content
Aristocrat – 2020
All Suppliers Considered
Social Casino Awards
- Best Use of Land-Based Content in a Social Slot Game
- 88 Fortunes featuring Scientific Games content – SciPlay
- DoubleDown Casino featuring IGT content – published by Double Down Interactive – 2020 Winner
- High 5 Casino featuring High 5 Games content – published by High 5 Games
- Lightning Link featuring Aristocrat content – published by Product Madness
- Top Social Casino Company
- Aristocrat – 2020 Winner
- Bole Games
- Playtika
- Zynga
iGaming Awards (Real-Money Online Gaming)
- Best New Online Slot
- Extra Chili — Big Time Gaming – 2020 Winner
- Fortune Coin — IGT
- Hypernova Megaways — Reel Play
- Rise Of The Mountain King — Scientific Games
- Top Performing Online Slot
- 88 Fortunes – SG Digital – 2020 Winner
- Bonanza – Big Time Gaming
- Cleopatra – IGT
- Divine Fortune – NetEnt
Hall of Fame – Class of 2021
Scott Olive, Game Development
Charlie Lombardo, Slot Operations
