Last November, many in the industry lauded the placement of the industry’s first skill-based slot offerings when GameCo, Inc. introduced its video game gambling machines, or VGMs, at the Atlantic City properties of Caesars Entertainment.
Caesars recently removed the machines, citing low earnings. However, according to GameCo founder and CEO Blaine Graboyes, it’s all part of the learning curve on how and where skill-based games will return profit for the casinos.
“We can do all the prototyping, focus groups, and game nights we want, but there is nothing like a live environment to learn from,” Graboyes told the NorthJersey.com news website at the recent East Coast Gaming Congress. According to Graboyes, the decision of Caesars to remove the first two GameCo VGMs—a shooter game called Danger Arena and a mobile-style video game called Pharaoh’s Secret Temple—was a “collective decision” by the supplier and the operator, and that the machines will be redeployed at Foxwoods Resort in Connecticut.
The Tropicana is still offering its GameCo VGMs, and the Borgata is planning on adding some of the video game-style machines. Graboyes said the company is working with operators to find the best location and game mix to draw millennials and other video game enthusiasts, to whom the games are targeted.
“It’s all about being in the right market with the right spot on the floor, the right marketing, and the right advertising support,” Graboyes told NorthJersey.com. “No one knows what the magic mix is yet. We’re a tech company. So we’re all about experimenting. We’ve manufactured 100 machines so far, and they need to be in places where they’re going to perform optimally.”
He added that the game mix will soon include Terminator 2, a video game that will likely replace the first-person shooter game Danger Arena.
Caesars Senior Vice President Melissa Price said at the gaming conference that she remains committed to the concept of skill-based gaming, and that the operator will experiment with the next generation of GameCo games, as well as adding skill games from Gamblit Gaming, GameCo’s skill-based rival, as soon as they are approved by New Jersey regulators.
