The last major shift in casino gambling occurred more than three decades ago, when slots took over from table games as the chief revenue producers. Now another shake-up is about to occur as casinos seek ways to engage millennials, age 21 to 35. Just 2 percent of them play slots, yet that age group visits casinos more than any other age group, according to the American Gaming Association. Gamblit Gaming Vice President of Sales Marcus Yoder said, “They’re so surrounded by awesome technology all the time that the concept of a slot machine is boring to them. Even though the slot machines that are out there are beautiful machines with fantastic graphics, it’s still the function of pressing a button and waiting to see what happens and that’s just not interesting.”
Gamblit’s video games combine skill and chance. For example, in its Smoothie Blast, players attempt to quickly fill a blender with various combinations of fruit to win a larger payout. Although the house still holds the advantage, players can win more money as they improve at the game.
Affinity Gaming is testing another way to reach millennials, partnering with gaming technology company LEET since September 30 in weekly video game tournaments at the Downtown Grand in Las Vegas. Players compete in games including Madden NFL, FIFA, Call of Duty and Rocket League. LEET co-founder Carson Knuth said the tournaments attract millennials to a property typically associated with bingo and a buffet. “They can come in, play the games they love and get to love the Silver Sevens, and the casino gets exposed to a huge, fickle and underserved audience.” He said most of the players are the coveted demographic, males age 21 to 34.
Affinity Chief Marketing Officer Vincent Lentini said the first event drew eight players. Most recently more than 40 showed up. He said the goal is 80 players per week. The admission fee is $15, which barely covers the prize pool. But Lentini said the property benefits from ancillary nongaming spend. “This is an alpha/beta test for other properties nationwide,” he noted.
Another point is that, unlike baby boomers who mind coming to the casino alone, millennials don’t prefer a social casino experience. At Rivers Casino Pittsburgh, Vice President of Marketing Shannon Redmond said the Thursday night parties cater to younger players. “The atmosphere is more social, and the average wager is lower. You can play blackjack and other table games for only $5 a hand.”
Gaming industry blogger I. Nelson Rose, a professor at Whittier Law School, said other casinos have added nightclubs, upscale restaurants and shopping centers attract younger player. “Millennials like good food and music, so the bars and restaurants are filled. But the gaming floor is often empty. They need to figure out ways to either get millennials to go down to the casino floor or bring the casino floor to the millennials.”
In that regard, he said, some West Coast casinos hand out portable devices, about the size of an iPad, that function as slot machines. So guests can sit in the sports lounge with their friends, essentially with a slot machine in their lap. “They don’t want to sit in front of a metal box with spinning wheels in a building the size of a warehouse. The industry is looking around for whatever they can,” Rose said.
