The Tropicana in Atlantic City has become the first casino in the East to launch Royal Derby, a horse-racing game developed by Slovenia’s Alfastreet Gaming Instruments and distributed by Pennsylvania-based KGM gaming.
Royal Derby is a 10-player electronic unit, with 10 individual play stations surrounding a large mock horse track. Players wager on any of six mechanical horses and jockeys, who then race along the authentically detailed track, backed by an integrated sound system that recreates the atmosphere of a racetrack.
Industry old-timers no doubt remember the Sigma Derby electro-mechanical horse-racing unit that was popular in U.S. casinos during the 1980s. For Royal Derby, Alfastreet took the basic format of that old game and modernized it with state-of-the-art electronics. Alfastreet’s technology also adds simulated handicapping by bettors, who can access information on each horse’s strengths, weaknesses and past performances, much like racing forms at a live horse track. Players can use this information, together with varying race distance and weather conditions, to inform their bets.
The game’s center-track design gives all players a clear view of the field. Each race is also filmed with a moving camera, and a real-time feed is displayed at every player terminal.
“There is currently nothing else like this game on the market,” said Tropicana General Manager Steve Callender. “By introducing leading-edge games like Royal Derby to our lineup, Tropicana gives players more.”
