Anyone design slot games?

I was curious if anyone in here develops slot games. I know many in here work with table games, but i was curious about how complicated it is to break into that area. I haven't heard of any individuals licensing slot games to the big companies, and i assume most companies use internal employees to develop their slot inventory. Any thoughts or opinions?

I've developed a couple of Video Poker variations:-

Juicy Deck Video Poker

and

Show Me Video Poker

I had some interest from Action Gaming and also a large Internet company but neither resulted in a firm deal.

I will make another push with 'Juicy Deck' later in the year and hope that my previous relationship with SHFL will help me to meet the right people at Ballys.

Yes, I do, but I started at a small slot vendor over 15 years ago. I didn't break in in the way someone with an idea for a table game can break in to the industry, by inventing a new card game, walking into a casino and talking to a TGD.

Most major slot vendors have both internal game studios and relationships with 3rd-party game studios. E.g., High 5, King Show, Leading Edge Design, GC2. Those studios focus on creative only, rather than creative as well as manufacturing, logistics, systems, etc. Many of those studios are hiring, if that's what you're looking for. On the other hand, most of the slot vendors routinely have openings for engineers and designers on the creative side. It really depends on what you want to do and where you want to live.

Switch,

I see the appeal of Juicy Deck. I misunderstood at first that the 20 cards were added to the deck already in play, but I finally caught on that you were playing with a stripped deck only. Definitely a whole other strategy needed from JoB while that deck is active; I think it's cool that the game tells you when you're working with the Juicy Deck so you can adapt your play. Good luck on the placements!

Quote: Switch

I've developed a couple of Video Poker variations:-

Juicy Deck Video Poker

and

Show Me Video Poker

I had some interest from Action Gaming and also a large Internet company but neither resulted in a firm deal.

I will make another push with 'Juicy Deck' later in the year and hope that my previous relationship with SHFL will help me to meet the right people at Ballys.

I really like both of these video poker games Switch! I would assume with online gaming taking off, there should be some opportunities in that area as well. My latest video poker game, Slide Poker, issues Feb. 11th so I will also be contacting a number of companies to see if there is some interest.

Have you done any slot or video slot games?

I just finished designing one. It's a slot machine with skill elements. I'm waiting to hear back from the lawyer on my provisional patent, so I can't talk about it yet, and I'm far away from having much insight on marketing a slot machine.

I think in order to break into the slot category, the designer must have a totally new concept that can be used for slot machines. I don't think it is enough to have an idea for a "theme" for a slot machine. Anyone can take any given theme and turn it into a slot game, but in order to really make a mark on the industry I think there has to be something unique in the way the game plays.

Quote: RealizeGaming

I think in order to break into the slot category, the designer must have a totally new concept that can be used for slot machines. I don't think it is enough to have an idea for a "theme" for a slot machine. Anyone can take any given theme and turn it into a slot game, but in order to really make a mark on the industry I think there has to be something unique in the way the game plays.

You are correct, an idea really won't cut it. I would say you need to have something licensable by the slot manufacturer. A patent is the most common but if you have the rights to use something that the manufacturer might want, you still are in the game. Many years ago I tried to license Angry Birds for a slot machine because I figured I could tie it up before it got so popular and then hopefully re-license it to IGT, Bally, or WMS.

Quote: beachbumbabs

Switch,

I see the appeal of Juicy Deck. I misunderstood at first that the 20 cards were added to the deck already in play, but I finally caught on that you were playing with a stripped deck only. Definitely a whole other strategy needed from JoB while that deck is active; I think it's cool that the game tells you when you're working with the Juicy Deck so you can adapt your play. Good luck on the placements!

Thanks Babs, it would have been easier to work out if I had included the instructions in a 'pdf', which I have on file. You are quite correct though as you do change your strategy with the 'Juicy Deck'. I have the playing strategy and you actual hold 3 suited cards above 3 of a kind which I found quite interesting. This is purely down to the highly reduced chance of hitting those 2 needed cards for a 'Royal' with just a 20-card deck.

Quote: RealizeGaming

Quote: Switch

I've developed a couple of Video Poker variations:-

Juicy Deck Video Poker

and

Show Me Video Poker

I had some interest from Action Gaming and also a large Internet company but neither resulted in a firm deal.

I will make another push with 'Juicy Deck' later in the year and hope that my previous relationship with SHFL will help me to meet the right people at Ballys.

I really like both of these video poker games Switch! I would assume with online gaming taking off, there should be some opportunities in that area as well. My latest video poker game, Slide Poker, issues Feb. 11th so I will also be contacting a number of companies to see if there is some interest.

Have you done any slot or video slot games?

Nothing on slot or video games as yet ... I'm finding it challenging enough to try and launch my video poker games :-)

I think that I may have more opportunity on an Internet platform before I get to a land-based situation but time will tell.

Good Luck with your Slide Poker as well ... hopefully we can both crack the market and get all of our games launched.

" I didn't break in in the way someone with an idea for a table game can break in to the industry, by inventing a new card game, walking into a casino and talking to a TGD. "

Gee, it sounds so easy I might just have to try it myself !

Quote: Switch

Quote: RealizeGaming

Quote: Switch

I've developed a couple of Video Poker variations:-

Juicy Deck Video Poker

and

Show Me Video Poker

I had some interest from Action Gaming and also a large Internet company but neither resulted in a firm deal.

I will make another push with 'Juicy Deck' later in the year and hope that my previous relationship with SHFL will help me to meet the right people at Ballys.

I really like both of these video poker games Switch! I would assume with online gaming taking off, there should be some opportunities in that area as well. My latest video poker game, Slide Poker, issues Feb. 11th so I will also be contacting a number of companies to see if there is some interest.

Have you done any slot or video slot games?

Nothing on slot or video games as yet ... I'm finding it challenging enough to try and launch my video poker games :-)

I think that I may have more opportunity on an Internet platform before I get to a land-based situation but time will tell.

Good Luck with your Slide Poker as well ... hopefully we can both crack the market and get all of our games launched.

We will definitely stay in touch. I hope both of us can get into this market. I'm going to try land based once slide poker is out and them if that doesn't get anywhere, i will also look into online casinos.

Quote: Switch

I've developed a couple of Video Poker variations:-

Juicy Deck Video Poker

and

Show Me Video Poker

I had some interest from Action Gaming and also a large Internet company but neither resulted in a firm deal.

I will make another push with 'Juicy Deck' later in the year and hope that my previous relationship with SHFL will help me to meet the right people at Ballys.

Switch,
I noticed your (Juicy Deck) game is very similar to what I've developed. Have you tried IGT? I've had good criticism among some of the members and have changed the rules and payouts for a 3.2% house edge. I will be re-submitting to Bally and IGT and possibly Action Gaming later this week. Being an inventor of a poker variation is a mix of ideas and comes with high expectations to deliver a unique product that will fire up the players. I can appreciate the experience level of the forums members and am continually learning about this business. I'm kind of at a standstill about what the next move shall be. It's a slow process and requires focus and contacts. I'm not a fancy slick talker but I can deliver the facts when asked specific questions. Are you working with others to promote your products? I would think someone with a package of several games would do much better when trying to market to the big boys. Right now, it's only one game for me. All the best.
MA

I like Show Me better. I'd play it if it was in a casino.

ZCore13

Quote: mikeabiomed

Switch,
I noticed your (Juicy Deck) game is very similar to what I've developed. Have you tried IGT? I've had good criticism among some of the members and have changed the rules and payouts for a 3.2% house edge. I will be re-submitting to Bally and IGT and possibly Action Gaming later this week. Being an inventor of a poker variation is a mix of ideas and comes with high expectations to deliver a unique product that will fire up the players. I can appreciate the experience level of the forums members and am continually learning about this business. I'm kind of at a standstill about what the next move shall be. It's a slow process and requires focus and contacts. I'm not a fancy slick talker but I can deliver the facts when asked specific questions. Are you working with others to promote your products? I would think someone with a package of several games would do much better when trying to market to the big boys. Right now, it's only one game for me. All the best.
MA

Hi Mike, yes I tried IGT as they are the main consideration for Video Poker, if not the only one.

It is difficult to gain traction as you only have IGT and if they say 'No' then you are stuck as far as land-based installations go.

However, I have got some online possibilities and I'm hoping that if I land one of those then I can use the feedback from online and present them to IGT at a later date.

Meanwhile, I have plenty to focus on with the table games side of things so I'm not desperate to get the Video Poker up and running.

Quote: Zcore13

I like Show Me better. I'd play it if it was in a casino.

ZCore13

Thanks for the feedback Zcore13. You are not alone - a large Internet company preferred 'ShowMe' to 'Juicy Deck' so I'm sure there would be a split in preferences amongst the 2 games although I don't know what the ratio would be.

Quote: mikeabiomed

Switch,
I noticed your (Juicy Deck) game is very similar to what I've developed. Have you tried IGT? I've had good criticism among some of the members and have changed the rules and payouts for a 3.2% house edge. I will be re-submitting to Bally and IGT and possibly Action Gaming later this week. Being an inventor of a poker variation is a mix of ideas and comes with high expectations to deliver a unique product that will fire up the players. I can appreciate the experience level of the forums members and am continually learning about this business. I'm kind of at a standstill about what the next move shall be. It's a slow process and requires focus and contacts. I'm not a fancy slick talker but I can deliver the facts when asked specific questions. Are you working with others to promote your products? I would think someone with a package of several games would do much better when trying to market to the big boys. Right now, it's only one game for me. All the best.
MA

It seems to me that Action Gaming and IGT have used the Ultimate X patent to build a number of additional games in their inventory which deal with using multipliers in a number of ways. This may be the reason they are not really looking at any other video poker submissions from outside sources. With that being said, I'm the type of player who is always looking for new and interesting games. I just wish there were more games available since I like to have a number of choices to entertain myself with.

I'm still working on a few land based casinos, but I would also listen to online casinos as well. Mike, have you tried setting up a LinkedIn account? I've had good success making contacts with a number of really important people in the business. Might be a good thing to look at.

I also think that getting a package of video poker games together and trying to market them as a group to some of the bigger companies may be the way to go. It would be very similar to the old Bally Gamemakers which housed many different games, all on one machine. This may be appealing to the bigger companies because you are not taking up a ton of space for one particular game, but instead, providing the players with many choices. Companies may be more willing to try this approach.

The problem with trying to sell video poker games in the current market is that they need to derive numbers big enough to support a lease per day model. Sadly, that is almost impossible without doing multihand games. Of course, multihand games are still covered by Ernie's patents for another two years or so. Think about it, what successful video poker games are there in the last 10 years that aren't multihand?

Switch,



I'm having the hardest time understanding the peek function. This is the first hand I've gotten all 5 to look at. That would imply I can somehow get a flush or better out of this hand, but all I see is 3 pairs. So I must be misunderstanding something, but that was clear before this hand, so could you explain what's happening, please? I have that "d'oh" feeling just before the light goes on. Help!

Quote: beachbumbabs

I'm having the hardest time understanding the peek function. This is the first hand I've gotten all 5 to look at. That would imply I can somehow get a flush or better out of this hand, but all I see is 3 pairs. So I must be misunderstanding something, but that was clear before this hand, so could you explain what's happening, please? I have that "d'oh" feeling just before the light goes on. Help!

You had a flush or better on the previous hand. You should hold the 3 and two 5s for 2 pair.

Quote: miplet

You had a flush or better on the previous hand. You should hold the 3 and two 5s for 2 pair.

Oh. The PREVIOUS hand.