Could table games as we know them be completely extinct in 25-50 years?

Not to brown-nose or anything, but I want to start off with an appreciation for the thorough hotel and casino reviews on this site. For some reason, it seems like this is the only (or least one of the very few) sites out there that actually has detailed info on the type of table games that a casino offers. When I go onto TripAdvisor or similar sites to read reviews of casinos--whether in Vegas or elsewhere--only about 10% of the reviews even mention their gambling experience, and those that do mainly rate the casino on how they did at the slots. Of course if the slots are "loose" they get a good review...

Of course, it's no big secret that slots are the big money-maker for casinos--have been since the 80's--and most people who visit a casino only play slots, probably because they see table games as intimidating. Is it at all possible that table games will be a thing of the past soon, possibly sooner than we think?

It's a little depressing to think of walking down the LV Strip in 50-60 years and seeing nothing but slots in Caesars Palace, Wynn, and Venetian...or nothing but slots, and robots dealing blackjack and craps...what do you think?

Think of Keno. There used to be a zillion Keno Runners and there used to be this great large room dedicated to Keno.
Now even if a casino does infact have a Keno room its limited to perhaps one official seat and the rest is all electronic.
There are wireless portable units for a variety of bets.
There are virtual dealers in BJ and Roulette.

Is this a trend? I don't know. All electronic poker got ripped out and replaced with live dealers. Bricks and Clicks... its a blend.

Most money will be wagers online the brick casino may soon exist solely for legal reasons in the same manner that "riverboats" exist even though they are unseaworthy and never sail anywhere.

Personal interaction with a live dealer? I don't know. Players will get used to anything eventually. Robots? Bar codes? Electronic voices? The White Zone is for Loading and .... oh well, maybe that one doesn't even exist anymore. I used to say into the phone "You are welcome for using ATT" but I don't even do that any more.

The question is will people trek to Las Vegas to interact with the same Hot Young Chick they can interact with over the internet?
I tend to think live dealers are fundamental to the casino but I don't think the casinos share my views on that issue.

I would say no. Too many people like the physical experience of table games compared to the mechanical experience of slots. Also, a lot of people prefer table games (myself included) for the more favorable odds they offer. Young people especially I think gravitate more to tables than slots, so I don't think casinos are worried about losing the customer. (Or maybe the hotshot craps/BJ player automatically morphs into a slot jockey at a certain age? I don't know.) Some of the casinos in Atlantic City are getting 1/2 of their gaming revenue from tables nowadays, and the Pennsylvania casinos are having a lot of success as well. (Rivers and Sands Bethlehem have significantly upped their numbers since they added tables.) So no, I don't think tables are on their way out, but I think they will be limited to certain markets, specifically gaming destinations like A.C./L.V. or large urban areas where they appeal to more people. You're not going to see a jumpin' craps table or hot blackjack action in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan or Burlington, Iowa, for example--slots are still the order of the day there.

I don't think the appeal of table games is the dealers. I think the real draw is handling the cards, cheques, and dice. For these reasons, table games with cards, cheques and dice will never go away.

Quote: Ayecarumba

I don't think the appeal of table games is the dealers. I think the real draw is handling the cards, cheques, and dice. For these reasons, table games with cards, cheques and dice will never go away.

What the hecque is a cheque?

Table games and poker have made a small increase in total gaming from 49.33% or total revenue three years ago to 51.25%.

In Nevada (outside of the Vegas strip) table games dropped slightly from 17.98% to 17.05% in the last three years.

I suspect that table games will increase in popularity on the Vegas strip to distinguish it as a destination.

Gaming is actually very conservative. There are casinos that maintain the old coin machines to appeal to the demographic that likes them. The reality is that is no major casino that has completely eliminated table games in Nevada. Even if the bulk of the profit comes from slot machines, the table games change the atmosphere of the establishment from a slot parlor.

Quote: mkl654321

What the hecque is a cheque?

Another name for a chip.

Quote: mkl654321

What the hecque is a cheque?

Hehe. Cheques have values printed on them. They represent fixed amounts in the casino. "Chips" do not have fixed values printed on them. They are used at Roulette tables. If you drop a $100 bill on a Craps table, the dealer will probably call out "Cheque Change!".

Quote: teddys

Too many people like the physical experience of table games compared to the mechanical experience of slots.

Those people will be dead in 50 years.

As you pointed out, young people gravitate towards slots. It's the Nintendo generation. They also gravitate towards the electronics of TableMaster.

I think semi-electronic games like Rapid Craps will become more prevalent. More people are coming to trust machines rather than people to handle their money. These types of games also make bet-tracking easier and much more accurate for comps purposes, though the same can be said for RFID-enabled chips. But real cards and dice on the table will likely be around for a long time.

I wonder if this may be something that goes in cycles. Most of my friends (late 20s/early 30s) prefer the table games. Slots have a stereotype of being for baby boomers or older. They think it's kind of weird that my wife and I play so much video poker. But we mostly do that because it's a good way to get drunk in a relaxed setting, without losing much money.

Like Nareed said, stuff like Rapid Craps may be a growing middle ground. I hope not. As someone raised on video games, I really like playing a game that's "real." If I wanted to interact with a computer, I'd stay home and play online.

Yes, table games will be mostly extinct in 50 years.

My company moved from the fringes of the financial district of Boston to the suburbs 2 years ago. We moved back to the heart of downtown a month ago. Just in those two years, the zombiefication of the walking around population by handhelds went from about 25% to about 80%. I feel like I'm walking around a city of robots.

Where does more poker get played, in person or online, and by what factor?

As to poker, I would imagine online.
Though perhaps the best question would be ... where in Las Vegas does more poker get played? I wonder if the answer to that is also "OnLine".

Demographics? Yeah, I guess a texting generation is more comfortable with devices but money adds a new dimension to it. People used to hand money and a slip of paper "to the Tits" and the Keno Runner would go buy the ticket. Now at Blackjack its dealers in Party Pits and its still "the Tits" ... so I don't know about human interaction?

I was shocked when my "what do you play" elicited the response relating to a specific slot machine game rather than "Slots". Its sort of as if the woman I asked never considered anything other than slots.

Some craps games have become more whooping and hollering than anything else.

Quote: Nareed

I think semi-electronic games like Rapid Craps will become more prevalent. More people are coming to trust machines rather than people to handle their money. These types of games also make bet-tracking easier and much more accurate for comps purposes, though the same can be said for RFID-enabled chips. But real cards and dice on the table will likely be around for a long time.

I mostly agree with this. I think in a generation or two, your typical mid-sized Strip casino might have the following distribution of table games:

* One or two groups of 4 blackjack tables
* One or two groups of sucker games, plus perhaps mini-baccarat
* One or two craps tables
* A roulette table

Some of these games may be virtual or hybrids such as Rapid Craps/Roulette. And some casinos may differentiate themselves based on their clientele (e.g., those that are more popular with Asian gamblers may have more games that are more popular with them).

Poker is a separate animal. The chips and cards are important for the better players to be able to read the weaker ones, so I'm guessing there will always be at least some B&M rooms around. I don't have a clear read on whether they will be more popular or less than they are now.

I don't think table games will be extict in 50 years, but we will probably have to redefine what is classified as a table game. Like everything that is labour intensive, machines will eventually take over, but I don't believe there will cease to be a demand for the key elements of table game, particularly the social aspects of playing with other players. The fact that we are moving into a the heavy "gamer" generations does not imply that they will gravitate towards machine gaming; I think quite the contrary. It is that same generation (at least the beginning of them) that started the revival of poker. Along with increases in poker, there appeared to be a North american trend in the increase in traditional table games, such as roulette, baccarat etc. i recall checking the numbers on a Nevada Gaming control webiste a few years fack and noted that the revenue increase in traditional baccarat substantially eclipsed the poker revenues. Even increases in roulette exceeeded the revenues produced by poker.

Getting back to the future, Asian markets will drive the type of products that will eventually be offered in North America. The vendor's products will inevitably mirror the demands of thiese lucrative markets and, in those markets, table games rule. What is a problem is a lack of labour. This is what is driving the hybrid table game products, not so much player demand for them. It is essentually the influence of the big boys (vendors) creating product will best selling potential.

Case in point: Two companies tried to represent Rapid Roulette on the LV strip and failed miserably. It was only Shuffle Master that succeeded in placement. Now every casino owns one. Was there demand, or was the demand created by SM's abillity to provide exposure for the product?

I can see the Table Master product becoming something, but not in its current form. If this product is eveolved correctly, I can see it becoming a 3D GAME, WHERE PLAYERS WOULD HAVE A LIST OF OPTIONS FOR DEALERS (soory hit the caps). Imagine the biggest winner/bettor on the table choosing the virtual dealer from a menu of people, such as Megan Fox, Dog the Bounty Hunter, or even everyone's favorite, Lindsey Lohan. Movie, TV, sports stars would sign on, do a few clips dealing, and walla, they are dealing in 3D for less than minimum wage.

The new gamers may play in their own living rooms, but these new video games are far from keeping them in exclusion. My step-son never gets off the play station, because he's playing and commumicating with friends from school. This can be a real bitch when the Canucks are playing on the TV.

If nothing else, the mere fact that you're not allowed to use a handheld at a table game dooms them. Anybody under 25 is physically uncomfortable if they're not looking at a screen of some sort.

Mocha clubs in Macau seems to be the most ambitious all electronic casino operation in the world. I have never seen hard numbers, but I get the impression that these clubs are a minor sideline to the main casinos.

I could imagine a place like NYC legalizing these sorts of clubs while not wishing to get involved in the policing that is required
to permit table games, but I just don't see them wiping out table games in a place like Vegas.

These electronic game-rooms look pretty expensive as well. I remember reading that Shufflemaster was charging $135K for their six seat
electronic blackjack video screen games. That price may have gone down, but even with payroll and surveillance, I still think it is a lot cheaper to put in a small pit (if legally allowed).



To add to my earlier statistics, 7 years ago table games and poker were 45.8% of strip revenue, and that percentage has
been going up, not down. It was 49.33% of total revenue three years ago and is now up to 51.25% for the last report
(percentages are over a 12 month period so there is no seasonal variations).


You will never get the equivalent of this photo below with machines.

People love to drink and socialize when they play, table games will never go away. I also think they blow more money at a live table, but I can't prove it.

Yes it is true that casino games are now going online and providing good facilities and comforts to the player. But it doesn't mean that table games are going to extinct. These games will be there forever. Still there are players who passed a long journey to reach Vegas just to play to the live land based casinos. The craze of land based casinos will never decrease. You can just say that players now have another option of playing online. But this will not end land based gaming.