The beginning of October saw the close of the 15th annual Global Gaming Expo (G2E) held at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre in Las Vegas.
G2E is the premier casino-entertainment trade show, assembling the largest collection of industry leaders at one venue over three days. More than 450 exhibitors gathered to share the most innovative and exciting ideas across the gaming world.
It was our second time exhibiting at the expo, where we demonstrated a 40” curved touch screen kiosk and the ever-popular 55” multi-touch table.
The hot topic of discussion at this year’s event was the future of gaming and the forecast for the industry. In August, there was a 5% drop in gambling revenue in Las Vegas casinos, a third consecutive month of decline. A worrying statistic for a city which has prospered thanks to gambling and tourism
The reason for this?
Just 63% of ‘millennials’ (people born after 1980) gamble when they visit Las Vegas, compared to 78% of their parents (people aged 51-69) and 87% of their grandparents (people aged 70-90). The influx of young Las Vegas party goers just aren’t interested in traditional games of chance. This trending decline is forcing casinos to rethink how they engage with the younger audiences.
However, the future of Las Vegas is far from bleak, The Nevada Gaming Commission recently relaxed legislation so that more skill-based games could operate in casinos, with less and less visitors gambling on traditional slot machines. Modern games are expected to model those played on consoles and apps with a level of skill required to increase the user’s chances of winning a prize.
Ben Guarino in his article on The Future of Las Vegas Gambling Looks Like an Arcade for Inverse.com summarises the shift in the wants and needs of the new generation of Casino goers:
“Vegas game designers believe they have a simple solution to coax millennials into waging their wages: Keep ‘em stimulated. That means gamifying games, removing the element of chance to whatever degree that’s possible.”
This transition in visitor behaviour is likely to revolutionise the traditional casino floor, with many experts predicting designs and installations to match those more closely attributed to arcades or nightclubs.
This trend was already present throughout G2E 2015, with more multi touch/multi player tables, and collaborative games on show; offering a much more immersive and social gaming experience.
With visually engaging displays and interactive gaming experiences now expected among the new generation of visitors; the entertainment capital of the world is preparing to evolve and embrace the new dynamic direction of gaming.
If you would like to find out more information about Zytronic’s range of projected capacitive touch technology products designed for the visually stimulating and demanding gaming industry, then contact us and a member of our experienced Sales team will be in touch.
