Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | April 2009 32 Quick Time Bally steps up its video reel games offer in Asia and beyond B ally Technologies’ ALPHA Operating System for slots claims bragging rights as the first in the industry to support both video and mechanical reel-spinning games. Now the market-proven and famously stable ALPHA OS has moved to the next phase of development by offering virtual reel spinners in both stepper and non-stepper format on a video slot screen. Given that Las Vegas-based Bally has roots dating back to 1932, it opens up the possibility of offering in video format all manner of reel games from the company’s vast library—but with bonusing and levels of functionality never dreamt of by previous generations of reel players. One of the pulse-quickening Alpha OS-based video product groups Bally will be showing off at G2E Asia in June is its Quick Hit™ series of five reel games packaged in the company’s striking 32-inch V32 video cabinet. “We took the math of the mechanical spinning reels and we put it onto a video version, which is doing extremely well,” says John J. Connelly, Vice President, International and Gaming Operations. Pan-Asian appeal “We’re looking to place them in South Korea. We are one of the largest suppliers on the floors there, and it’s one of the largest markets in Asia for steppers and reels,” he explains. “Our strategy in our Asian markets is to continue to roll out the Hot Shot game series and Quick Hits steppers, which are our two flagship game series, followed by the Platinum series. “In Macau we have rolled out Quick Hit Platinum to the Grand Lisboa, Wynn Macau and Venetian Macau and are pleased with the early results,” adds Mr Connelly. “The Philippines is one of our key growth markets where Hot Shot has enjoyed terrific success. We have just started rolling out our Quick Hit stepper and are seeing strong performance from this series”. At the recent International Gaming Expo 2009 in London, Bally demonstrated its Quick Hit Playboy Platinum game, the latest in its stable of Playboy branded products, and which includes a bonus round with a video display of Playmate models. The company also exhibited Quick Hit Diamond—the follow-up to the Quick Hit Platinum format. In Quick Hit Diamond various scattered symbols lead to one of five progressive jackpots, ranging from a few dollars to a top jackpot measured in the thousands of dollars. Quick Hit Diamond, like its predecessor, features a frequently hitting jackpot, Bally