Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming July 2014 22 Asia: Straight Ahead The maths, the themes, the links, the play mechanics—they’re all aligning for Bally in Macau and across the region G 2E Asia 2014 provided the region with its first look at the new Bally-SHFL combination, and it was clear from the wealth of new games and proven performers on display there that two of the most creative and accomplished design and development teams in the business will be making their presence felt in a big way in the months ahead. The exhibit covered a full 600 square meters and encompassed so many new slots—more than 100 in all—that it’s difficult to know where to begin Duo Fu Duo Cai is as good a start as any, the four-level linked progressive that took Macau by storm when SHFL entertainment unveiled it at G2E Asia 2012 and continues to grow in popularity across East and Southeast Asia, even building a sizable audience in North America. It’s been enhanced for 2014 with higher minimum and maximum bets and a beefed-up pay table and an all-new title underneath, Diamond Eternity, featuring the same exciting “All Up” play as stalwart Reel Wave performers 88 Fortunes and 5 Treasures with the addition of a “Diamond” wild in the feature that multiplies wins up to five times and delivers yet a third distinct volatility experience. For sure, Bally knows a winner when it sees one, and three more titles are being prepped for release on the link. Likewise, Bally will continue to produce the SHFL Equinox cabinet. Mike Trask, Las Vegas-based senior manager of corporate communications, notes that its solid mechanics and player-friendly button deck have “struck a chord” across the region, and he says the company is excited about manufacturing it. “It’s been very successful. It’s kind of a new formula for us.” Equinox provides the platform for a new three-level progressive, Emperor’s Seal, which debuted at G2E Asia with two new titles, Beijing Opera and Forbidden Beauty, in the innovative Block Pays series, in which any stack of nine symbols pays a scatter prize regardless of whether they’re stacked right to left, as in most games. With substitute symbols on reel 5 the block also acts to trigger the Feature Emperor’s Seal debuted at G2E Asia with two new titles, Beijing Opera and Forbidden Beauty, in the innovative Block Pays series. jackpot feature, where players try to match three “Seals” of the same color, each color corresponding to a prize level. As they bet up, the more symbols they load on the reel, and max credits ensure it’s always the substitute, and then only a block of two reels is needed elsewhere on the screen. It’s a variation on the mechanics that made Duo Fu Duo Cai the regional phenomenon that it is, particularly in the similarities to “All Up,” where all lines are always in play even at minimum bet, and as players buy more “Gold” symbols they access a higher-paying scorecard with more chances at a progressive.