The powerful processor inherent in IGT ’ s PeakBarTop has allowed a lot more game variety , including a parade of new keno games and new specialty video poker including Ultimate X and other multi-hand collaborations between IGT and Action Gaming
demic-related issues , having first introduced the Winner ’ s World units shortly before Covid-19 appeared .
“ We launched our bartop product in 2019 , but progress stalled with the pandemic shutdown ,” explains Jon Hanlin , Aristocrat ’ s senior vice president of commercial strategy & business analytics . “ Bars and convenience stores were the first to open as restrictions started to ease , and we began to see an increased awareness of our bartop Buffalo slots .
“ We intentionally invested in ongoing customer feedback to better understand what our core audience wanted from us in this segment , resulting in the development of two new products . In the gap between 1.0 and 2.0 versions , we came out with a 1.5 version that included a few slot games and one new keno game . This bridge release was met with positive customer reactions , and players found the new content enjoyable . We most recently released the full version , which offers a much greater variety of product and includes progressive capabilities for video poker and keno games .”
Doubling Down
The Aristocrat Winner ’ s World , and IGT ’ s reaction to the challenge of new competition in the bartop area , has ushered in a new era of variety in games available at the bar .
IGT , for one , is doubling down on the variety available in the PeakBar- Top . “ Customers are realizing , when they put them on the floors , that there is a very good mix of those tried-and-true games and game themes that those players are used to playing , and that they ’ re seeking out , and they can play their favorite video poker game as well ,” Fredella says .
“ They can play their favorite keno game , and then they ’ re also finding that those same players and even other players are being drawn to the bartop because there is so much new content on there . We have seven different new keno games that are on these PeakBarTops between the SuperStar and Game King ( product groups ). We ’ ve got an entire new suite of high-line-count video slot content on there .”
“ The product has really taken off ,” says Ryan Reddy , IGT ’ s senior vice president , product marketing , vlt , systems , payments & poker . “ It ’ s doing extremely well , and we ’ ve just steadily increased placements over time . We have the vast majority of the bartop space today already with our existing legacy IGT product . Now , we ’ re steadily replacing those with the PeakBarTop , and the key thing for us is that we ’ re seeing a lot of repeat business . Customers that have a large presence of the older bartops today test the market by buying a few PeakBarTops to see if the business case is there .
“ The economics make sense for them to upgrade . And they ’ re coming back and buying more PeakBarTops — which we think is a really great sign for the overall success of the product and the value that is there for our customers .”
One prominent showcase for the PeakBarTop can be found in Downtown Las Vegas , at the Circa and D casinos . The Circa features the sprawling Mega Bar , with a remarkable 53 PeakBarTop units — spanning 165 feet , making it the longest bar in Nevada . The bar features expert bartenders “ with dazzling behind-the-bar flairs ,” as noted on its website .
The D , meanwhile , features the 100-foot Longbar , featuring 37 PeakBar- Top units fronting TV monitors for sporting events .
While the PeakBarTop units have all that variety , video poker is still king , says Allen Randal , director of slot operations for the Circa , D and Golden Gate casinos .
“ Typically speaking , video poker for any casino tends to run about 10 percent of your slot floor in Las Vegas ,” Randal says . “ Here at Circa , we ’ re closer to 13 percent or 14 percent . And the main reason is that there are so many of these long bar-type areas . Mega Bar , of course , is by far the biggest . But you also have the underhang and overhang areas , with more than 40 ma-
MARCH 2023 www . ggbmagazine . com 21