The Name of the Game
The Future of Live
“ I think gambling at a table is quite familiar , almost as second nature , to a lot of Americans . They prefer that kind of community feel , which obviously live casino gives far more than those RNG games .”
— Oliver Bartlett , Director of Gaming , BetMGM
spin a roulette ball . Nothing . But over the course of three weeks , a pretty intensive three weeks , we turn them into highly productive game presenters . Remember , they don ’ t have chips to deal with so that really narrows down the speed with which we can train . But they all have different challenges . They ’ re being filmed at all times and so you have to be friendly and the mistakes are quite hazardous because there could be a thousand people on your table ! So the longer they ’ re with you , the fewer mistakes they make . And it ’ s really great when you can hold onto them as well , so we try to make a friendly environment that ’ s really enjoyable to work in .” Haitian says the culture that the live dealer is addressing is also an issue . “ We are working to extend our studio portfolio all the time ,” he says . “ That ’ s our strategy because then you get different talents , different accents , different cultures . And that ’ s a big factor .” Glass says the entertainment aspect of the job is the most important . “ We believe that a good dealer makes the experience so much more engaging ,” he says . “ Think about your experience at the brick-and-mortar property . The dealers that make the most tips are going to be the most engaging . They have great personalities , they ’ re fun to interact with . They tell great stories and they chat with you . It ’ s certainly just as much entertainment with a good dealer as it is playing the game itself too . So I think Evolution does a great job in training their dealers .”
The Name of the Game
All online casinos offer the standard games of baccarat , roulette and blackjack . The first two games have the advantage that you can host hundreds , even thousands of players at each table since there ’ s no decision to be made by the players after placing their bets . Blackjack , however , is different , and the normal seven spots at a real-life table are replicated online .
“ Blackjack is the only capacity-constrained game ,” says Bartlett . “ We manage that capacity with Evolution and obviously looking at our own space . In Michigan , we launched with six private blackjack tables versus one roulette table and one baccarat table . We ’ ll always look at the capacity of those blackjack tables . If I need to go to 10 or 15 tables , we ’ ll work with Evolution to get them built .
“ We also have another option in the live casino space called Infinite Blackjack . That ’ s a standard blackjack game with potentially 10,000 people betting on one hand , where decisions to hit and stand are left to the original player , so it kind of bridges the gap quite nicely between RNG electronic table games and the real version of blackjack .”
The wild card of traditional casino games is craps , but solutions are even being worked up for that game . Haushalter admits it ’ s a challenge .
“ You feed off the energy of the other people at the craps table ,” he says . “ That ’ s just the reality . We ’ ve done our best to create a vibe , so we ’ ve built a set that looks like a 1920s underground speakeasy and you feel like it ’ s this underground table .” As for the game play , says Haushalter , in many ways it ’ s better than land-based . “ It ’ s faster . We have a re-bet button so if all your numbers get taken down , you can immediately re-bet by pressing a button . It ’ s super easy . In one click you can see the user interface to explain to you what ’ s going on at all times . So in many ways it ’ s superior to the land-based experience .”
The Future of Live
Evolution Gaming has already given us a glimpse into the future with live “ game shows .” They ’ ve converted the Deal or No Deal TV program into something you can bet on .
“ We look for a central format of a game show ,” says Haushalter . “ For example , we ’ ve taken the Big Six wheel , peppered it with all kinds of different things that can happen , but some of those things take you off into this bonus game . It gives the player a lot to look at , with incredible variety .”
As a former land-based casino executive , Haushalter envisions ways that the game show concept could work in other areas .
“ I also think it would be cool to see game shows go into actual casinos ,” he says . “ Yes , it ’ s not technically live casino , but it would be nice to see some product go the other direction .”
Bartlett says he ’ s looking forward to a game show-style game that is popular now in Europe , Crazy Time .
“ It ’ s a good name because it ’ s genuinely a crazy game ,” he says . “ Right now there ’ s probably 10,000 people playing that game in Europe . It ’ s by far the most popular sort of game show in the world in the online gaming space . I would love Evolution and us to bring that over to the U . S . I think it would really work because you need to build essentially a whole new casino in each state you enter for Evolution .”
Glass agrees that the game-show concept is just in its infancy , but there is other growth potential .
“ We ’ ll see a lot of variation in the game show-style games ,” he says . “ I think we ’ ll see more variations in the table games and side bets . Localization is going be a huge key piece for that , especially as we expand internationally as well . And with our high value , there will be further personalization for that cohort of players .” Haitin believes that technology will lead the way . “ Technology is always part of it ,” he says , “ different kinds of technology , to be sure — obviously video , but also products using analytic technology applied to live gaming . This will allow us to make a leap of quality of experience for the users .”
BetMGM just partnered with Evolution on a live studio in Michigan , which has been a huge success and brought the company an impressive market share , a fact that others have noticed .
“ I think we ’ ll see more suppliers coming into the market ,” he says . “ It ’ s inevitable in the free market that other suppliers from Europe will come over . We ’ ve already seen Playtech recently launch in Michigan and New Jersey . There ’ s been some recent acquisitions of live gaming companies by the largest providers of gaming content in the U . S . So it ’ s inevitable we ’ ll see more , and that will breed more innovation from Evolution and these other providers . So I ’ m very excited to see that evolve .”
20 Global Gaming Business SEPTEMBER 2022