In a previous article we shared why Devil’s Lock wasn’t available (at the time of writing, anyway) in Nevada. A recent video of Brian Christopher’s triggered a question in a fan’s head around a similar topic:
On a more recent video you mentioned a certain slot (the new Dracula) wasn’t able to be placed in Vegas yet. I was wondering if you could elaborate on how/why a formal decision is made to place (or not place) machines at various places?
Diane C.
Where a slot can be placed has a few basic criteria.
Being Approved to Distribute in a State
The first level is simply being approved by the local gaming commission to do business with casinos in that location. Dracula is a game by Light & Wonder, a massive slot maker which regularly releases games in Las Vegas and throughout Nevada, so there’s definitely no issues there.
But as we shared on Devil’s Lock, Bluberi opted to get certified in other states before applying in Nevada and New Jersey, two of the larger markets. Where game makers are certified often comes down to the business strategy being pursued.
Larger slot makers tend to be approved to do business everywhere, whereas smaller makers will often target their efforts to certain jurisdictions in an effort to maximize the opportunities in the locations they’re doing business, until they’ve sufficiently grown to spend the additional capital to expand to other markets.
The Game is Approved in a State
One a game maker is approved to distribute their games, they still have to have the games themselves certified. The process for this is via testing with a third party lab, such as GLI or BMM, who know what regulations need to be checked to be approved in a certain state and run tests against the game to make sure they meet those standards. (If for some reason a test or tests fail, manufacturers will have to resolve the issues before it can move forward.)
With tests in hand, the jurisdiction then reviews and certifies the game. Some jurisdictions are faster to confirm this than others, so in the case of Dracula, the likelihood is simply that one location was faster to approve the game than another.
The Game is Bought By a Casino
Of course, once a slot is approved, it still has to make its way onto casino floors. Some casinos have reputations as being among the first to get a slot – some will even use being first as a marketing opportunity, and will partner with slot makers for that opportunity.
Companies like IGT will even use test bank data to help give casino operators confidence, especially when a game is new. Casinos want to put games on the floor that we want to play, so knowing players responded well during a test run can be helpful, for instance.
But ultimately a game maker and game need to be approved, and a casino willing to buy, for a slot to show up on casino floors. If a game is available in one market but not another, it’s usually for the first two reasons, but on occasion can certainly be the third.
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