Aristocrat Gaming – Continuing Innovation

For years, there has been little question concerning the casino slot market: Aristocrat Gaming has ruled.

Performance-wise, there can be little doubt, particularly when one views the revenue numbers compiled monthly by Eilers & Krejcik Gaming. In March, Aristocrat Gaming won its sixth consecutive nod as the year’s Best Overall Supplier of Slot Content in the EKG Slot Awards.

That’s six, as in every year the EKG Awards have been tallied. The awards are based on the overall revenue generated by the games. In addition to the top award, Aristocrat Gaming won Top Performing New Core Video for its Fortune Trails game, Top Performing Game-EMEA for Mo’ Mummy: Valley of the Riches, Most Innovative Land-Based Game for NFL Super Bowl Jackpots, and Top Performing Omnichannel Slot for Buffalo, from its Aristocrat Interactive (formerly Anaxi) division.

Of course, that’s no call for the supplier to sit on its laurels. But Aristocrat has no intention of bowing to competitive pressure. This year, the supplier will launch a new cabinet line, more games for its hit NFL-themed slot family, a new game family based on the epic HBO fantasy drama House of the Dragon, and a full slate of games for Class II, historical horse racing and VLT markets.

In addition, the company is ramping up its Aristocrat Interactive business, formed through the April closing of its acquisition of NeoGames, which was folded into Aristocrat’s real-money gaming division, formerly known as Anaxi, to create the new division.

Aristocrat Interactive now comprises five go-to-market segments for online gaming operators—Gaming Systems, iLottery, iGaming & Sports, iGaming White- Label, and Content & Aggregation, providing a seamless bridge from its powerful land-based business to the iGaming world.

Aristocrat Interactive will be one important part of what stands to be yet another eye-opening display of products at the Global Gaming Expo. “We are thrilled to showcase our latest innovations across Class II and Class III, and to share our vision for an integrated, omnichannel player experience,” says Kurt Gissane, chief revenue officer for Aristocrat Gaming. “Each of those areas is a priority for our customers, and that means they are priorities for us.”

The Baron and the Crown

It all starts with the latest addition to the Aristocrat Gaming award-winning cabinet lineup, The Baron. The new dual-screen cabinet features groundbreaking technological innovations including never-before-seen integrated dynamic lighting, advanced display monitors, and sleek design elements.

The cabinet features dual 27-inch ultra-high-definition 4K display monitors, plus a 27-inch LCD topper that integrates play and jackpot features.

Other features include proven player comfort and ergonomics, best-in-class graphics, a discreet soundbar, two top monitor speakers, and a subwoofer in-cabinet for improved surround-sound experience. Finally, a floating virtual button deck adds sleekness and functionality to the cabinet’s modern look.

Direct and indirect lighting details that come standard with the hardware include first-of-its-kind LED lighting borders, while indirect backlighting on the chimney illuminates The Baron in color coordination with game play and game themes. An integrated candle lowers the cabinet profile for improved sightlines on casino floors.

“It is a very unique and attractive cabinet,” says Cody Herrick, vice president of commercial strategy for North America for Aristocrat Gaming. “We wanted something to set us apart from our competition and to further build upon our existing portfolio.

“The lighting package is one of the most impressive parts of The Baron and perfectly complements the advanced display monitors. These monitors are incredibly eye-catching, and we went as wide as we could to provide the best presentation possible. Our teams are extremely excited for customers and players to experience The Baron, which will be offered in both game sales and for-lease formats.”

According to Jared Terry, director of commercial strategy for game sales for Aristocrat Gaming, the dual-screen Baron will launch with the games Bao Zhu Zhao Fu Ignite: Blue Prosperity and Red Prosperity, a refresh of the elegant classic Asian Festival theme with a firecracker spin, enhancing the Aristocrat fan-favorite Hold & Spin bonus; Buffalo Gold Cash Collection, an enhancement of the popular Buffalo Gold theme with cash-on-reels symbols added; and Ju Cai Jin Gui Dragon and Ingot.

“Bao Zhu Zhao Fu has been one of our most popular for-sale brands over the last three years, and this is a new iteration of that,” says Terry. “Buffalo Gold Cash Collection is a refresh with cash on reels, and another G2E unveiling will be Lucky Looters, which will also be released on The Baron.”

Football and Fantasy

The wider lineup of award-winning hardware from Aristocrat Gaming will be utilized to maximum effect with several high-profile game launches at G2E.

As was the case last year, no release will carry a higher profile than several additions to the NFL-themed slot games. For its second year, Aristocrat has updated all the game footage to reflect the most recent season.

(One of the game’s strongest features is its “Pick Your Team, Play Your Team” menu of NFL logos, allowing the player to select his or her hometown team. All graphics, photos and footage then change to reflect that team.)

At G2E, Aristocrat will launch three all-new NFL titles, and will re-release two of the original games in multi-denomination versions.

On the five-reel Marquis stepper cabinet will be Touchdown Trio, featuring three metamorphic collection pots leading to an enhanced bonus. The MarsX portrait cabinet will host Triple Score, with three metamorphic pots leading to an enhanced Hold & Spin feature.

On the MarsX Flex large-format cabinet, with its 55-inch top monitor, is Touchdown Link, utilizing the familiar cash collection feature formerly utilized on the hit game Mo’ Mummy—this time, says Herrick, “with even more NFL flare.”

In addition to the new NFL games, Aristocrat is re-releasing the first two games in the series, NFL Super Bowl Jackpots and NFL Overtime Cash, in multi-denomination versions. “Multi-denom is a must, so we’ve added multi-denom to those two, and are re-releasing them to coincide with the start of the NFL season,” Herrick says.

Building on another past hit, at G2E, Aristocrat will unveil House of the Dragon. Aristocrat’s game series based on the Game of Thrones HBO fantasy drama series was one of the supplier’s biggest hit franchises of recent years. House of the Dragon, begun in 2022, is the prequel to Game of Thrones, set 200 years before the events depicted in the first series.

Featured on the large-format King Max cabinet, House of the Dragon is anticipated to be released this winter. As with the Game of Thrones slot series, Aristocrat has collaborated with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Themed Entertainment to build out the House of the Dragon franchise with games based on chapters of the show.

“Game of Thrones was phenomenal for us, and this is the continuation of the storyline,” says Herrick. “House of the Dragon is the prequel, focusing on the dragons and the fight for power, so that’s something we emphasized with the game design. You’ll notice, when you sit down at the game, five metamorphic pots are represented by dragon eggs, each one of those having a unique feature that interacts when you’re playing through.”

More Legends

On the MarsX Portrait cabinet will be Coin Trio Royal, a follow-up to Coin Trio, one of the launch games for the Neptune Single in 2022. It also will be offered on the Neptune Single. “We believe in packaging our content in as many form factors and making it as flexible as we can for the operators,” says Herrick.

The latest addition to the company’s most enduring franchise, Buffalo Triple Boost, will be on display at G2E as well. Another franchise extension will be Conan the Barbarian, with a hammer feature similar to the main feature in Jackpot Carnival.

“Conan’s hammer will now be knocking up the cash-on-reels values and awarding multipliers,” says Terry. “Similarly, we have a game called Fa Fa Fa that has a lot of the same play mechanics as Bank Buster. We’re still very committed to supporting all of the cabinets and providing value to operators by bringing some of the mechanics that have seen success in the lease space over to the for-sale side.”

The MarsX Fit cabinet, the shorter version of the MarsX Portrait designed to accommodate better sightlines than the original, “became the darling of the show last year,” says Terry. This year, the company will release classic game content on the cabinet, “including staples that you still see on nearly every casino floor, especially in mature markets, with games like Wild Panda, Wicked Winnings and Two Wild Ways,” Terry says.

Also on Mars Fit will be a brand extension of Bao Zhu Zhao Fu called Firecracker Fortunes. “It’s an Americana-inspired Bao Zhu Zhao Fu triple-metamorphic game,” explains Herrick.

Herrick notes that every game featured in Aristocrat’s booth will be available to casinos by the first half of 2025. “When we’re showing a product on the G2E floor, it’s important to us to deliver in a reasonable timeline on what we’re displaying,” he says. “Sometimes it’s cool to have a back room where we can tease products that are far out, but for the most part, operators want to see things that they’re going to be able to actually purchase.”

In all, Aristocrat’s G2E display will be comprised of approximately 90 percent new content.

There will also be areas within Aristocrat’s booth dedicated to the international markets such as LATAM and EMEA. “These will be populated with games that we created specifically for these markets, in direct response to input from our customers,” says Gissane.

“At Aristocrat Gaming, we pride ourselves on offering premium products that deliver the best seat in the house wherever and whenever the world plays.”