GGRAsia – Immersive play, product key to grab young players: suppliers

Immersive play, product key to grab young players: suppliers

Jun 05, 2024 Newsdesk G2E Asia 2024, Latest News

The provision of new, immersive gaming experiences will be key in attracting younger demographics to land-based casinos, said industry veteran Ken Jolly on Wednesday. He was speaking during a panel session on player experience initiatives, part of the conference segment of the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia 2024 trade show in Macau.

Mr Jolly (pictured centre), vice president and managing director for Asia at casino equipment supplier Light & Wonder Inc, suggested that offering themed areas and rooms could contribute to a more immersive play experience. According to the executive, casino operators in Macau were already moving in that direction.

Creating a “more immersive” environment and ensuring that gaming rooms offer a “much better atmosphere” could be areas of development to attract younger demographics into casino gaming, Mr Jolly suggested.

“Imagine a room with digital walls, activity happening around the room, and lighting effects when you win a jackpot… that is probably where we are heading,” he added.

Mr Jolly suggested that the introduction of crash-style games into the casino environment could also appeal to young players, as they were already familiar with playing this type of game for fun.

“If you can get regulators to actually accept crash games, that might be something that could move the needle,” he observed.

Fellow panellist Lloyd Robson (second from left), general manager for Asia at slot machine maker Aristocrat Gaming, pointed to the importance of content in attracting young people to land-based casinos. He gave the example of sports-themed casino offerings in the United States as a successful example.

He also highlighted the importance of educating players about how slot machine play works, to make them more comfortable with this kind of activity. Mr Robson mentioned that previous research by casino operators in Macau indicated a lack of understanding by many mainland Chinese patrons of how slot machines actually worked.

“What we’ve been really doing is thinking about how we use technology to work with operators to educate players on how to play… and really allow [players] to learn in an environment that they’re comfortable with,” he explained. That, for instance, could include using technology to offer players recommendations to play other games around the floor, as well as directing them to different parts of the casino floor, he added.

Both Mr Jolly and Mr Robson admitted that skill-based games, once seen as a promising alternative to attract young players to slot play, had not achieved that goal. Both Light & Wonder and Aristocrat were currently not looking into this segment, they said.

The discussion panel also included representatives from two casinos in the Philippines: Cheryl Tiglao (first from right), director of slot at the Hann Casino Resort; and Jerry Chan (second from right), senior vice president of electronic gaming and special projects at Okada Manila.

Ms Tiglao said that themed rooms might not resonate with players in the Philippines in the same way they were already doing in Macau with Chinese players, due to cultural differences.

Mr Chan added that, in the Philippines, younger generations seem to be more attracted to playing table games. “They like to feel they can predict what is happening,” he said.