WMS Gaming Has Much in Store for Slot Players

Hundreds of gaming device manufacturers from around the world converged on Las Vegas to unveil their new product lines at the annual Global Gaming Expo in that city’s giant convention center.

Displaying their wares in spaces ranging in size from a small booth to floor space equivalent to huge banquet halls, the companies make every effort to attract the attention of gaming industry executives in the hope they’ll make purchases for the casinos they own and operate.

Traditionally, WMS Gaming makes a significant impact on Expo attendees with innovative technology that continually raises the bar on how people play slot machines.They did it a couple of years ago with Star Trek, the debut of the company’s patented Adaptive Gaming format in which players (using a log-in component) unlock new features as they play, save their progress, and then are able to pick up where they left off at another machine, even in a different casino.

The next generation of the technology has been applied to Lord of the Rings, based on the J.R.R. Tolkien trilogy which was made into three popular and highly acclaimed motion pictures 2001 through 2003.

“Lord of the Rings is a great license, and one that has tested phenomenally in regard to familiarity and likeability with players,” said Rob Bone, vice president of marketing for WMS.

Whereas Star Trek is episodic gaming in which players collect medals that allow them to unlock new episodes, Lord of the Rings introduces what the company is calling epic gaming.

“It’s a constant story, but instead of earning medals you earn miles,” Bone said. “Those miles get you to destinations where you unlock bonuses. The journey and the story remain very consistent; we’re just putting the player in a more epic kind of ride as they go along as opposed to the new episodes which are unlocked in Star Trek.”

Just as with the Star Trek format, Lord of the Rings has a video monitor display depicting scenes from the motion pictures as you progress and earn miles.

“We’re showing more integrated movie clips (from Lord of the Rings) than we’ve ever shown in any game,” Bone said. “It’s the goal of any license to stay true to the movie, the art assets, and the overall theme. I can’t imagine us doing a better job with the movie and streaming video.”

“This game is going to be a huge hit,” he predicted. “It has so many features in it I can’t even begin to go over them.”

Lord of the Rings, which is expected to begin popping up on casino floors around the country in May or June of 2010, will feature a Bose sound player’s chair which incorporates the elements of Sensory Immersion gaming first introduced by WMS with its Top Gun themed slots.

“It is the start of integrating the technologies we have developed into future generations of our products,” Bone added.

What would happen if you packaged WMS Gaming’s Sensory Immersion, Transmissive Reels, and Community Gaming experiences all in one machine? The exciting answer will be the topic of next week’s column!

Highlights of WMS’ Games Premiering on Next Generation Foundational Technology Platforms

WMS debuted 21 new games at G2E 2009 that leverage next generation versions of the Company’s four revolutionary networked gaming technology platforms – Transmissive Reels Gaming, Community Gaming, Sensory Immersion Gaming and Adaptive Gaming – to provide unique gaming experiences, including games that combine multiple foundational technologies, such as:

THE PRICE IS RIGHT PLINKO® and THE PRICE IS RIGHT PUNCH A BUNCH® – Building on the success and familiarity of the ubiquitous THE PRICE IS RIGHT game show, WMS has two of the most popular and exciting games from THE PRICE IS RIGHT show. PLINKO and PUNCH A BUNCH games will debut creating a whole new paradigm in slot entertainment by leveraging enhanced versions of three of WMS’ powerful foundational technology platforms – Community Gaming, Transmissive Reels Gaming and Sensory Immersion Gaming – to offer an unmatched entertainment experience. WMS will showcase both versions of THE PRICE IS RIGHT brand on the slot floor in entirely new and unique product executions as it invites players to “Come on Down” for a chance at Community Progressive Jackpots in the “Showcase Showdown.”
THE LORD OF THE RINGS – WMS introduces a new “epic” gaming experience with THE LORD OF THE RINGS, which is built on the success of the proven, award-winning Adaptive Gaming product category that has met with widespread player enthusiasm. WMS’ Adaptive Gaming technology has resulted in more than 750,000 unique log-ins as players unlock new features as they play, save their progress and resume game play at a later time – even at different casinos. THE LORD OF THE RINGS takes Adaptive Gaming to the next level as players embark on a journey based on the storyline of this motion picture trilogy and collect miles along the way to unlock new and exciting elements of the legendary adventure.
MONOPOLY Big Money Spin™ Bigger Event™ – Over three years ago, WMS created Community Gaming with the introduction of MONOPOLY Big Event. At this year’s G2E, WMS moves the bar higher with major innovations that further heighten the communal celebration excitement. Presented across a super-wide (104”) high-definition screen display, MONOPOLY Big Money Spin Bigger Event features new ways to qualify for and trigger the Big Event bonuses and introduces the industry’s first “collaborative gaming” experience that allows players to work together in the bonus round.
THE WIZARD OF OZ – THE WIZARD OF OZ Ruby Slippers™ is an entirely new product that extends this iconic brand by combining the visual and audio excitement of WMS’ Sensory Immersion platform on the Bluebird®2 gaming cabinet delivering a wide screen, high definition trip down the yellow brick road. With second-generation BOSE® powered Bluebird2 audio, players feel every step of their adventure while they experience bonuses, free spins, respins and big wins as they play this new fantasy game. A second new THE WIZARD OF OZ themed game, Follow the Yellow Brick Road™, is the latest Transmissive Reels version game. In addition to all of the entertainment enabled by the Transmissive Reels platform, this new game features 4-level, mystery-trigger progressive awards and a wide-area progressive jackpot.