Competitive Gaming

By Marty Wollner

12-Jul-2009

The SpikerSystems e-Gamers platform is a layered architecture for defining and deploying interactive live casino games like Craps and Roulette. Most of the configuration and game definitions are stored in an easy-to-configure database. For example, the payout in traditional craps for a 12 is typically 30 to 1. Changing this wager’s “PayNumerator” field in the database WagerClass table from 30:1 to, say, 31:1 boosts the game payout.

In the casino, players obviously want to play tables that pay better. If the above change were made to only one table in a casino that has 9 others, it would become the most used table, all things considered. SignatureGaming has already patented this concept, and it can easily be implemented right now using SpikerSystems e-Gamers platform. By limiting the number of players allowed on a “Higher Game Payout” table (HGP), its availability becomes an added bonus to the 9 other “Normal Game Payout” tables (NGP).

Now, consider a casino that is designed like a food court… a bunch of small games run as set of independent businesses. Players go from game to game much like they do within a casino, but in this case, the player is not bound to any one casinos’ advantages or disadvantages. The player can immediately pick and choose exactly what he wants from everything offered.

In such an environment, each participating vendor is competing with all the other vendors for getting customer business. They do it by offering perks, just like large “stand-alone” casinos do; free food, free drinks, etc. However, in this case they must be even more competitive because now the customer can immediately compare and choose, before he is “held captive” by the hassles of having to travel to another casino.

All of these vendors share common facilities including parking, rest rooms, perhaps even food and housing. Still, the costs of independent security and currency and chip handling may be prohibitive for such small operations. However, if each vendor agrees to use SpikerSystems e-Gamers platform, these costs are greatly reduced and all cash transactions can be confined to a relatively few secure cashier areas. Players can safely play the games offered across several vendor’s booths, all using their single electronic balance established, and all games are played with the same look and feel.

Vendors can compete against the other vendors by making more attractive payouts. SpikerSystems e-Gamers architecture allows vendors to customize their games to introduce HGPs in many creative ways, and these changes can be deployed during live gaming without interruption, on a scheduled or ad-hoc basis.

So now, Vendor A announces: “We are offering 32 to 1 on the 12 for the next 10 minutes”. Vendor B responds to this by announcing: “We are offering 33 to 1 on the 12 all day”, makes the configuration change and deploys it all within minutes, without interuption.

For customers, it is a dream casino; major perks and great gaming value. For the vendors, it is extremely efficient, because they have very little overhead, and they share most of the facilities. The “Gaming Mall” owner has no gaming risk exposure. SpikerSystems has the software to run a Brick and Mortar or a Virtual on-line Gamming Mall, and a lot more.