Casino Evolution: How to Bring In the Next Generation

Is there a crisis looming for casinos or have they been in crisis for some time? With the ongoing development of online gaming where players can log on and play a vast array of games against other online users within the network communities, it is no longer necessary for us to leave home in order to participate in very entertaining hobbies and pursuits. Whilst devastating for our social skills, something we could write about at length also, the new generation of “gamified” users exist at home and this causes a dramatic reduction in the footfall for traditional casinos. They face a rush to adapt to the dramatic shift in the needs and wants of their current and potential customers.

It has not gone unnoticed by gaming industry experts that there are far more options for traditional casino players to choose from. For the customers that like to gamble on slots and other casino games they can play at home, where they have many options. The online gaming market is extremely competitive and gaming companies offer competitive bonuses to customers that they cannot access in a land based casino. This all adds to the challenge for casinos hoping to lure customers across their threshold.

How do the offline casinos react to this increasingly difficult market? This question has occupied worldwide gaming conferences recently, with detailed discussions about customer traction, what gamers are looking for and how to attract the differing demographics to the casino. The conference appear to be fully aware that they must work harder to generate customers as we move forward and with necessity being the best prerequisite for innovation we can expect to see real change in the casino based offers in terms of games, hardware, and customer experience.

The industry cites “Generation X” and “Millennials” as the key demographic groups they must appeal to. Taken together, if you are aged between 25 to 55 this is largely the demographic the casinos are most likely to attract as customers. You are most likely progressing through your career, and if going to the casino is an option for your entertainment, you are likely to have disposable income and established social circles.

What the casinos have found is that traditional slot machines are no longer an attraction to customers. In my view, there is a long-term trend in play here. When I was very young, single game machines like the old pinball machines were very popular. Another variant is table football. Back in the day, where the most fun you could have at home with your clothes on was subbuteo, board games, or television, these games were the height of fashion and unless you were particularly wealthy with plenty of space at home you had to travel to play them. Not many people have a slot machine at home.

Times have changed and, as we touched upon at the beginning of the article, you can do an unthinkable amounts of things on yourPC. Just this evening I’ve checked my demo forex accounts, played two computer games (at the same time!), wrote this article, watched a YouTube video that is playing in the background, and read some articles and websites to keep up with the news. This is still only a fraction of what computers can be used for. Now compare this to the 1980’s. You can see the difference and it is stark.

Around 15 years ago when I was young and visited pubs almost every night, as I played Pool at a high level, the slot machine in the corner of the pub was constantly occupied with players chasing the modest cash jackpots. A visit to pubs in 2016 and you don’t see many young people gathered around the slot machines these days. The same can be said for casinos, slots are used but many stand unused. Yes there are slot machine enthusiasts but by and large they are the same players that played slots around ten years ago. Many pubs in the UK today have a slot machine almost as a relic of the classic days of the traditional pub. When I asked a landlord how many new players use the machines apart from players who used them ten years ago, he was honest and said hardly no-one that he could think of.

The challenge for land based casinos gets even bigger when you consider the big changes in the traditional high-street bookmaker over the past decade. In the UK, the smoking ban in 2007 made the traditional bookmaker retail unit a more pleasant place to be. The traditional set-up where light was kept out because if you keep control of light you affect the individual's perception of time passing has changed, with shops now offering a light, airy, and welcoming atmosphere replacing the seedy, smoke-filled shop of yesteryear. Shops are installed with Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) which are politically sensitive, but offer casino games on a virtual platform and they are available on the high streets of almost all towns and most villages.

So we are in no doubt about what the problem is, but what is the solution? Casino experts suggest that gamifying slot machines is the way forward. The smartphone generation is used to the instant reward of apps and sophisticated games with quality graphics providing more of a challenge than achieving cherry-cherry-bar for a quick cash reward. If players are going to travel to a casino, there has to be a reason and it is hard to keep them there once they arrive, so in effect there are two challenges, capture and retention.

Digital development companies see the demand, so are working on the supply. They are rushing to develop table games that offer immersion, choice, and modern cognitive gaming experiences. With estimates that the Generation X (and Millennials) spending power will far exceed what baby boomers can spend, the rewards to getting this right could be vast and could signify the next generation of the casino experience. The innovation of the next generation of casino equipment is gathering pace.

The death of the traditional slot machine is unfortunate but marks the latest step in the progression of technology. Players buy pinball machines as a relic of a former age, but a pinball game can be downloaded and used on a PC. Nostalgia fuels demand now, rather than desire to play. It is the same for table football and slots are the latest in the line, although they are not obsolete just yet. The era of having rows and rows of slots in casinos and amusement arcades are coming to an end, although the transition will be far slower in the gambling Mecca of Las Vegas where playing slots is more ingrained in the culture of the city than elsewhere..

There is no chance of a social transition occurring where people no longer wish to gamble anymore or we all suddenly wake up one day completely risk averse. If anything, having a little money lends one to risk it more easily as accruing interest by leaving it in the bank leads to only negligible increases. Risk is part of life, but with political turbulence like the recent EU referendum in the United Kingdom, which saw the country choose to leave the European Union, with employment trends shorter and more volatile, with properties more expensive to buy and deposits a challenge for a modest earner, this creates an economy where customers must get value and be inspired to travel and spend. The casinos must react to this to maintain their place in society so they appeal to both the whales who spend freely and the casual visitors who bet small but do so consistently.

Charity spending, luxury items, and entertainment spending are the first to go when times are tough. With options at home including real dealer games to remove concerns over algorithm or Random Number Generator manipulations, the casinos need to move with the times. Expect to see more sophisticated and cleverly designed game offerings being developed and installed that are only available in the casino.

If this type of fun and exclusive game might encourage you to go to the casino more often, they will have got it right. Innovations are needed but the good news for the industry is where there is demand there will be supply, so it is only a matter of time before the casinos come up with something new. Then we get to sample it.