Monday, March 3, 2008

New G+ Series Slots from WMS

Well, I went searching for new slots last night at Red Rock Casino and I found some -- just not the ones I was hoping for.

I wanted to find the WMS' Money Burst and Rotating Wild machines, but instead stumbled upon some new versions of their G+ series. http://www.wms.com/games_videoreel.php

Par for the course these days -- there is no information on these slots on WMS' website -- but there they are bold as day on the casino floor.

The machines are "Egypt," "Roman Something Or Other," "Fortune Seeker," and "Samarai Something Or Other."

Okay, they aren't really called "Something Or Other," I just can't remember their names exactly, and frankly do we really need more Roman or Asian themes machines? Apparently, we do.

But, I digress . . . the G+ series are simple in their offerings, usually one bonus round, sometimes featuring stacked wilds, and volatile.

Saturday, March 1, 2008

Dean Martin's Wild Party Slots Hit the Floor

Sometimes you find new slots in the strangest places. Last night I was downtown to play my free $15 at Binion's and decided to park at the Vegas Club across the street.

Strolling through the casino to my car, I spied "Glitz" a new "Money Burst" game from WMS I saw next to the Dean Martin game I'd admired at the Global Gaming Expo. With giddy anticipation I checked the bank of machines opposite "Glitz" and there it was! "Dean Martin's Wild Party!"

Sometimes you just never know which casinos are going to feature the new games first. The Vegas Club, in conjuction with it's neighbor the Plaza (both run by Tamares Group -- which has a rather tenuous hold on it's holdings) have seen better days. Still, I've noticed that whoever is running the slot selection is not afraid to try new things, and keep the mix on the casino floor fresh.

Dean Martin's Wild Party is a volatile game, but worth the trouble if you can hit a bonus round. It is unusual in that it starts with only two lines that funnel into sixty. http://www.ggbmagazine.com/department/New_Game_Review/Vol__7_No__1_January_2008

You get sixty lines for thirty credits, and the bonus round of five free spins is triggered if you get four of the same symbols (wilds count) in the first four positions. These symbols hold for the remainder of the spins. If you get three bonus symbols you also get the free spins but have a choice to make (I didn't get there so I don't exactly know how this works) to determine the first symbols.

During the bonus round Dean-o and his background singers keep you entertained with a song I don't quite recall entitled "Go, Go, Go!" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head" -- if you are lucky the bonus can be long as all the lines hit and tally up. I got two wild symbols that guaranteed a payoff with every spin. Of course you can speed things along by hitting a button, but as this was my first bonus on this machine I let it take it's time and savored the moment. My thirty cent bet turned into $25.00 in the bonus round.

"Glitz" works the same way, but I don't care for the graphics so I didn't try it out.

Once again I can't find any info on the machine on WMS' website, but consulting my catalog, I see they describe "Money Burst" as "new reel layout, 60 lines for 30 credits, and fast play drive hyper-volatile math model." I'm not so sure I like that "hyper-volatile math model" part. I would say if you are lucky enough to hit a bonus round to skee-daddle like I did.

I almost got out the door of the Vegas Club, but another new slot caught my eye -- this one from IGT. A new Wheel of Fortune machine I didn't notice at the Global Gaming Expo -- "Viva Las Vegas" featuring Elvis Presley as "Lucky" and Ann Margret as "Rusty."

The info I found on IGT's website is adobe stuff, and seems to be for a more traditional mechanical reel game -- word to IGT and WMS -- if the slots are on the floor they should be represented on your website. Oh, and while you are at it, why not have more slot player oriented promotional material?

But I digress -- I hit a couple of bonus rounds (8 free spins) that may or may not entitle you to spin the wheel (a wheel symbol has to pop up) but after a few minutes I was down $10 and decided to go. I enjoyed the Elvis and Ann Margaret singing symbols and the expanding wild, but all and all, I found the bonus round rather boring and unfulfilling, especially when I couldn't hit a wheel spin.

So Wheel of Fortune "Viva Las Vegas" didn't hold my attention as long as Dean Martin's Wild Party, but maybe it was just the kinda night I was having.

I'm glad to see new slots on the floor, and I'll check today to see if Red Rock has added any new slots to the mix.