Slot Manufacturer Hits Jackpot With This Deal

Any one who watched the season premier of "Deal or No Deal" on NBC-TV had to agree with the decision by the contestant to take the $625,000 "sure thing" deal rather than gamble and risk watching the value of his suitcase No. 23 go down the tubes.

Of course, as it turned out, he had the $3 million dollar suitcase in his possession all along and, had he continued on, would have walked away with the biggest jackpot in television game show history.

Slot machine manufacturer Atronic inked a licensing agreement a few years back for "Deal or No Deal" at the time the show was a huge hit in countries across Europe and elsewhere around the world.

When it premiered in the United States and became an instant sensation, Atronic all of a sudden was besieged with interest about the video slot it had developed using the game's theme, and it now appears the company's gamble is about to pay off big time.

Everybody is talking about "Deal or No Deal" in much the same way "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" became an instant sensation when it first appeared on the air waves some years back.

Now gaming fans will soon have an opportunity to experience the thrills and intrigue of the game in the form of low-denomination progressive slots that bring together all of the elements of the show that have made it so captivating. Atronic has taken the appeal of the show and reproduced it in an interactive gambling format that epitomizes the entertaining heights to which slot play has ascended.

The company has incorporated an imaginative variety of second screen bonuses in the game, plus they added a rapid-hit progressive jackpot that can be activated six different ways, but far and away the highlight is the "Cash Box Bonus" which gives players the closest experience to playing "Deal or No Deal" short of actually being a contestant on the show.

When the Cash Box Bonus is triggered, 10 cash boxes each with a "question mark" symbol appear on screen. Just as on the show, the amount of possible bonus credits contained in each of the cash boxes appears in a display on either side. The amounts range from 30 to 20,000 credits, depending on the size of the wager and the number of symbols that triggered the bonus.

The player selects one of the cash boxes as his own. Next, you are prompted to pick three of the remaining nine, after which the contents in them are revealed and the amounts eliminated from the side displays. The mysterious "banker" then proceeds to make a guaranteed credit offer for the player's cash box and a decision must be made to press "deal" or "no deal". This continues until the player either makes a deal or his cash box is opened to reveal the credit award.

There are no images of "Deal or No Deal" host Howie Mandell associated with the game, simply because Atronic was in such a hurry to bring the concept to market that they didn't want to lose time hashing out more licensing agreements.

Argosy's Empress in Joliet has a version of Atronic's first generation of the game available on the main level of the casino, immediately to the right as you enter, but the improved second generation of "Deal or No Deal" is far superior in play quality and is the one that you'll soon be able to play.

Deal or No Deal, the video slot, is available as a nine or 21-line multi-coin game in penny, two-cent and nickel formats with the progressive starting at $500 or $2,500 depending on the denomination. It already is beginning to appear in casinos in Nevada and will soon find its way around here.

CASINO NEWS: Potawatomi Bingo Casino in Milwaukee is expanding. By the time the ambitious $240 million project is completed in 2008, the property will be one of the biggest gaming destinations in the country. The creation of an additional 500,000 sq. ft. of space means that 1,500 more slot machines and 100 more table games will be on the casino floor. All of Potawatomi's dining venues will increase in size as well, including the Dream Dance Restaurant, the Buffet and the Fire Pit Sports Bar & Grill. Two new restaurants, a lounge and a food court will also be part of the expanded operations. The plans also call for a six-story parking garage from which a bridge will connect to the main access James Groppi Unity Bridge.