New slot machines of interest

4 December 2016

By John Grochowski

Designing slot machines is partly about designing games that are fun to play with paybacks and bonuses that occur often enough to hold your interest while also offering large enough potential jackpots for a “what if?” fantasy factor.

But before players even get to the point where those elements can hold their attention, the game has to attract them to give it a try in the first place.

Incredible Technologies has a new cabinet ready to blare its message that it has must-play games. The cabinet is the Infinity Super Skybox, and if you’re walking through the slot floor, you can’t miss it.

The ideal configuration, according to marketing manager Caitlin Harte, is four machines side-by-side. There’s a very good reason for that.

“The vertical 55-inch monitor [atop each machine] is now linked across four cabinets,” Harte said. “That linked screen is equal to a 123-inch monitor. It’s an economical way for casinos to get a pretty impactful look on the floor.”

The Infinity Super Skybox is debuting with Crazy Money Super Sky Wheel and Money Rain Super Sky Wheel. Crazy Money and Money Rain have been two if IT’s biggest hits, so players attracted by the giant video display will have plenty to hold their interest.

“When you get a bonus on either, it goes into the money catch bonus,” Harte said. “So it’s something familiar that they’ve seen before. It’s super easy to understand. Dollar bills of different denominations fly across the screen and you touch them to collect bonuses.”

Some of the flying currency doesn’t award credits. Instead, some bills award spins on a Super Sky Wheel that stretches across the four overhead monitors. No passerby will be able to miss it when there’s a spin of the enormous wheel.

“On the Super Sky Wheel you can win progressives and credit amounts,” Harte said. “There’s an external ring and an internal ring on the wheel. The internal ring has respins on it. So it’s possible you could get 20 free spins on the Sky Wheel.

“It’s really nice for the people standing behind you and watching. That’s’ what gives us the biggest visual impact. Across the casino, ypu can see people getting these awards.”

Incredible also is introducing a new family of games called Sky Reels on its Infinity Skybox cabinet. Instead of going to a huge wheel overhead, a bonus takes you to a set of giant slot reels in the top box display.

Two games in the initial Sky Reels release are designed to appeal to player preferences. Heat ’Em Up is for players who like the classic, old-school slot look with bars, bells, cherries and fiery 7s. Then there’s Eat ‘Em Up, a zombie-themed game for those who love interactive video slots.

“You’ll see a six-by-four set of additional reels overhead,” Harte said as she demonstrated Heat ‘Em Up. “They’re locked during regular gameplay.

“There are eight progressive levels at max bet. The idea is to get these arrow symbols. Each arrow has a number on it, and that corresponds to how many cells unlock on the Sky Reels overhead.”

It’s fun time when Heat ‘Em Up symbols land on the Sky Reels. That’s when the arrows come into play.

“If there are lot of Heat 'Em Up symbols, you could get the progressive,” Harte said. “The arrows shoot through the Heat ‘Em Up symbols overhead, and that’s how you win the progressive.”

Sky Reels or Super Sky Wheel, there’s plenty to attract you and even more to keep you playing.


Look for John Grochowski on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/7lzdt44) and Twitter (@GrochowskiJ).