Synergy Blue’s games can be seen in action in booth 2823 on the G2E floor.As a sucker for anything reminiscent of the arcades from the 1980s and ‘90s, arcade-style racing cabinets drew my eyes to Synergy Blue’s booth on the G2E exhibit floor. Once I sat down, I learned that Lucky Karts is a modern kart racing game that can be operated either as a skill-based or a pure chance slot game depending on the jurisdiction. Synergy Blue’s HAWG operating system, or Hybrid Arcade Wager-based Gaming, allows the game to run as either depending on the installed files.
In Lucky Karts, players race their friends or the clock down any one of several race tracks. Rather than classic arcade components, Synergy Blue has opted for a simulation-quality wheel with built-in motors. As the player drifts into a turn, they can feel the wheel fighting back, and when the player is launched into the air, the wheel spins freely with no resistance. This creates an immersive experience and greatly shortens the trial and error a player typically experiences when trying a new game. As a racing game fan, I had a blast driving around during round one, rather than feeling as if the machine was simply eating my money.As the player drives around the track, there are gems and there are coins. Gems increase the player’s potential winnings, while coins are a wager. Conceptually for the player, hitting a coin is the approximate equivalent of pressing a button on a slot machine. Coins also “refuel” the kart, so if a player makes no wagers, the kart runs out of fuel. When the wager finally runs out, the player is shown an arcade style countdown – 10, 9, 8… – and can insert more money or take their winnings if they’ve had enough.
Safari Match
