It has been only a little over four months since the premiere of IGT’s RISE55 cabinet at the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention in San Diego and already it has taken hardware performance to new heights.
RISE55, designed to highlight Multi-Level Progressive games, launched in the U.S. in May with the Magic Treasures Gold MLP. In no time it had topped Eiler’s June performance reports in the “Top Indexing Cabinets – Premium Video Reel” category for North America.
“Magic Treasures Gold, an evolution of our extraordinarily successful Magic Treasures, has been the number one new premium product in the market since the day it was launched, said Domenico Pastia, IGT’s Senior Vice President of Global Product.
“This clearly validates RISE55 as the most anticipated product of the year in the premium stand-alone segment. On the for-sale side, the first month of results reveal it is the number one portrait slant product in the market according to industry rankings.”
The RISE55 cabinet was designed to deliver the ultimate immersive gaming experience while optimizing floor space with its sleek design. It features an ultra-high definition 55-inch screen, state-of-the-art lighting, and advanced ergonomics fortified with a portfolio of new premium MLP content.
The elegant design of RISE55 is engineered into all hardware development at IGT according to Pastia, who said, “We have a resolute market research team which collects feedback up front by engaging both customers and players”.
RISE55 is engineered to the standards and specifications of IGT, which continues to improve game content from generation to generation. Pastia explained this critical strategy now has even greater impact thanks to an ultra-high-definition resolution display and enhanced lighting on both the sides of the cabinet and the sides of the screen.
“The side lighting is a premiere for IGT,” Pastia said. “We created a video wall experience integrated into the cabinet with the premium merchandising solution. Merchandising has been engineered to ensure the look and feel of the cabinet is unified and incredibly coherent.
Pastia explained that with new hardware merchandising, the goal is to achieve two things: attracting the player for the first time and a reason to enjoy long term. The goals, he said, are complementary and equally important.
“It is the most distinctive merchandising package in the market. From a personal standpoint, I am extremely proud of it. The cabinet is self-merchandised on the for-sale side through the integrated lighting feature. Through the merchandising, we can really provide a distinctive experience.”
Pastia said that RISE55 for-sale launch package features three game families, explaining that it was purposeful because IGT wanted to give its customers three different options: Treasure Blast, Wolf Run Wild Moon, and Samurai 888 Rise.
“Treasure Blast is a super-innovative concept that was really designed for RISE55,” he said. “Wolf Run Wild Moon is an evolution of one of our most successful brands. It leverages the cabinet with the presentation and sound of the wolf howl, which is the signature of the brand. Samurai 888 is an iteration of the brand we launched for the first time in 2021. We revitalized and refreshed it. It looks amazing on this new cabinet.”
The reduced footprint of RISE55 makes the cabinet the most flexible on the floor, something which Pastia knows is especially important for IGT’s customers.
“In terms of depth, RISE55 is the most efficient cabinet we have ever produced,” he said. “It is truly engineering magic that the IGT technology team executed to somehow make the cabinet extremely slim and to occupy less space than other cabinets.”
Elaborating further, Pastia acknowledged the excitement revolving around a platform that permits modular fashion incorporating different form factors, paving the way for IGT to differentiate for its customers by creating a distinctive value proposition that is unique in the market.
“The upcoming roadmap is very deep,” he continued. “The portrait screen is a segment in which we are investing heavily because it is the mainstream segment of the industry.”
He revealed that Magic Rockets, a combination of two of IGT’s most successful concepts, Rising Rockets and Magic Treasure, will launch at G2E and be available by the end of the year.
“We will progressively release new titles in 2025 and beyond in both the premium and for sale segments,” Pastia concluded. “This is just the beginning. We have new exciting products that we are bringing to G2E that will drive the success of the RISE product family across different business models.”
