Aristocrat Gaming is rolling out the next iteration of its popular Dragon Link game, two new high-tech cabinets, and even a game for a new market featuring unique player-controlled limits on losses and time-on-device.
With about 90 percent of the company’s Global Gaming Expo display devoted to new offerings, Kurt Gissane, Aristocrat’s chief revenue officer for gaming, said he’s “super excited” about the range of products and the positive reactions to them so far.
One star is Phoenix Link, a medium- to high-volatility game that Cody Herrick, vice president of commercial strategy, called “the spiritual successor” of Dragon Link. Phoenix Link boasts a twist on the hold-and-spin mechanic that offers the chance of two or three bonuses from a single symbol.
Herrick said Phoenix Link benefits from developments in the slot world since Dragon Link launched seven years ago. The multi-denom Phoenix Link is configurable from a penny to $10, offering a max bet of up to $300 per spin, with line counts that vary with credit denomination. At a penny credit, the player can choose 50 or 100 lines, while those betting at $1 or higher can choose five or 10 lines. The cash-on-reel symbols can have multiple values, up to a triple major jackpot.
Gissane said Aristocrat has demonstrated Phoenix Link across the country over the past two months, “and just about every customer’s been absolutely rapt.” The game is expected to be on casino floors in North America later this month.
The new Baron cabinets will come in two configurations, dual screen and portrait. The dual-screen model also will debut in North America within two months and is expected to be in international markets next year.
Its integrated dynamic lighting on the side and back reacts to the gameplay. The cabinet has two 27-inch UHD 4K monitors plus a 27-inch topper that can include gameplay and jackpot features to act like a third screen. It also has 5.1 surround sound, improved wireless charging, and an ergonomic design.
Herrick said the Baron dual screen will launch with three game families, Buffalo Gold Cash Collection, Ju Cai Jin Gui, and Bao Zhu Zhao Fu, and another suite of games will become available in the following quarter.
The portrait style screen cabinet is expected to become available in spring or summer 2025 but is on display in the booth.
Aristocrat is showing new games on existing cabinets such as the Neptune Single, Mars X portrait, and Mars X dual screen. Some of those will be available for the Baron cabinet in the future.
Among leased games, Aristocrat is spotlighting Hyperlink, a follow-up to last year’s Buffalo Ultimate Stampede. Hyperlink offers players the choice of three multi-denom games.
Aristocrat’s exclusive NFL slots also are expanding. Herrick said multi-denom play, from 1 cent to $2 per credit, is available for Super Bowl Jackpots, which debuted last year, and three new games are being offered in the new NFL season: Touchdown Link on the Mars X Flex cabinet, Touchdown Trio on the Marquee five-reel cabinet, and Triple Score on the Mars Portrait cabinet. Those will be on casino floors in the next month.
Herrick said Aristocrat will adapt some of its best-performing Class 3 games for use in Class 2 markets, in addition to providing titles made specifically for Class 2 operators. The company also is entering lottery and VLT markets. “We’re really excited about all the different avenues we can take our games to the players,” he said.
Andrew Sackey, vice president of commercial for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, demonstrated a game designed for operators in the United Kingdom, potentially a “totally new market” for Aristocrat. Sackey said the UK is considering raising its limit of 20 machines per casino to 80, which could lead to the addition of 7,000 to 9,000 machines overall.
Because of RG requirements, the Aristocrat game includes a unique screen that allows a player to set a time limit or spending limit for a session. Other suppliers offer only one option, Sackey said. It also allows the player to see the session loss/win at the push of a button.
