arizona gaming guide magazine - november 2011

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Contents

04 EDITOR’S NOTE What’s on our mind

06 PLAYERS TALK What’s on your mind

27 ENTERTAINMENT Editor’s Picks

28 FUN & GAMES Sudoku & Riddles to keep your mind sharp

29 SAMI’S SMACKDOWN Rants, raves & reflections

30 CASINO SPONSOR DIRECTORY

REGULAR RESPINS

20 GAMING PROFITS Helping Indian Nations recover economically.

22 CASINO BUZZ New IGT slots hit casino floors this month.

23 ARIZONA GAMING TRIVIA By the numbers.

24 GAMING NEWS Crackdown on illegal gambling continues.

FAST FACTS

09 MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE™ BY ARISTOCRAT Aristocrat invites players to accept a mission.

11 BETTY BOOP’S FORTUNE TELLER™ BY BALLY Betty Boop and Pudgy act as fortune telling guides.

12 GREASE™ BY BALLY Features 8 bonus events and exciting movie tunes.

14 BIG BUCK HUNTER™ BY IGT Players use an arcade-style gun to fire at the screen.

17 SUPER TEAM™ BY WMS Players can create their own characters.

19 MONOPOLY™ PARTY TRAIN™ BY WMS Players are taken on a train ride around the board.

GREAT GAMES

NOVEMBER

azgamingguide.com | November 2011 | Arizona Gaming Guide 03 Slot machine images courtesy of WMS Gaming. © Copyright WMS Gaming. All Rights Reserved. www.wms.com

FEATURES

08 GLOBAL GAMING EXPO 2011 REVIEW Great new slot games coming soon!

Slot machine images courtesy of IGT. © Copyright IGT. All Rights Reserved. www.igt.com

Slot machine images courtesy of Bally Technologies. © Copyright Bally Technologies. All Rights Reserved. www.ballytech.com

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1414

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http://www.wms.com

http://www.igt.com

http://www.ballytech.com

VOLUME 03 • ISSUE 04

PUBLISHER

Chris Hoft

[email protected]

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Elizabeth Torma

[email protected]

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Alexandra Lang

[email protected]

ART DIRECTOR

Melanie Mueller

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Mark Novak

Alex Stewart

Samantha Becker

Lana Hartmann

Elizabeth Torma

ADVERTISING SALES

Nina Consiglio

[email protected]

Alex Stewart

[email protected]

MAILING INFORMATION

Arizona Gaming Guide

P.O. Box 20636

Mesa, Arizona 85277

INTERNET INFORMATION

www.azgamingguide.com

www.facebook.com/ArizonaGamingGuide

Copyright © 2011 The Arizona Gaming Guide.

All rights reserved.

The Arizona Gaming Guide (AGG) presents casino industry and

gaming related facts as well as personal opinions and expects the

reader to make his or her own decisions. All responses to reader e-

mails and letters are to be considered as advice only. AGG accepts

no responsibility and no liability for any actions of our readers

based on the articles and advertisements presented within this

publication. All pictures, images, logos, trademarks and trade

names, etc. are the sole property of their respective owners. You

must be 21 or older to gamble. Please play responsibly. Help is

available at 1.800.NEXT.STEP or www.problemgambling.az.gov.

EDITOR’S NOTE

04 Arizona Gaming Guide | November 2011 | azgamingguide.com

Your Authority On Everything Gaming

Hot New Games Coming In 2012

The Global Gaming Expo (G2E) of 2011 was held at the Sands Expo

and Convention Center last month and every member of the Arizona

Gaming Guide team made the trip to Las Vegas to experience the new

casino games! G2E is the largest tradeshow in the gaming industry and

an exciting opportunity for casino game manufacturers to showcase

their products. More than 440 leading gaming industry vendors, in-

cluding more than 80 international exhibitors from 24 different coun-

tries, registered for over 250,000 square feet of exhibit hall space this

year to display their merchandise and services to key casino decision

makers! This year’s glimpse into the gambling world revealed an

abundance of licensed and themed titles, community games, multi-

play and multi-layered displays, and a plethora of innovative concepts

and ideas like video arcade style slot games. My team and I have cho-

sen our favorites and are convinced that most (if not all) the games in

this issue will be available for us to play in the very near future. We

really hope you enjoy reading about the games we decided to discuss

and are as excited as we are to play them in 2012!

Please visit us at: www.facebook.com/ArizonaGamingGuide, become

part of our community and share your thoughts and experiences with

others who also love the same casino games you do. Don’t forget that

you can also find the current and back issues of the Arizona Gaming

Guide on our website at www.azgamingguide.com. For your conven-

ience, we have included the QR codes for both web addresses in our

directory. Let me know what you think of our November issue and

have fun!

Cheers!

Alexandra Lang

Editor-in-Chief

[email protected]

Alexandra

http://www.problemgambling.az.gov


mailto:[email protected]?subject=Reader%20Comment%20(Web%20Publication)

mailto:[email protected]





http://www.azgamingguide.com

http://www.facebook.com/ArizonaGamingGuide


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PLAYERS TALK Q&A On Everything Gaming


ASK THE EXPERTS and get a $25 gas card if we decide to print your question! Do you have a question for our staff of casino gaming industry professionals and slot experts? Write us with your questions

and comments in any area of gaming and we will make every attempt to publish a response in upcoming issues. Space is

limited so we are unable to print every letter or e-mail we receive. Please include your name and mailing address with all

correspondence. Mail to: Arizona Gaming Guide PO BOX 20636 Mesa, AZ 85277 or E-mail to: [email protected].

Q: SLOT MAINTENANCE

I think the casinos need to stop being cheap and take

care of their slots better. They make all this money, but

they can’t spend a little bit of it to make sure that the

buttons are all working. It’s called maintenance! If the

slot is old or parts are not working they need to fix it or

get rid of it.

Benny Moody – Phoenix, AZ

A: Benny, I believe that casinos do their best to maintain all of

their equipment. Unless a patron notifies an employee and

makes them aware of an issue, the casino may not even be

aware of a problem. Please consider that slot machines go

through a great deal of wear-and-tear as they are on and being

played 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! The resilience of slots

based on the constant use (and sometimes abuse) they get from

players is truly remarkable and a testament to the high quality

in both design and testing.

In our discussions with Slot Technicians and Slot Managers,

we’ve come to find out that sometimes casinos hold on to

“older” games because they are popular with their patrons.

However, in many cases the parts on these games are obsolete

because the slot manufacturers have upgraded the cabinets and

the system. In these situations, the casinos have a difficult time

replacing defective parts and they just have to make do with

what they have. In other cases, if a slot is leased or out on par-

ticipation (a profit sharing arrangement between the casino and

the slot manufacturer) then the maintenance may be the re-

sponsibility of the manufacturer and not the casino. The appro-

priate people need to be contacted, parts need to be ordered,

technicians need to be scheduled, and the maintenance needs to

be performed—all this takes time!

Q: LOOSER MACHINES DURING HOLIDAYS

Does the casino make their machines pay people more

during holiday weekends? I went to a casino during the

4th of July weekend and Labor Day weekend and eve-

ryone I was with had better luck than usual.

Carol Crestfield – Glendale, AZ

Carol, yes the casino can change the payback percentages for a

holiday weekend if they really wanted to but this is not very

likely to happen. Representatives from the casino’s Tribal Gam-

ing Office (TGO) and the Arizona Department of Gaming

(ADG) need to be present to verify and document any and all

changes that happen to a slot’s settings. Furthermore, the ADG

needs to be notified at least 30 days in advance for scheduling

purposes. Both the TGO and the ADG are simply too busy and

preoccupied with other matters to be visiting casinos all across

Arizona verifying payback percentage changes! Anyway, if a

casino was to increase or decrease the payback percentage of a

game for a few hours or even a few days it wouldn’t have a tre-

mendous implication for the casino or the player in the short

run. Theoretical payback percentages of slot games affect the

performance of a game over the long run. When a new slot is

installed in a casino, that’s when the payback is determined and

it’s not likely to be adjusted after that.

Q: CASINO REGULATION

Which casinos are more regulated—the Indian casinos

or the commercial casinos?

Phil Geller – Yuma, AZ

Phil, both commercial and tribal casinos are heavily regulated

and closely monitored by several state and national agencies. If

you are to pin me down and demand that I choose which one is

more regulated than the other I would have to say the tribal

casinos. Indian gaming is subject to more stringent regulations

and security controls than any other type of gaming in the

United States.

There are actually three distinct regulatory levels for all tribal

gaming operations. First, tribal governments regulate gaming

on their reservations with their own commissions. Second,

tribes that have compacts with the state (like Arizona does) are

regulated by state government agencies. Finally, the National

Indian Gaming Commission and Federal Government agencies

such as the U.S. Justice Department, the U.S. Treasury De-

partment, and the Department of the Interior also play signifi-

cant roles in the oversight of tribal gaming. Then, of course,

there are agencies like the FBI, IRS, the U.S. Attorneys, U.S.

Marshalls, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs all of whom have

some level of regulatory involvement. How’s that for oversight?


mailto:[email protected]?subject=Reader%20Comment%20(Web%20Publication)

azgamingguide.com | November 2011 | Arizona Gaming Guide 07

Q: BINGO AND LIVE KENO

I play Bingo and my husband likes to either play black-

jack or keno (the live kind not the ones on the slots).

Where do you recommend that we go play?

Val M. – Scottsdale, AZ

A: Fort McDowell Casino has the largest and one of the nicest

bingo halls in all of Arizona. Their recently remodeled live keno

section includes televisions, video poker, and video keno slots!

They also have 15 blackjack tables for your husband to enjoy as

well. Another great option is Mazatzal Hotel & Casino in Pay-

son. They have all three casino games there as well! In fact, it’s

very rare to be able to find both live keno and bingo available at

the same casino. Since these casinos are close to the Scottsdale

area where you live, you should try them both and see where

you feel the most comfortable. Let us know how it goes!

Q: ENSURING COMPLIANCE

How often does the Department of Gaming come out to

check the slot machines at the casinos and what do they

do exactly while there?

Jackie Reed – Chandler

The Arizona Department of Gaming’s (ADG) Machine Com-

pliance Technicians randomly inspect gaming devices at all of

Arizona’s casinos on a regular basis. Their visits are unan-

nounced and they are usually able to do spot checks at 8 to 10

casinos every month! The ADG technicians announce their

visit to the Tribal Gaming Office first and then a Tribal Gam-

ing Agent, a Casino Slot Technician, and a Casino Security

Officer accompany the Machine Compliance Technicians

around the casino during the inspection. A typical spot check

usually consists of 50 different slot games!

The ADG technicians open the slots, enter the setup menus and

verify the percentages, the software, and make sure the seal

tapes are still in place. Then, they perform communication tests

with the accounting system and run bills and tickets through

the acceptors. They also make sure to check that all the account-

ing meters (credits in, credits out, credits played, etc.) are

working correctly.

Q: MECHANICAL SLOTS

My wife and I only like playing the old-fashioned slots

with the mechanical reels. Which casino do you think

has the best games?

Frank Henderson – Chandler

The hands down winner, in our opinion, is Desert Diamond

Casinos in Tucson, Arizona! They have the largest selection of

mechanical reel steppers we’ve seen in all of Arizona set to the

best payback percentages. Good luck and have fun! $

Q&A On Everything Gaming PLAYERS TALK


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GREAT GAMES New Slots Coming in 2012

or one week during the year, everyone remotely

connected to the gaming industry travels to Las Ve-

gas for an amazing experience known as ‚The

Show.‛ The Global Gaming Expo, simply referred to as

G2E, provides attendees a glimpse into the future of ca-

sino gaming. This year, G2E was held during the first

week in October at the Sands Expo and Convention Cen-

ter and featured more than 250,000 square feet of exhibit

space.

Every year the products that get center stage and are the

most closely watched by casino executives and decision

makers are the slot machines. Slot manufacturers from all

over the world parade their latest and greatest inventions

in front of interested buyers in the hopes their allocated

budgets for new purchases will be used on their games.

Continuing with our annual tradition, we’re excited to

give our readers a sneak peek at what’s in store for all us

slot players in the coming year. The Arizona Gaming Guide

team has chosen our favorites and we’re convinced that

most (if not all) the games in this issue will be available

for us to play in the very near future. Look for more

sneak peeks in upcoming issues as well. We really hope

you enjoy reading about the games we decided to discuss

and are as excited as we are to play them in 2012! Send

us an e-mail to [email protected] with ‚New

Games 2012‛ in the subject and tell us your favorites.

F

HOT NEW GAMESHOT NEW GAMES

COMING IN 2012



New Slots Coming 2012 GREAT GAMES


ARISTOCRAT TECHNOLOGIESARISTOCRAT TECHNOLOGIES

Aristocrat invites players to accept a mission on

their newest exciting video slot, Mission: Im-

possible™, which features a wide area progres-

sive with a $250,000 top award and with three

local area progressive jackpots and six pulse-

pounding bonus features. This video slot game

has recently been released in the Southern Cali-

fornia market and will be working its way into

casinos all across Arizona soon! Mission: Impos-

sible’s grand jackpot is linked to Aristocrat’s

extremely popular Tarzan® Lord of the Jungle™

slot, meaning there is a greater potential for

more frequent grand jackpot hits. This game is

every bit as fun and entertaining as the film that

inspired it.

Aristocrat’s exciting line-up of themed titles at

the G2E show also included the triumphant re-

turn of Zorro™! Players everywhere have loved

Aristocrat’s Zorro game and now the hero is

back in Zorro: The Legend Returns™. This is

the first game in Aristocrat’s amazing new game

category called the VIRIDIAN Hybrid™ with

Active Reel Technology™. This new line of

games has the potential to feature a 5-reel step-

per base game, a full screen video, and a 3-reel

stepper bonus—all in the same game! Zorro: The

Legend Returns™ has three standalone progres-

sive jackpots, a symbol triggered progressive

jackpot feature, and four additional random bo-

nus features!

Tarzan® Lord of the Jungle™ is hands-down one

of the most popular slots in North America

which is why several casinos across Arizona

have installed this great game including Bucky’s

Casino in Prescott and Mazatzal Casino in Pay-

son. Now, the journey continues with Tarzan®:

The Adventures Return™, with incredible, all-

new features but still the same high-hitting top

progressive as the original! The ‚Ghost Who

Walks‛ will soon be leaving his legendary Good

Mark in Arizona’s casinos as well, because Aris-

tocrat is bringing the myth of The Phantom® to

life in a new video slot game that’s as fun and

exciting as the comic strip itself. This slot has

been on casino floors in Australia for a few

months now and it’s making its U.S. debut soon!

Watch for more and more Aristocrat titles to

start creeping up in casinos all across Arizona!



WINNING WAYS Quick Gambling Tips


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BALLY TECHNOLOGIESBALLY TECHNOLOGIES

Curious about your destiny? Wondering which way

things will go? Give Betty Boop your hand and let her

read your palm. Following your success line to your fate

line, she sees … a future with her new game! Coming

soon, Betty Boop’s Fortune Teller™ will win over even

the staunchest of psychic skeptics with its mind-boggling

number of dazzling features. It is the new companion

game to Bally Technologies’ hit Betty Boop’s Love Me-

ter™. Featured on the unique Pro Upright Hammer-

head™ cabinet, it is based on the iconic cartoon character

and her playful dog Pudgy. Betty and Pudgy act as for-

tune-telling guides in this game’s fully-rendered 3D envi-

ronment. Betty reads players’ palms, celebrates their

wins, and even offers them a little help along the way.

Bally innovations such as the iDeck™, U-Spin™ Wheel,

and U-Choose™ bonuses totally immerse players in the

action, keeping the séance intriguing and fun.

Betty Boop’s Fortune Teller™ offers an unprecedented 15

bonuses at any bet. After hitting three U-Spin symbols,

players are awarded with a real-time 3D Fortune Wheel

that they can touch, slide, and spin. The Fortune Wheel is

full of surprises, such as the Palm reading where a player

puts his hand on the iDeck so Betty can read his palm.

Credit and multiplier values are awarded based on the

reading of the player’s life line, heart line, success line,

and fate line. The game also includes several free game

and multiplier bonuses, from Signs of the Zodiac Free

Games and Crystal Ball Free Games, to Pudgy’s Magical

Multiplier Free Games, during which Betty randomly

intervenes to help players who get only 1x or 2x. ‚I can

change your future!‛ or ‚I can help you with that!‛ she

declares, giving them a free second try. The U-Choose

Bonus gives control to the players, letting them pick their

preferred bonus. In the Spin ’Til You Win bonus, for in-

stance, the player decides whether to ‚Take Win‛ or

‚Spin Again.‛ If a player chooses the latter, he keeps go-

ing until he wins.

Two progressive jackpots – ‚Pudgy’s Predictions‛ (major)

and ‚Boop-Oop-A-Doop‛ (minor) – are available to win

at any bet level. A top progressive features Bally’s new

life-changing Cash Connection™ wide area progressive,

available at max bet. Dubbed Betty’s Fortunes Jackpot, it

is awarded with a five-of-a-kind scatter pay symbol on

the base game reel set. Is your good fortune right around

the corner? Find out with Betty Boop and Pudgy soon.

Betty Boop’s Fortune Teller from Bally Technologies is

expected to hit Arizona casino floors in the summer of

2012.




BALLY TECHNOLOGIESBALLY TECHNOLOGIES

Fans of Grease will soon be singing along to their

favorite tunes as they enjoy themselves on casino

floors. Bally Technologies’ new Grease™ slot game

reunites the characters from the iconic 1978 Ameri-

can film and incorporates the insanely catchy music

that reminds audiences the world over of their

friends (and enemies) from high school.

Inspired by the story of two love-struck 1950s-era

teens, this new, bonus-rich game is Bally’s first dou-

ble-play game featuring two, 25-line games enabling

players to play two games at once. Grease™ is also

one of the first games on Bally’s Cash Connection™

wide-area progressive link. The game takes full ad-

vantage of Bally’s iDeck™ touch-screen button deck

to deliver the world of Rydell High to players.

Grease™ features eight bonus events, including T-

Bird Mystery Wilds, a U-Spin™ Yearbook Bonus,

two pick-em features, two styles of free games, and

four any-bet progressives. Grease™ also offers four

exciting bonus levels: Pink Lady, Rydell High Pick

‘Em, Too Pure to be Pink, and The One That I Want.

Players can use the base game or iDeck on selected

bonuses, with certain picks sending them to the next

level and offering a chance at higher rewards.

The Dance Off Free Games feature invites players to

‚dance‛ on the iDeck to win additional free games

or credits. How Cool Are You? gives players the

chance to select from one of four cars on the iDeck,

moving the car up the ladder. The winning character

indicates the player’s ‚coolness‛ factor and awards

one of the four progressive jackpots or a credit

value.

The One That I Want Free Games

T-Bird Mystery Wilds

Dance Off Free Games

Rydell High Pick ‘Em

How Cool Are You?

Pink Lady Pick ‘Em

Too Pure To Be Pink

Grease Yearbook

From Broadway to big screen to slot ma-

chine, this classic has finally made its

way to the fun of the casino floor. Catchy

bonus games, a super-HD experience,

and a multi-area progressive, together

with featured movie clips and music will

have players reliving the upbeat story of

the 1950s-inspired movie.



The Grease™ slot comes

with Bally’s Pro Series™

custom professional

sound chair so that play-

ers can experience the fa-

miliar songs from the

blockbuster American

musical while they are

enjoying the game’s

many bonus features! >


GREAT GAMES New Slots Coming 2012


IGTIGT

With millions of fans, billions of records sold and a last-

ing legacy, IGT celebrates Elvis' 55th anniversary of his

first number one record with the release of Elvis The

King® Multi-Level Progressives. Featuring a classic juke-

box design, this entertaining slot includes base games,

bonuses and progressives that connect familiar Elvis

Presley songs to winning. Five hip-shaking bonus options

will keep players dancing in their seats: Heartbreak Ho-

tel, Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog and the Viva Las Vegas

bonus. The biggest chart topper of them all is the Jukebox

Hits bonus in which players select records for big out-

comes in this rockin' game!

Big Buck Hunter® Pro Slots debuts an entirely new in-

teractive casino gaming experience on IGT's new Center

Stage Duo™. This dynamic, cutting-edge game takes

players into the great outdoors with state-of-the-art

graphics and innovative mechanical gun hardware. Yes,

you read that right! Target practice is taken to a whole

new level with exciting shooting bonuses where players

use the game's arcade-style gun hardware to fire at the

shared 55-inch Center Stage™ screen and score credits.

For 15-years players worldwide have been spinning and

winning on the all-time player-favorite and top-

performing Wheel of Fortune®. This classic theme is now

redefined with even more spinning action, more suspense

and more entertainment. This year at G2E, Wheel of For-

tune® Triple Extreme Spin™, Wheel of Fortune® Wild

Getaway™ and a new Wheel of Fortune® Multi-Level

Progressive expand the award-winning portfolio adding

even more action and more jackpots to casino floors eve-

rywhere.

Only months after rolling out top-of-the-chart entertain-

ment with licensed movie titles like Dark Knight™ and

Ghostbusters™, IGT debuted even more pop culture titles

at G2E with Sex and The City™ Fabulous, Breakfast at

Tiffany's™, The Joker's Heist™ and The Twilight Zone®

in 3D. Some say that IGT has lost their touch and may be

slipping from the ranks and we say—sure doesn’t look

that way to us!


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WMS GAMING, INC.WMS GAMING, INC.

WMS understands what players want and

they deliver. At this year’s G2E, WMS fired

on all cylinders to produce games with

something for everyone! Battleship™, the

classic Hasbro game, was brought to life by

WMS in their exciting new community bo-

nus game. Teams compete to sink ships in

three unique overhead bonuses. Randomly

triggered communal bonuses play out on

three overhead screens, pitting two Navies

against each other in one of three commu-

nal battles for additional bonus rewards.

Although not a true community game,

players’ decisions can affect other players

in Clue™, another new slot based on the

popular board game. In a bonus event

played on big screens overhead, players

choose which room to play in and take a

guess at solving the murder mystery.

Wrong guesses are eliminated which nar-

rows down the possibilities for the next

player who enters the bonus. The truly ex-

citing aspect of this game is that the next

player to enter the bonus has better odds at

solving the mystery!

Super Team™ is a unique, original slot

theme in a new series of ‚Adaptive Gam-

ing‛ slots featuring 15 heroes that travel

through 3 different bonus features to

unlock additional bonuses and hero cus-

tomization opportunities. The hero editor

functionality allows players to create their

own characters and personalize their slot

experience. Players will unlock each hero’s

bonus through continued play in the Adap-

tive Gaming system.


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WMS GAMING, INC.WMS GAMING, INC.

WMS has launched Monopoly™ Party Train™, the latest in

its Monopoly branded slot series. Monopoly™ Party Train™,

is an exciting 5-reel, 27-line video slot packed with immersive

bonus features, fun animations, and catchy sounds. Players

are taken on a train ride around the Monopoly board for

chances to enter numerous bonus features, win free spins, get

wild reels, or collect credits!

Free Spin Bonus

Triggered by 3 or more BONUS symbols, players start their

free spin bonus at GO, Just Visiting or Free Parking (for 3, 4

or 5 triggering BONUS symbols.) Players start with 2 dice

rolls that take them around the board to determine the num-

ber of free spins they receive, and each bonus is enhanced in

one of the following ways (depending on where players are

on the board when the bonus triggers):

Reading Railroad: Higher board values

Pennsylvania Railroad: 2 WILD Reels available on every spin

B&O Railroad: up to 20X multiplier available on every spin

Short Line Railroad: a 3rd dice roll to start the bonus

Move Feature

At coin-in, players begin at GO. The Move Feature randomly

occurs after any base game spin and takes players around the

Monopoly board for credit awards, free spin enhancements,

bonus triggers, mini bonuses, and more! Landing on Water

Works, Electric Company, Chance, Community Chest, Go,

Just Visiting, Go To Jail, Free Parking, Park Place or Board-

walk during the Move Feature triggers special mini-bonuses

or features full of rewarding possibilities for players. $


FAST FACTS Indian Gaming

ith only 237 tribes conducting gaming opera-

tions out of 565 federally recognized tribes,

most are still struggling to lift themselves out

of a centuries-long cycle of poverty. Indian Nations are

utilizing the gaming profits to build self-sufficiency and

government infrastructure on Indian reservations. Just

like the State Governments use their taxes, Tribal Govern-

ments use their gaming profits for the purposes of pro-

viding for the general welfare of all of their people.

As detailed in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA),

gaming profits can only be used for law enforcement,

education, economic development, tribal courts and in-

frastructure improvements. Tribes are also using these

profits to fund social service programs, scholarships,

health care clinics, new roads, new sewer and water sys-

tems, adequate housing, chemical dependency treatment

programs and dialysis clinics, among other things.

Gaming Provides Hope For Reducing Indian Poverty

Indians, the people indigenous to this land and the first

Americans, comprise only approximately 1% of the entire

population of the United States; the smallest minority

W


group. Those Indians living on reservations are still at the

bottom of virtually every economic category. Unemploy-

ment rates often reach ten times the national average on

reservations; many of which are located on remote lands

with little or no tax base. In fact, 70% of all Indian reser-

vations are rural. The life expectancy of the American

Indian is 47 years, contrasted with the American average

of 78!

A recent United States Census revealed that 30.9% of the

country’s Indians live in poverty. Their poverty rate is the

highest of any ethnic group in America. The census de-

fines poverty as an individual earning less than $6,300 a

year, or a family of four earning less than $12,674. The

poverty rate for the entire United States population was

much lower, 13.1%.

The unemployment rates for all Indians living on reserva-

tion is at an all time high. Some tribes have unemploy-

ment rates as high as 80%. An unemployment rate of

more than 6% in a community in Mainstream America is

considered a recession and a rate of 9% is a depression.

Of the Indians who do have jobs, only 28% earn more

than $7,000 a year according to the Bureau of Indian Af-

fairs. Since the first immigrant set foot on their land, gam-

ing has been the only economic development tool that has

worked for the Indian Nations.

Many thanks to the National Indian Gaming Association

(NIGA) for their assistance with this article. To read more

about NIGA, please visit www.indiangaming.org. $

Indian Nations are at the

bottom of the economic

and social ladder

Like State Governments use their taxes, Tribal Governments

use their gaming profits for the purposes of providing

for the general welfare of all of their people

AMING PROFITS AMING PROFITS

GG Helping Indian Nations Recover Both Economically And Socially


http://www.indiangaming.org

Dark Knight™ by IGT If you live in Tucson or have visited recently, chances are

you’ve already played the exciting new community game

by slot manufacturer IGT, Dark Knight™. Now, Batman

and Joker will continue to battle it out on casino floors all

across the Phoenix Valley! Fort McDowell Casino just

installed this slot at the end of last month and Casino Ari-

zona’s installation is scheduled for the middle of this

month.

Appropriately named, the game’s must-see Battle for

Gotham community bonus plays out on the big screen

and is a high speed car chase between Batman and Joker

and players choose which character they want to be. Two

very unique pick-style bonuses, Agents of Chaos and the

Sonar bonus, incorporate familiar scenes from the film

with multiple winning outcomes. And, in the Sleight of

Hand bonus, swiping your hand across the screen flips

over Joker’s cards to reveal many worthwhile surprises.

During base game play, three random events can trigger

fate's hand. For example, Joker intermittently drives on

screen and launches a rocket to create an explosion of

credits. Batman may chase after him and shoot the inter-

face to increase credit awards. Look for the popular bat

signal to make an appearance as well as Two Face's coin

flip. $

FAST FACTS Casino Buzz


New Slots Hit Casino Floors This Month!

Ghostbusters™ by IGT Ghost tracking, psycho-kinetic energy meters will be go-

ing crazy when the frighteningly fun Ghostbusters™ slots

make their way into all the Arizona casinos! The game

features the mischievous and lovable character Slimer

teasing, mocking and awarding players with antics, mul-

tipliers and credits as he leads them through the game. A

vivid 55-inch overhead LCD screen and chest-pumping

MEGAfx Surround Chairs will send players' adrenaline

racing during spectacular bonus rounds including:

Ballroom Busters Pick Bonus: Holdin! Smokin!

Ready! Players are awarded five proton shots to blow up

the ballroom to find ghosts.

Stay Puft Free Games Feature: Marshmallows fall

from the sky, stick to symbols and turn them wild during

this sweet feature.

Are You Psychic? Bonus: Guess the correct card to

win credits and advance to the next round!

Paranormal Pick Bonus: Five levels of Paranormal

Pick Bonuses allow players to select from phantasm

clouds for a chance to win the progressive jackpot.

This game is coming to Casino Arizona this month! ‚Who

you gonna call‛ when you win big money on this slot? $


20

3

29

9

Arizona Gaming Trivia FAST FACTS


20

03

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sts

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on

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dit

ion

al t

erm

of

thre

e y

ears

.

BY THE NUMBERS

1,301 The maximum number of slot ma-

chines allowed in any one casino

in the state of Arizona. And, there

is a wager limit of $29 per play for

most tribes.

14,508 The total number of slot machines (including both Class III and

Class II games) in Arizona as of October 1, 2011!

39

T

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nu

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gam

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dev

ices

in

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and

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ino

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l h

ave

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ss

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on

th

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flo

ors

!.

22 The current number of casinos

in Arizona.

The

nu

mbe

r of

pok

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able

s in

all

the

casi

nos

in

Ari

zon

a.

The

nu

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able

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all

the

casi

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zon

a.

0 The number of live

Roulette and Craps

games in Arizona.

The current Tribal-

State Gaming Com-

pact does not allow

for these games in

Arizona! There are

also no Off-Track

betting locations at

any of the casinos

across the state of

Arizona.

1,700 The total number of allowed seats in the bingo

hall at Fort McDowell Casino which is cur-

rently the largest bingo hall in all of Arizona!

83% The minimum payback per-

centage for video slot games

requiring skill, for example

video poker. For games re-

quiring no skill, the minimum

payback percentage is 80%

and 75% for video keno

games. These are absolute

minimums and are outlined in

Arizona’s Tribal-State Gam-

ing Compact.

FIFTY Million The maximum number of plays the highest single advertised award on

each gaming device shall occur statistically.


FAST FACTS Gaming News


CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL GAMBLING CONTINUES

On October 13, 2011, Richard Victory pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of

Arizona to Attempted Promotion of Gambling, a Class 6 felony. This was the

latest development in a case that began in August of 2010, when agents from

the Arizona Department of Gaming and the Department of Liquor Licenses

and Control seized eight pay-for-play video machines operating in four liquor-

licensed establishments in Phoenix and Tempe. Five additional machines were

seized at a storage facility in Mesa. A warrant was served at each business be-

lieved to be operating in violation of their liquor license, and Mr. Victory was

alleged to be providing these machines in exchange for a percentage of the

profits. Officials estimated Victory to have collected thousands of dollars in

undeclared income each month.

‚Investigating illegal gambling activity and taking the appropriate action con-

tinues to be a priority for our office,‛ said Mark Brnovich, Director of the Ari-

zona Department of Gaming. "This agency will continue to provide strict en-

forcement of liquor and gaming laws at liquor-licensed establishments

throughout the state," added Director Alan Everett of the Department of Liq-

uor. Richard Victory is now scheduled to appear for sentencing in the Superior

Court of Arizona on November 15, 2011.

Over the past year, the Arizona Department of Gaming has worked in coop-

eration with various licensing, law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies to

seize more than 100 illegal gambling devices across the state. $

GAMING REVENUE UP

Quarterly contributions to the state

of Arizona from gaming revenue

have been continuing to increase

since last year. ‚While a full eco-

nomic recovery will take some time,

the trend line is moving in a posi-

tive direction,‛ said Mark Brnovich,

Director of the Arizona Department

of Gaming.

Under the Arizona Tribal-State

Gaming Compact that went into

effect in 2003, tribes with casinos

contribute one to eight percent of

their Class III gross gaming revenue

to the state, cities, towns, and coun-

ties. In Arizona, Class III gaming

includes slots, jackpot poker, black-

jack, and keno. There are currently

22 Class III casinos in the state.

Tribes send contributions to the

State’s Arizona Benefits Fund every

three months. $


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http://www.playqcr.com/

Editor’s Picks ENTERTAINMENT


Venues, times, dates, and ticket information may be subject to change. Please verify all details and any age restrictions with each venue as the event approaches. Photo copyrights belong to the artist. All rights reserved.

TIM MCGRAW AVA Amphitheater

Sol Casinos—Tucson

November 12th—Show at 8PM

Tickets start at $50—520.838.6700

Tim McGraw has sold over 40 million units and

dominated the charts with 32 #1 singles, including

his latest, “Felt Good On My Lips,” a bonus track

from his latest double CD, Number One Hits.

MARIACHI DIVAS Diamond Center

Desert Diamond Casino—Sahuarita

December 10th—Doors at 7PM


Directed and founded by trumpet player Cindy Shea

in 1999, this unique, multi-cultural, all-female en-

semble, is the true flavor of Los Angeles. They are

also the official mariachis of Disney in Anaheim!

THE REFLECTION OF MICHAEL Showroom

Talking Stick Resort—Casino Arizona

December 29th & 30th—Doors at 8PM


Inspired by the biggest star to ever live, this incredi-

ble show promises to invigorate the crowd with the

live vocals, a live band, singers, dancers, and the

amazing Michael Firestone!

NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATION Event Center

Mazatzal Hotel & Casino—Payson

December 31st—Doors at 5:30PM

Tickets start at $65—800.777.PLAY

Enjoy dinner, piano by Paul Penner, classic Las Ve-

gas Rat Pack music by The Dean-O-Holics, a cham-

pagne toast, and a party to ring in 2012! The menu

includes Prime Rib & Lobster Tail.


SUDOKU Each of the columns, rows, and nine 3x3 grids must con-

tain all of the digits 1 - 9. None of the digits may appear

more than once in each column, row, and 3x3 grid. (Solution on page 30)

7 8

9

6 5

9

3

1 8

1

8

7

5 9

8 4

2

9

5 9

8 4

1

3 9 7

5

2

9 6

7

9 4

ODDS QUIZ

Gambling is mathematics, pure and simple. All games of

chance involve probability, so if you like to gamble you

should know some basics of probability. (Solution on page 30)

1. If you are rolling a six-sided die, what is the prob-

ability of rolling a six? What is the probability of not

rolling a six?

2. What are the chances of drawing an Ace from a 52

card deck? What are the chances of drawing the Ace of

Spades?

3. Your favorite basketball team is down by one point.

Time has run out in the fourth quarter and there’s a

player at the foul line with two shots. You know this

player has made 75% of the foul shots he has taken this

season. What’s the probability your team will win?

4. You and a friend are flipping a two-sided coin.

Your friend just flipped 4 tails in a row. Are the odds

in favor of her flipping another tails? What is the prob-

ability of getting a heads on the 5th toss?

FUN & GAMES


http://www.problemgambling.az.gov/



SAMI’S SMACKDOWN

Do YOU have something to rant about?

Write me at: [email protected]

By Sami Becker

The truth is … Your chances of getting two great

bonuses back-to-back are unlikely.

I love playing the slots but sometimes I get so frus-

trated. I wait forever for a bonus to happen and when

it finally does it’s maddening if it doesn’t pay much!

Sometimes I’ll have an amazing bonus and I’ll think

maybe the machine is hot and I’m going to do well so

I keep playing. By the time the next bonus comes

around I’ve practically spent everything I won during

my first bonus and what’s worse is the second bonus

ends up not paying me much at all. It seems like I

have so many more bad bonuses than I do good ones!

Do you know what the odds are on that? Thanks for

letting me rant.

Bernice Sheridan—Queen Creek

Bernice, I understand where you’re coming from and I

commiserate with you! Since the average number of

spins it takes to get into a bonus keeps increasing

nowadays it takes more coin-in until it’s triggered. We

all want (and need) the bonus outcome to be lucrative

so, at the very least, we can keep playing.

What determines how a bonus is going to payout is

entirely based on the game’s math model and the ran-

dom number generator (RNG). The mathematician sets

up the probabilities of certain events occurring and the

RNG randomly picks combinations based on these

probabilities. Generally speaking, low bonus wins tend

to be programmed with odds of 50%, the medium wins

have odds of 40%, and the high wins have odds of 10%.

Your chances of winning high amounts in two consecu-

tive bonus games are only 1% (10% x 10%)! That’s just

reality. Your chances are much higher of winning two

low bonus amounts consecutively—25% (50% x 50%).

The good news is that you are the most likely to get low

and medium wins in successive bonus games. The

probability of this happening is a whopping 81% (90%

x 90%). A much better statistic, indeed! $

*EXP. 12/1/2011

ADULT SEWING LESSONS!!!

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Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation

Fort McDowell Gaming Center

Beeline Hwy (SR 87) and Fort McDowell Rd North of Fountain Hills

1-800-843-3678 fortmcdowellcasino.com

843 Class III Slots, 9 Class II Slots, Live Keno, 1,700 Seat Bingo Hall,

24 Poker Tables, 15 Blackjack Tables

Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Casino Arizona—Salt River

524 N. 92nd St, Scottsdale E of Loop 101 at McKellips Rd and 92nd St

1-480-850-7777 casinoaz.com

Over 900 Class III Slots, Live Keno,

54 Table Games

Casino Arizona—Talking Stick Resort

9700 E. Indian Bend Rd, Scottsdale 1 mile E of Loop 101 on Indian Bend Rd

1-480-850-7777 casinoaz.com

Over 800 Class III Slots, Live Keno,

47 Poker Tables, 54 Table Games

Tohono O'odham Nation

Desert Diamond Casino

7350 S. Nogales Highway, Tucson 1 mile S of Valencia Rd on Nogales Highway

1-520-294-7777 desertdiamondcasino.com

1089 Class III Slots, Live Keno, 270 Seat Bingo Hall



1100 W. Pima Mine Rd, Sahuarita S of Tucson at I-19 and Exit 80 (Pima Mine Rd)


890 Class III Slots,



Highway 86, Why 1½ miles E of Why, AZ on Highway 86


76 Class III Slots

Tonto Apache Tribe

Mazatzal Hotel & Casino

Highway 87, Payson S of Payson on Beeline Highway(SR 87) 1-800-777-7529 777play.com

413 Class III Slots, 6 Class II Slots, Live Keno, 280 Seat Bingo Hall,


White Mountain Apache Tribe

Hon-Dah Casino, Resort & Conference Center

777 Highway 260, Pinetop 3 miles outside Pinetop at Highways 260 & 73

1-800-929-8744 hon-dah.com



Yavapai-Apache Nation

Cliff Castle Casino & Hotel

555 Middle Verde Rd, Camp Verde 1 mile E of I-17 on Middle Verde Rd

1-800-381-7568 cliffcastlecasino.net



Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe

Bucky's Casino

Highway 69 and Heather Heights, Prescott N at top of hill next to the Prescott Resort

1-800-756-8744 buckyscasino.com



Yavapai Casino

1500 E. Highway 69, Prescott Hwy. 69 at Heather Heights on S side of SR 69

1-800-756-8744 buckyscasino.com

235 Class III Slots

Arizona Department of Gaming

1110 W. Washington Street, Suite 450

Phoenix, Arizona 85007

1-602-771-4263 azgaming.gov

Office of Problem Gambling (1-800-NEXT STEP or 1-800-639-8783 )

1110 W. Washington Street, Suite 450

Phoenix, Arizona 85007

1-602-542-8998 problemgambling.az.gov Source: Arizona Department of Gaming-Tribal Gaming Status-10/01/11

4 7 8

9 1 2

6 5 3

6 2 9

5 3 7

1 4 8

1 5 3

4 8 6

7 9 2

7 3 1

5 6 9

2 8 4

2 8 4

3 7 1

9 6 5

5 6 9

8 2 4

3 7 1

3 9 7

1 4 5

8 2 6

4 5 2

8 9 6

7 1 3

6 1 8

2 3 7

9 4 5

Solution to the Sudoku

Solutions to “Odds Quiz”

1. Probability of rolling a 6 is 1/6. Not rolling a 6 is 5/6.

2. Probability of drawing one of 4 Aces is 4/52 = 1/13.

Drawing the only Ace of Spades in the deck has a prob-

ability of 1/52.

3. Since the player must make both free throws, the

events are dependent. As a result, we multiply the prob-

ability of making each shot together. So, we have a 3/4 x

3/4 = 9/16 = 56.25% chance of winning the game.

4. No, the odds of heads or tails never change. The prob-

ability of a heads on any flip of a coin is 1/2 or 50%.

DIRECTORY OF CASINO SPONSORS


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arizona gaming guide magazine - november 2011

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