Quality and design are important in every aspect of life and deciding factors in whether consumers buy into something or not...
Contemporary bars, with their uber-cool interior design and even cooler clientele, can be found in any chic city and the gaming industry is mirroring this trend through the design of cabinets and countertop terminals.
Contemporary bars are fast outnumbering the more traditional pub and bar locations that the gaming industry has been used to over the years. They can usually be found in the heart of a city centre or an area with a wealth of young professionals. These bars are finished to a high standard, have a clear identity and a strong idea as to the type of clientele they wish to attract - mainly young professionals with mid to high disposable income, who aspire to socialise in the ‘bar of the moment.’
But these ‘young professionals’ are also a group of people that the gaming industry targets and with this in mind, some manufacturers have looked at the design of their machines and had a re-think.
As much as we love the reel AWP with its flashing lights and spinning reels, generally speaking, it is never going to fit into a contemporary bar. It would look clumsy and out of date and even if the clientele were happy to play on it, there would be no way it would fit in with the overall look of the bar.
We all know that no matter how stylish a cabinet is, if the games inside aren’t up to scratch, players will soon lose interest. But the look of a cabinet does have an important role to play in initially hooking the player in and this is the area we will concentrate on through this feature.
Machines such as SWPs, countertop products, pool tables and digital jukeboxes are much more likely to be found in a contemporary bar and generally they are performing well, with this type of location becoming increasingly important for the coin-op amusement manufacturer and operator as a result.
"Bar locations will keep looking for the latest in design and high performance products that will keep customers coming through the door and happy," said Merit Entertainment’s Alison Scarafile. "Contemporary styling seems to be moving towards modern subtlety in both lighting, shape and colours. Gaudy lights and excessive chrome, hallmarks of a modern style in years past, are already obsolete. With blacks and silvers remaining strong contemporary colours worldwide."
Merit produces one of the top performing countertop gaming products in the world, the Aurora, a type of product that has opened a niche no other type of machine could have opened.
"By placing the machines on the bar tops, the locations increased the value of the bar space and were able to provide another service - entertainment - keeping the customer in the location for longer," said Scarafile. "In many countries such as the US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, touchscreens are a prominent feature in bar environments."
With its 19ins screen, modern design and interactive elements, Merit’s latest product is the perfect complement to contemporary locations and fulfils the operators’ requirements for high performance machines with a fast payback and strong return on investment.
"With the Aurora, we set out to make a game that would attract players like nothing else before it," said Scarafile. "As die-hard game fans ourselves, we designed the game we would want to play, which resulted in the 19ins screen, an exciting modern light show that seems to float in the air and reacts to what’s going on in the games, and better ergonomics with a more comfortable screen angle and placement than our previous games."
Funworld, based in Austria, is another company that also sees a future in the countertop product and as such has incorporated its own version into its collection of Photo Play Pro terminals.
Christina Hinterleitner, of the company, told InterGame: "The design of a Photo Play terminal is very important because it not only stands for functionality but also expresses quality and image. Therefore contemporary bars and locations are very important for us and the Sprinter Pro terminal is ideal as it is manageable on the bar or a table.
"There is certainly a future for the coin-op amusements industry within contemporary bars but the industry has to be prepared for modern trends and integrate contemporary design in its products," continued Hinterleitner. "As well as this, convenience and comfort, attractiveness and modern technology must also be considered as important factors."
Funworld is aware, however, that not all contemporary bars may want a countertop product and therefore has the flexible seat-terminal, Sportster Pro, and the dynamic stand-terminal Racer Pro available, meaning the Photo Play product can be integrated into all kinds of locations.
For Pablo Madariaga, of Spanish pool and air hockey table manufacturer Billares Sam, if leisure equipment is to be accepted by contemporary venue operators it has to be ‘designed in.’
"The trend in city centre bars and out of town leisure venues, is toward bright, light interiors that will attract those with money in their pockets," he said. "The young males and females, who want to be seen in the right clothes, buying the right drinks and listening to the right music.
"These customers need to feel that amusement equipment is cool if they are to play it. When millions of euros are spent on interior design, a pool table or amusement machine cannot stand out like a sore thumb."
Pool tables have always had a place in the bar and pub market and are also popular in the more contemporary locations but, again, they have to look right. According to Madariaga, this is where Sam tables have an edge over competitors as the company allows a wide range of customisation in cabinet finishing, cloths and embroidered cushions.
"Without doubt external appearance is important - different looks appeal to different people," he said. "But essentially, if a table looks modern, then modern customers will be attracted to it, if the design is old and outdated, it is less appealing. Then there is the quality angle - even a modern looking table can fail if it looks cheap and flimsy.
"In an increasingly demanding market where people have a wide choice of where to spend their money, and have less money in their pocket, venues offering the best entertainment experience will prosper," he said. "Those who do not invest in quality new equipment, or may be good at food but poor at providing music or amusement will find customers vote with their feet and go somewhere more exciting."
All of Billares Sam’s tables are designed with modern flair, but for the contemporary bar location the Magno pool table and Linares foosball table offer the best mix of eye-catching design and player appeal.
The Magno combines retro wood with hi-tech chrome diamond leg modules. As an American pool table, with fast cloth and big pockets, it ensures players of all abilities can enjoy a rewarding game of pool. The Linares is, according to Sam, an alloy of old and new. Solid oak exudes quality and strength, but in a modern light stain. The customised metal players hark back to an earlier era but actually perform better than plastic men, enabling greater control and skill, while giving the game characteristic noise and excitement.
An area of amusement that has made a bit of a comeback into the bar and pub market, especially within contemporary locations, is the jukebox. This is mainly down to the introduction of the digital era and it reinforces the idea that people who frequent contemporary locations want modern, highly designed, up to the minute technology. A lot of these types of locations employ regular DJs to entertain the crowds, however, according to Richard Elsy, of digital jukebox manufacturer, JayBox, digital jukeboxes can still work in these types of locations.
"We have one site where the bar has substituted a JayBox for its DJs for six nights of the week," said Elsy. "The venue owner slashed their costs and has not lost any business as a result.
"If the bar is orientated around music with DJs and bands, making regular appearances, jukeboxes fit in nicely for when there is no DJ or band playing, offering the best range of music."
One of the reasons the JayBox works so well in contemporary locations is because the company is able to offer custom designed fascias, a relatively new concept, which many operators are still unaware of.
"Our standard offer JayBox, with the black and silver fascia, has been very well received in all sites, although it is much more appreciated in some of the up-market venues," said Elsy. "But we are always able to produce a bespoke fascia for any venue and our design team are always willing to offer designs and ideas to the customer."
It would appear there is indeed a great future in contemporary bars for the digital jukebox, countertop products and stylish pool tables. But what about the soft gaming cabinets that you would normally associate with the traditional pub market and adult gaming centres - do these have a place in the contemporary bar?
As stated earlier, when it comes to reel AWPs probably not; not only would they look out of place in the highly designed locations, but the core customer aged between 18 and 35, probably wouldn’t have the first clue as to how to play them, a generalisation you might say and yes there are probably some people in this age group who do know how to play these machines, but I think it is safe to say that the majority would turn to an SWP or countertop game first. SWPs on the whole, are kinder on the eye, the design of the cabinet is sleeker and contemporary in its look, and the content is made up of games that people in the 18 to 35 age group will recognise.
Steve Murray of Games Media, based in the UK, told InterGame he feels that the contemporary location customer is more likely to prefer video games rather than analogue as video permits segmentation and choice opportunities.
"With video terminals we can appeal to both males and females, younger and older, light and frequent users, by utilising a huge variety of game themes and typologies," he said. "Contemporary bars are definitely an opportunity for entertainment terminals and there is a future there. But they have to suit the individual needs of the locations, including size and styling of the cabinet and of course the type of content offered.
"To demonstrate our commitment to this opportunity we have three different terminals designed with broader player appeal and contemporary locations in mind, two of the terminals we will be test marketing in the near future, while our Juice terminal is already proving to be a big hit with new and existing players alike."
The basic footprint of the gaming terminal has remained almost unchanged in four decades; they are intended to occupy a very specific floor area and this is pretty much cast in stone. According to Nick Hardy, of Games Warehouse, based in the UK, it is in the area of aesthetics, where science concedes ground to art, and vague and variable concepts, such as fashion, come into play.
"There are powerful reasons to make regular design changes," he said. "Interior design has become a major factor for retailers who develop the environments in which terminals are located. Pubs and bars are no longer stereotypical and the traditional has been replaced by a diverse range of styles and themes each targeting different consumer demographics.
"Retailers invest fortunes in every aspect of design and suppliers have to keep pace. As specific pub and bar brands evolve, so terminal designers have to keep in touch with these trends and present products that will not look dated or out of place.
"As consumers, our preferences and purchasing habits are influenced by changing trends and this market is no different."
Operators also require variety. According to Hardy, there is a flipside to the argument that a multigame terminal has an almost limitless lifespan because its content can be constantly updated. Customers only know about such updates when they are stood in front of a terminal. Even the most regular visitors to the location may perceive that the terminal has remained ‘the same’ for as long as it has been in position.
"Operators are aware of the reality of this simple misconception on the part of the consumer, which is why many purchase different terminals and rotate them around their estates irrespective of the fact that the content can constantly change," said Hardy. "The new Paragon TT is the seventh Paragon to be launched in five years and yet the game menu can be interchanged between models meaning an operator can switch a Paragon 3 for a TT and in doing so, uplift both locations with the introduction of ‘new’ machines."
The gaming terminal is presented as a high technology product and therefore has to be instantly recognisable as such. With this in mind hardware designers have to be aware of current and coming trends and should study other markets such as interior design, cars, and home entertainment products and then use this knowledge and their own creativity to ensure that their own designs fit in with the tastes at the time.
This idea of looking to other markets for inspiration is one Games Warehouse took on board when designing the TT model. The company took the view that in order to make a radical leap forward, a fresh set of eyes were needed. "We took the conscious decision to seek out a fresh set of creative eyes but we didn’t want to go too far out on a limb, we wanted proven designers," said Hardy.
"The team that worked on the TT come from the automotive sector and their most recent work prior to the TT was on the awesome new Jaguar saloon. The guys had a fantastic track record and they delivered a fantastic result for us."
As far as the future of the coin-op amusement industry within contemporary bars is concerned, it looks as if the market is there if it wants it. Amusement machines will, however, need to constantly re-invent themselves to remain relevant to each new generation, but this is nothing new.
These types of location attract the youngest and most technically aware customers there are and in effect are the perfect testing ground for the latest innovations. Lessons learnt in the bars can be used in all sectors, migrating to family venues as the generation grows up and has its own families.
