3-card Poker Creator in SF Chronicle

All of you aspiring casino game creators (and those who are interested in how games are created) might want to read this piece in the SF Chronicle:

Webb, who splits his time these days between Las Vegas and Darby, England, likens the process of getting casinos to license the game to “pulling teeth,” and notes that it was one of the toughest challenges of his career.”I never intended to become a traveling salesman, but effectively, thats what happens,” he says. “One of the challenges of inventing is that you have to wear multiple hats to make it work.”Webb invented the game in his native United Kingdom in 1994, but before he was allowed to sell it to casinos there, the British Casino Association required that he head overseas to provide some statistics on performance. With that, Webb headed for the United States in 1996. His goal: to license the game to enough casinos to get the requisite stats

via Derek Webb: man behind 3-card poker.

Coming up with a new game idea is definitely the easiest part of the process. I’ve spoken with many, many people who think they have the next Three-Card Poker, and I haven’t seen any of their games on the Strip. A lot of them are smart, creative people who have great ideas…but getting games into the casino is really, really hard.

For your edification, here are the fifteen steps towards getting a new game approved for testing in Nevada, courtesy of the Gaming Control Board:

An applicant must include the following items for the submission of a new game:
1. A letter requesting game approval.
2. Four (4) copies of the table layout. (The layout must be submitted as it will appear in the casinos.)
3. Rules of play, with specific examples.
4. A proposed payout schedule.
5. A statistical evaluation of the new game’s theoretical percentages.
6. Items 1–5 must be submitted on a CD-ROM in Word or PDF Format.
7. A copy of the rack card that will be available to players during the field trial.
8. A copy of the filing receipt from the United States Patent and Trademark Office in reference to the new game patent.
9. A letter from a Non-Restricted Group I licensee, agreeing to display and monitor the new game’s field trial.
10. A notarized document that contains the following statements:
a. That the requester agrees, if a field trial is approved, the casino conducting the field trial will receive 100% of the revenue produced by the game, during the course of the field trial.
b. That the requester agrees to pay all costs for shipment, inspection, and incidental costs documented by the Gaming Control Board (GCB) in connection with the examination and evaluation of the new game.
c. That at least one working model is available or will be available immediately, should the game be approved for field trial.
d. Of the applicant’s and developer’s intentions as to how a profit is expected to be made from the submitted game, when/if the game is approved for play in Nevada.
11. A Personal History Record completed by all applicants.
12. “Request to Release Information,” “Release and Indemnity of All Claims,” and “Affidavit
of Full Disclosure” forms, notarized and signed by the applicant(s) and developer(s).
13. A percentage of ownership with reference to the applicant’s/developer’s company/corporation.
14. Five thousand dollars ($5,000) on deposit with the GCB, or a check in that amount made payable to the Treasurer, State of Nevada. The account created by this deposit
is used to pay investigative costs, as listed below. Additional deposits may be requested during the course of the investigation. Final satisfaction of all expenses incurred by the Gaming Control Board must be paid before the game is heard before the Gaming Control Board for approval.
a. Enforcement Division investigative hours bill at $80 per hour.
b. Technology Division bills at $150 per hour for completing the game evaluation.
15. A list of names, and telephone numbers, with whom the GCB may discuss aspects of the game.

Submit the package of all 15 items to the Enforcement Division of the Gaming Control Board. After the package has been reviewed for completeness, the statistical evaluation will be forwarded to the Technology Division for analysis and verification. Failure to submit all items will result in a denial of the application and the submitted packet will be returned.

Gaming Control Board: Agency Forms and Applications

So you need some deep pockets and a lot of patience to get a game approved for trial, let alone accepted by a casino on a permanent basis. Bear in mind that before you go through this 15-step process, you need to have a casino agree to let you test the game in their casino for 90 days. I imagine that there’s a pretty high bar for that, since a manager can ask, “Why should I take a blackjack table that I know will make $1,400 a day and put in a game nobody’s ever heard of?” (That guesstimate, BTW, was made possible by the July 2009 Gaming Revenue Report)

Still, if nobody ever tried anything new we’d still be sitting in caves eating carrion tartar for breakfast. I will say this: the application system ensures that only the most dedicated inventors see their dreams come true.

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