Pechanga and Bally to attempt world's largest slot machine tournament

The event is free and everyone over 21 years of age is welcome to try and win their share of us$ 100,000 in prizes.

“This tournament reflects our commitment to operating the best casino in the world,” said Pechanga Development Corporation President Joaquin Fletcher. “Since the resort opened in 2002, Pechanga has worked to create one of the most technologically advanced slot floors anywhere, and setting this world record highlights the enormous advantages Pechanga’s casino has to offer.”  

More than 1,000 machines on Pechanga’s floor will utilize Bally’s unique technology to turn them into tournament machines and allow a player on each to compete head to head with 1,000 other players at the exact same time.  The frenzied rush of slot tournament players furiously spinning their machine to rack up their score, trying to place in the tournament, will be a casino-wide phenomenon, for the first time in history.

“This is a milestone in casino promotions,” explained Pechanga Vice President of Marketing Lee Torres. “Most promotions and tournaments are located in one area, but this tournament will electrify the entire casino floor.  This is our way to show the world what you can do with the most technologically advanced slot floor on the planet in one of the largest casinos on Earth.”

The tournament will award us$ 100,000 in total, with 200 people taking home prizes and the ultimate winner receiving us$ 25,000 in cash. Registration begins at 8:00 am, is free and open to all Pechanga Rewards Club members. Anyone 21 and older with a valid ID can sign up free for a Rewards Card and ambassadors will be on hand to register new players wanting to make history at Pechanga. The tournament will start at 11:00 am. All who are in line to sign up by 10:30 am will play, with successive rounds being held, if necessary. 

“This is not just a publicity stunt,” said Pechanga Vice President of Information Technology John Kenefick. “On February 11, Pechanga will usher in a new era of casino networked gameplay by instantly turning five different manufacturers of slots into a single tournament mode, casino-wide, with more than a thousand machines. “

Pechanga has more than 1,100 machines that utilize Bally Technologies’ iVIEW Display Manager, which allows casino-wide promotions, including tournaments, to be run with all players competing against each other. For the past year, the casino has run such promotions, including its virtual horse racing, the Pechanga Classic, where each player chooses a horse to bet on and watch the race unfold on screen. However, running a slot tournament is far more complex.

Pechanga’s team and Bally technicians have worked for the past two months to make this a reality. More than six casino-wide tests of machines were conducted to work out glitches and make this ready for the public. On January 12, 2012 at 9am, more than 400 Pechanga team members and Bally employees ran a “full load” test on the system to simulate the wild, rapid ‘button mashing’ fury of an actual slot tournament. More than 1,100 machines passed the test and the Pechanga and Bally leadership were confident to proceed to inviting the public to a real slot tournament on February 11.

“The system worked exactly as planned,” said Pechanga Vice President of Slots Buddy Frank. “We are now ready to show the world that not all casino floors are made the same. We have worked for years to build a casino with all 3,800 slots connected on an advanced high speed network. This tournament is the perfect showcase to display what we can do right now, that other casinos will not be able to for years.”

“This is a great example of how server-based technology can create contagious excitement on games from multiple manufacturers and take one of the most popular special events for real players to a whole new level,” said Bally Senior Vice President of Strategy and Customer Consulting Bruce Rowe.

Most casinos have a small number of dedicated tournament machines, requiring them to do multiple rounds in order to have a large number of participants. They bring players in for different heats and then perhaps a final to determine placement and prize awards. With Bally’s Display Manager™, any machine with the technology installed, anywhere on the floor, can be turned into a tournament slot instantly and then turned back to normal game mode right afterward. The future of this technology will allow slot tournaments to happen instantly at prescribed times or even as a surprise, where any player can elect to participate or not participate, as they choose.    

“I have never seen a slot tournament with more than 100 machines used,” concluded Torres.  “This is a technological feat that is unparalleled in the gaming industry,”