"The best one-day show… over three days!" A statement from an exhibitor at AMOA'07 – the most important U.S. amusement gathering of the 2007 calendar, which took place (Sept. 27-29) in Las Vegas. Industry pros are wondering if the following month's IAAPA may be the future of amusement. On the exhibition floor 50-plus new titles are released, including the TouchTune PlayPorTT, PokerTek and big releases from amusement, with for many feeling that Global VR stole the show with the official launch of NASCAR Racing. Discussions on and off the show floor however pointed to the possibility that we could be about to see a major change in the structure of the US amusement exhibition circuit.
The Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) International Expo and Fun Expo trade exhibition (of which 50% is owned by the International Association for the Leisure and Entertainment Industry) took full use of the Las Vegas exhibition venue. Under the banner of "Let the games begin!" the AMOA part of the event had a lot to prove and gambled big on achieving a viable event to prove its position.
Change was very much in the air. Everyone was highly conscious of the fact that half the total show package was due to disappear in two years. Beginning in 2009, Fun Expo will abandon its traditional AMOA co-location in September, trying out a new alliance with the Amusement Showcase International in March. ASI is owned by the American Amusement Machine Association.
Like AMOA itself, manufacturers had a lot to prove at this year's show. They offered what they thought the operators of 2008 would want to see. SEGA America took to AMOA'07
Initial D 4 (LindBergh), the comic book custom car racer in the US featuring big screen and LindBergh platform (the redesign
ed cabinet for the U.S. is much more bulkier than the UK or Asian versions seen). ID4 is pure, hardcore action, though many operators were concerned at the price and the fact that a majority of their customers are impulse players rather than purists.
SEGA had decided to also bring to the US scene
Virtua Fighter 5 (LindBergh) – the fighting action thriller comes to the American scene just as the Xbox 360 version hits the selves. The game was minus the ALL.Net features including the IC Card component – an aspect that was kept on Initial D 4. The company also brought its ‘cut-down' version of
Lets Go Jungle (LindBergh) to the event – one source suggested that the compact version was made exclusively to gain a big order from a popular FEC chain, rather than just to compete with Global VR.
Games not brought to AMOA included the new shooter ‘Prehistoric Hunt' (Proprietary Hardware) -- spied the week before the show on test at a SEGA US site, the game will be one of many given an IAAPA airing (another proposed Orlando appearance will be
RaceTV – while the UK got to see these titles exclusively, why not AMOA?) Another new release that will stay under wraps a little longer is the ST card collector game ‘Sangokushi Taisen' (CHIHIRO), seen at another SEGA facility in Chicago, and proving a sleeper hit for SEGA if not their customers.
There was no hiding the fact that Namco of America had a very low-key presence at AMOA. The majority of games on show had been previously seen -- in some cases, two years ago. Of the new titles on booth, a particular trend in countertop systems was reflected on the Namco Bandai booth with the first of a series of classic game terminals – ‘Galga / Pac-Man' countertops. Namco made a concrete effort to fill deadwood cabinets with golf games with their ‘Bowl-O-Rama' (PC Hardware) directly focusing on the downturn in older cabinet golf games.
There was no competition against SEGA's
Virtua Fighter 5 on the Namco booth – Bandai Namco in Japan decided that the time was not right to show
Tekken 6 to the American audience. It's unknown if this will mean an appearance at IAAPA. The Namco booth played host to a number of other releases such as
Maximum Tune 3 (System N2).
Sources revealed that there had been some question on the available space allotted to Global VR – pushed back from the front of the hall, and their previous position. One rumor circulating that pressure may have been applied after recent friction over AAMA Gala attendance by the company. What ever the reason, Global VR was able to rise above any bad feeling and rocked the show to its foundations.
The company also showed the shooter
America's Army (PC Hardware) that offered a Green Parental Sticker unlike any of the other amusement titles, supported by the
Paradise Lost (PC Hardware) upright cabinet. AMOA will be seen as a momentous show for GVR and possible the appearance of a dominant force in the changing amusement scene.
Back on the AMOA Expo show floor, the touchscreen sector continued to offer some interesting angles, with Merit Entertainment showing the 2008 software lineup for their ‘Aurora' (PC Hardware) countertop terminal – the company also previewed their new ‘FireFly' (PC Hardware) terminal that hopes to keep competitive in a changing sector. While JVL showed their ‘iTouch10' series software update.
Fundamentally, it seems that manufacturers and Ecast-type content providers believe the future lies in integrated, national networks that are basically controlled by a single player (themselves)…with operators playing a decidedly secondary, supporting role. Operators, on the other hand, seem to envision themselves as the indispensable link in the market chain, and many operators appear perfectly willing to abandon or ignore broadband networks if necessary to maintain their dominance.
This ambiguous operator attitude toward online equipment explains why Incredible Technologies had a surprise on their booth with
Golden Tee 2008: Unplugged (PC Hardware), a version of the popular golf game that had stood on tournament connectivity, released this version of the game that did not need to have any connectivity, and no secondary screen emulating the Silver Strike Bowing and BAGS cabinets. While the more conventional
Golden Tee LIVE 2008 (PC Hardware) connected version was displayed. Speculation was rife why the company would develop an unplugged version – though the obvious need for another version for intransigent operators was ignored.
Also Shown…
One system that was exhibited on the show floor from new parties was the FragIsle International LLC -- ‘Console Planet' (Console Hardware). Inside the cabinet the operator can select which of the popular consoles will be installed, with a selection of games. The system is configured in a unique (tower) cabinet design. As covered in the previous Stinger, a certain degree of mystery surrounds the actual validity of the concept for the public space sector. Other, more traditional products were represented by STERN who brought their latest pinball tables to the show (
Wheel of Fortune)
STERN also held on their booth the International Flipper Pinball Association (IFPA) annual AMOA-Pinball Championship; the event for big prizes with a fee to take part. Tournaments played their part with other manufacturers with post show sessions going on from Valley Dynamo and obviously Incredible Technologies – rumors continue that a major tournament event for the public is being planned by another prominent exhibition – moving into the same territory as AOU and JAMMA in Japan and the events surrounding ASI and AMOA.
The need for mid-size attractions at venues was proposed by manufacturers such as TrioTech Amusement – the company brought their ‘XD Theater' 3D ride-film experience to the show floor. Another of the simulator experiences on the floor was the iMOtion! with their ‘iGO' (PC Hardware) system running the tank battle game Panzer Elite. The system was shown now covered by a new financing plan deferring payment for an agreed period allowing more operators to enjoy the revenue generator that is interactive simulation.
News Story with thanks to Kevin Williams, please visit
www.thestingerreport.comfor the full story and others.
