“We are very excited about the response to this year’s G2E event”

What novelties did you bring to G2E?

Konami’s G2E 2018 display featured a leading lineup of 4K cabinets, popular progressive features, proven bonus mechanics, and many more top advancements to reach today’s players. Every cabinet across the Concerto Collection showcased a broad variety of game content focused on exceptional quality and entertainment. Konami’s new 65-inch 4K Concerto Opus debuted a unique linked progressive called Treasure Ball, which rewards players with mystery jackpot prize balls in greater numbers and sizes as they increase their bet. In many ways, Concerto Opus is the next evolution of our Podium Goliath cabinet, which saw strong popularity as an oversized cabinet with great game content and reasonable floor space requirements. Agent: Magnifying Jackpots and Inspector: Sign of the Jackpots continue the success of Konami’s Strike Zone mechanic on the curved Concerto Crescent and Concerto Stack cabinets with scaling multi-denom standalone jackpots and SeleXion multi-game compatibility. Other leading jackpot progressives including Solstice Celebration Triple Sparkle, Matsuri Kojiki Moon, Sparkling Roses Color Bloom, the Golden Blocks series, and Jackpot Streams Evolution also feature leading mechanics to reach and reward players in new ways.

This year also marked the world premiere of an entirely new video slot cabinet called KX 43, which showcases a uniquely “Konami” experience on a 43-inch 4K Ultra HD vertical screen. It includes a standard cabinet width, relaxed slant top, four-times the pixel depth of standard HD, and leading library of 4K-resolution game themes. KX 43 is also designed with built-in comforts and conveniences for today’s players, including USB charging port, double cup holders, and double classic spin buttons. Several different game themes were featured—from new linked progressive series to symbol-driven jackpot games—all developed in 4K Ultra HD for graphics that catch attention and celebrate wins with stunning excitement.

What is your assessment on the presentation of the company in this edition of G2E?

We are very excited about the response to this year’s G2E event. The latest releases for Konami’s Concerto Collection have seen outstanding success—from the Star Watch series to Celestial Sun Riches and Celestial Moon Riches—and now we’re building even further upon that with popular symbol-driven mechanics and integrated progressives. Our customers from Europe to Latin America are looking forward to top upcoming series such as Money Galaxy, Matsuri Kojiki, and Triple Sparkle. There was also overwhelming enthusiasm for debut releases on Konami’s all-new KX 43 video slot. This machine has a perfect slant top design that players enjoy, but with a sleek frame to fit in any area across the floor.

What does G2E mean for the company?

What matters most for Konami and its distributors is the opportunity to meet with customers and personally show our appreciation. So many of them we have worked with for years and we always look forward to event like this to touch base and get their feedback. Over the course of the event, thousands of people visit the Konami booth to see our very latest products and technology. It really helps set the tone for year.

What plans does the company have for the remainder of this year?

Across the business, our core product focus remains on quality, value, and innovation. With recent successes including the Star Watch series, Riches Drop series, and many other top titles on Concerto Crescent and Stack, Konami is focused on continuing to drive incremental value for operators, while delivering meaningful entertainment for players. That is the primary goal for every market we serve—supporting players and operators with engaging, enduring entertainment.

What are the next shows for the company?

Konami will be in London next February for the ICE Totally Gaming Show. There we will be highlighting the latest releases from Opus to KX 43.

Do you think that online games are complementary or competition of land based games?

Our long-held approach to online gaming has been openness to making our games available for players to enjoy across a variety of online platforms. Through this, we have observed strong positive outcomes for those operators who have connected their online and land-based strategies. We’ve seen Konami games achieve considerable success on social and real money online gaming for many different operators across North America and Europe. It’s very encouraging to see Konami products continue to appeal to players on these sites and we look forward to continued expansion.

Millennials are the players of the present and the future, how does the company adapt to them?

Konami is uniquely positioned to bring new entertainment and reach new audiences through its decades-long heritage in amusement and gaming technology, combined with advanced engineering from our parent company in Japan. That provides the foundation for unique development opportunities to help create future product in the industry and reach new demographics. One example is Konami’s rhythmic skill-based game called Beat Square. Beat Square is based on a popular arcade game in Japan, and one of the reasons we identified its potential for the gaming industry is because it has the power to reach younger audiences as well as today’s core player base. It’s similar to other Konami rhythmic coordination games like Dance Dance Revolution, but instead of moving their feet, players use their hands to tap randomized choreographed square buttons across an elevated dashboard as they light up to the beat of the music. It is something entirely unique to the casino floor and has the potential to reach new and existing players with new gaming options they can enjoy personally and play simultaneously with friends.

Konami’s new Fortune Cup multi-station game is another key example. It brings back the classic excitement and engagement of mechanical horse racing with advanced technology to thrill players through a uniquely social gaming experience.  Currently Fortune Cup is live in over eight states and three countries, with additional installations planned through the end of the year. It has achieved demonstrated success in attracting new audiences to the gaming floor with unique entertainment and shared social engagement.

By supporting operators with a growing diversity of gaming entertainment, Konami is providing new ways to reach new audiences. The market is hungry for these emerging product types and we’re excited to be a part of pioneering its development.