GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 8 - April 2009

3D casinos not real enough? Then try live dealers online. While the use and development of 3D casinos are on the rise, there is another option for online players looking for an even more authen- tic experience: live-dealer casinos. Live casinos with real-life dealers have been around since the turn of the decade when the late Adam Anhang founded CWC Gaming. Since that time the growth of the concept has been slow, but Adrian Carli – better known in the GPWA forums as WagerX – thinks that the live-dealer genre is something that could explode in the very near future. “I really feel that live dealers is where the future of the industry is heading and I’m very passionate about it,” says Carli, who just recently launched an affiliate program centered on live-dealer casinos called Live Casino Partners. “I think that it’s an untapped market with unlimited potential.” Carli explains that the live-dealer casino works in two different ways. The first is the studio setup, where the gaming ac- tion takes place in a controlled studio. One of the attractions for players is that the dealer has an opportunity to com- municate with the players and get to know each one individually, just like at a brick and mortar casino. The video feeds tend to be more controlled as well. “I think the one thing that we can im- prove on is making the interaction between the player and dealer even better,” Carli says. “Personalized atten- tion will engage the players more and hopefully increase player retention and enjoyment.” The second type of arrangement is video streaming from an actual casino. LuckyLiveCasino.com is fed live from the Fitzwilliam Card Club and Casino in Dublin and the online players actually sit at a table with other real players seated at the Ireland casino. “Being able to see and hear the dealers and other players enhances the player’s confidence that they are getting a fair and honest game,”Carli adds. LuckyLiveCasino.com software does not require a download; all that’s needed is the latest version of Java. Currently there are four live-dealer games to choose from: roulette, blackjack with early payout, bacca- rat, and Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker. There are also the usual RNG games to choose from as well. Carli adds that in addition to the player’s enjoying a “cool and dif- ferent experience” the live-dealer action can also be quite profitable for the affiliate. “Affiliates find out pretty quickly that targeted traffic for live-dealer games offers great conversions, and I’ve noticed that high rollers are attracted to live casino games,” he says. As for future developments, Carli would like to see more flexible soft- ware platforms that will allow variations of common casino games or side bets. He also foresees integrating a social net- work with online chat and buddy or “jinx player” lists. “I feel the social component would add an extra thrill,” Carli says. “This is all just the tip of the iceberg of what live gaming could be.My goal for LiveCasinoPartners. com is to focus on being in the vanguard of live gaming, and I think we’re very close to getting there.” — Gary Trask poker room readied for its launch. “But it was very pleasing to see how quickly we built up a following and even more pleas- ing to see that trend continue.” Walters, who co-founded PKR along with Jez San, worked at Sony prior to the launch of PlayStation. He previously worked for San at Argonaut Software, the company San started when he was 16 that would later sign a deal to create the first 3D GameBoy game for Nintendo. The PKR poker experience begins with a visit to the avatar dressing room, which has so many offerings it would make Paris Hilton blush. After creating a distinctive personality of your very own, you can choose from one of the many poker-table destinations to play your favorite game. You could end up on the upper deck of a cruise ship, in a brick-and-mortar ca- sino that overlooks the Las Vegas Strip, or in the bowels of an Egyptian pyramid. Whichever way, the graphics are so lifelike it’s surreal. Adding to the experience is the fact that you have a number of different table views to play the game from, and thanks to a one-of-a-kind “Emote control” technol- ogy, you can interact with other players at the table by doing everything from taunt- ing them after a bad beat, to shuffling your chips through your hands, to congratulat- ing someone on a nicely played hand. As the PKR Web site says, it’s “personal, in- volving, and highly entertaining.” “I’m sure people have tried PKR and didn’t 37