Nevada Gaming Commission to change casino regulations

The gaming commission intends field testing to come earlier in regulatory process.

US.- The Nevada Gaming Commission will meet today to vote on amendments to regulations that would create a New Innovation Beta (NIB) process in order to step up the development of new casino games by letting gamblers test the products faster.

Game makers use fields trials to see if their developments can actually function in the real world and if gamblers find them attractive and easy to play. Whilst they have the opportunity to test the games before they release them, they have to meet all of Nevada’s regulatory standards before field trials can begin, and the NIB would skip that requirement. A.G.Burnett, chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, said: “Here we can essentially skip that and allow the NIB to commence. So it’s like a fast-track field trial.”

Chief of the technology division of the Control Board Jim Barbee, said that despite lowering the standards for consumer testing, the NIB won’t be a free pass for game makers. “First, the games must be able to display an outcome and, of course, deliver that outcome. All the financial transactions from the time you put the cash in to when you get something out of it have to work properly,” he added.

Barbee stated that the overall time for getting a new game approved might end up being the same, but the biggest change and benefit would be that game makers can put games in front of users sooner than the current rules allow them. “I think it’s a great plan and it’s needed,” said Blaine Graboyes, CEO of GameCo. “It’s really going to help drive the industry and anything that can be done to bring more innovation more quickly is absolutely critical. It’s a question of how we take advantage of it and what is best way to come to the Nevada market as soon as possible,” he added.

(Source: Vegas Inc. and Focus Gaming News)