This week’s casino news takes us to the United Kingdom and Las Vegas, and word that a new online casino will be launched soon. We’ll start there with our weekly roundup of the casino news.
Gaming Innovation Group Set To Launch Highroller
There’s a new online casino on the block as Gaming Innovation Group is set to launch Highroller. The shiny new site is going to have at least 750 games to start, with many more on the way. There will be table games and slots, along with roulette and blackjack with huge jackpots. Live dealer games are also on the menu. Highroller is trying to make it a unique experience for customers as players will play in Metrocity where they can win rewards by doing tasks. There will be enticing promotions for new players as well.
There is a staggering list of games available (there are over 500 games on the mobile version of Highroller as well) and they come from the best of the best when it comes to online casino games, led by NetEnt, Microgaming, Evolution and IGT, for starters. When it comes to payment options, you can use the likes of Visa, Mastercard and Neteller, among others. The official launch of Highroller is expected to be around this holiday season.
Victoria Gate Casino Expands Poker Room, Opens Up New VIP Area
Victoria Gate Casino is already known as one of the nicest casinos in the United Kingdom and now they’re adding to their impressive offering. The casino has opened up a new VIP area that will have one of the largest poker rooms in the United Kingdom outside of the city of London. It has relaunched with 20 full-sized tables, which means there can be 180 players playing at once – 80 more players than before.
That is going to allow the Victoria Gate Casino to be the home of some major poker tournaments, which is something it has never had before. Not only that, there was the launch of the Ruby Lounge. This 50,000-square-foot area is a VIP area that has tables and dealers, along with a bar, and players will be able to get to the V Restaurant.
The Leeds-based casino opened in January and it also has 140 slot machines, but they’re looking to step up to the next level and they’re hoping that poker will make it a super-casino.
Vegas Visitor Numbers Down
The city of Las Vegas has been setting visitor records over the last three years but that streak could come to an end in 2017. At the end of September, Las Vegas visitor numbers were down 1.1 percent from the same period a year ago. That represents a decrease of about 360,600 people, to about 32.11 million visitors. That would put them on track to welcome a total of about 42.4 million people by year’s end. While this would be more than 2015, it would still be less than 2016. The worry is that this number will go down as the report didn’t cover the period in which the shooting on the Strip happened on October 1. It’s unclear if that will have the perceived severe impact or if it will rally people to visit to show support.
Hotels such as the Tropicana and the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino have reported a rise in cancellations since the shooting, but we’ll have to see the final numbers once they are reported.