[dajebriza]

I just had a very scary thought... Do you think casinos will ever go fully digital with table games?

I thought about it a bit and it seems to make total sense we are heading there.

Envision this:

No cards, chips or dealer...

A completely digital all glass-topped computer poker table that displays digital cards, and chips. The cards handle or "move" like real chips, you slide your hands over the images on the touch-sensative-surface (or use buttons) to move chips to place bets, muck cards, etc...

I can see how a casino might go for this when the technlogy allows - no dealers to pay or anymore dealer errors that result in lost revenue (halted games are money lost) for the casino - no cards to buy, which must be a huge expense each year, no chips to buy, another huge expense... Plus, security. No need to have secure storage for so many chips in casinos anymore. No more risk of stealing chips, chip counting mistakes, chip loss, sneaking counterfit chips into a game, etc...

You just insert a credit card or players club card into the table at your position, to add chips to your stack. Faster than going to the cash cage or even a trip to an ATM and more convienient for the players to reload so again, play is uninterrupted with more hands played over time - money for the casino.

It seems to me that casino industry would embrace this idea as it is a win-win for them.

It's already clear that on-line or digital card playing is huge and would be accepted by a lot of players. I merging of on-line play and casino atmosphere.

I think we may see this coming in the near future. Look what happened to slot machines.

[A-Ro]

I hope not...the chips make the casino experience that much better.

[Matthew]

Some card rooms already have a digital table - 10 guys sitting around clicking away. There was a thread on that - will search and edit.

But - poker is old school in some regards. They still bring the cash out on the table to pay tournament winner.

Casino's make a ton of money on collectable / commemerative chips, and release them regularly.

I'm not saying it won't happen, but I don't think dealers and chips will disappear in our lifetimes.

[bolgenmod]

I played on one of these electronic tables recently (it was a Lightning Poker table) and was planning to do a review for ChipTalk. The bottom line is that it really sucked -- the way it was set up makes it harder to use than online games (in my opinion), and of course, the fact that there are no chips is another big minus.

Funny thing: TWO of the guys at the table had little stacks of chips with them that they were shuffling as they played. I have no idea whether these just represented what they had left after playing another game or what, but I thought it was interesting that they brought chips to shuffle to the chip-less electronic table.

[Irish Se7en]

"Funny thing: TWO of the guys at the table had little stacks of chips with them that they were shuffling as they played. I have no idea whether these just represented what they had left after playing another game or what, but I thought it was interesting that they brought chips to shuffle to the chip-less electronic table."

I do that all the time when I play online. I'm sure others do as well. Poker without chips would be dreadful.

[mizuchaud]

Here's a stupid thought.
Once casino gaming goes digital and does away with chips, Paulson turns their might towards the home market.



People will be getting the fashizzle for their home games....

I'll be first in line with my own mold drawings, custom inlay punches, and NEW EDGESPOT CONFIGURATIONS.....


Sorry, low blood sugar. Excuse above pipedream. going to lunch now.

[Couga]

My bet is this will not happen in our lifetime. If people want to play digital poker why buy a plane ticket and go to Vegas to do it? Why even bother to go down to the local cardroom? This aspect of gaming is already firmly established in the online community. Part of the Vegas and Gaming culture altogether is the party atmosphere that is created when you are in a casino. Ever party with a robot? Ever been to a party with no host (they die out quickly)? Most hotel casino's have a theme that tries to transport you away from your everday life. They are there to take your money and make you feel good about it. It is the dealers job to make that happen. They make you feel like it is "bad luck" even though you know otherwise. It is the dealers that take the edge off when the casino is taking your money. It is the human personality on the other side of the table that encourages you to come back and maybe your "luck" will change . Why else would people keep going back when the house always wins?

IMO is that the only players who would be attracted to this sort of gaming are:
- Pro's (card counters etc) who have an edge on the house and don't want to toke part of their earnings.
- Cheaters who have figured out something in the software or how to alter it.
- Loaners who don't appreciate human interaction.

Now I am not saying that a couple tables may not be profitable for a casino (when compared to all the overhead of having dealers etc.) to cater to the above type people, but an entire casino setup like this is doomed before it starts.

My only interaction with this type of gaming was about 2 years ago. I stay away from the Pit and hit the Poker room when I get the opportunity to get out to a casino, but I once (and I emphasize once) played a dealerless, chipless digital blackjack game because it was new and I wanted to see what it was all about. I put my $100 in and cashed out $150 and was bored off my arse. I will never play a game like that again.

Great Original Post though + rep headed to you with my monster +2 children's toy hammer.

- Couga

[99%evil]

I don't think it will, maybe half and half. There's still a bunch of folks that like the tactile feel of cards and chips and those folks that are leary of computers. Computers cannot generate random numbers, it may appear random, but it ain't. People might as well stay home and playon their computer, I think cards and chips will be around for a while. The whole casino experience lends itself to having stacks of chips, I'd hate to play blackjack at a computer table, I like having a dealer, you chat with them and you just become one with the table after a few hours. If it were a computer I'd be more opt to leave when I lost hand after hand, it happens with a live dealer, but at least the dealer can pretend to feel sorry for you. I like tipping the dealers, making them part of the game. I wouldn't play at a computer table if I had the choice, I'll take missdeals over a cold machine. I don't play poker machines or slots due to lack of human interaction, that and the odds suck-BJ craps and poker only for me. But anywho, I hope that chips and cards stay in casino until a week after I shuffle off (pun intended)this mortal coil.

[JM]

I was just down at foxwoods a couple of weeks ago and they had one of those electronic lightning machines right up front for all to see. There were a few people playing there for play money, but I wouldn't waste my time. If its all electronic, I'd just as soon stay home and play online with my laptop. I can watch tv, eat, take it to the bathroom if necessary and not spend a penny more than whatever the game costs. I think they'd be stupid to go this way, they'll definitely lose players IMO.

[Orcryst007]

It's scary, but it can be true!!

http://www.pokertek.com/table.html