Vegas 2047

Vegas 2047 is a prototype video pinball gambling game built for real-money casinos by NanoTech Gaming in 2015. 

The combination of a 120Hz HD display with synced 120Hz backlight strobing, 1000Hz physics simulation, and interrupt driven leaf switch button inputs (capable of activating the flippers within nanoseconds) is truly one-of-a-kind and delivered the most realistic video pinball game I've ever experienced.

The tactile feedback from sound vibrations alone, along with the silky-smooth visual resolution had some Players questioning us whether they were looking at a real ball!

We contracted out the construction of two prototype game cabinets to Vegas locals who spared no expense for the game - quilted maple wood, brass and copper fittings and pipes, and a leather-wrapped locking bar and kick plate.

Core team: ~3

Time on project: ~12 months

(click on the images for a little virtual 3D tour!)

• Created and tuned 2D pinball table layouts in Adobe Illustrator

• Designed and programmed table logic and scoring events

• Co-authored patent US20150294535: NanoTech Advantage math model

• Recorded voice over and sound effects using Audacity and Bfxr

I took a visual survey of the top 50 pinball games of all time and sketched out and tested a handful of table layouts before arriving on the one at left. rollover lanes, bumpers, drop target banks, and multiball were all features that we knew needed to be represented in Vegas 2047.

We decided to use Adobe Illustrator since we could export curves to a high degree of accuracy when defining the collision surfaces.

I coded all the scoring and progressive multiball logic in C++. I remember having an exceedingly awesome game where I had a17-ball multiball! 

I created a slick marketing brochure to hand out at the G2E convention. Take a look at it here: VEGAS 2047 - High Limit Advantage Play Video Pinball

Also known as, "System that Allows Players to Use their Skill to Gain a Mathematical Advantage in a Game of Chance"

Even a patent clearly defining the parameters within which a Player's skill could influence their chance of winning was not enough to convince the gambling industry that it was possible (and profitable) to merge skill and gambling.

In the first few seconds of speaking with Players, operators, manufacturers, and legislators, an almost imperceptible wall of superstition would encompass the listeners minds, locking out the logical mathematical information we tried to convey in this patent.

The short description is that a Player that demonstrates above-average skill can have a better chance at winning than a Player that demonstrates below-average skill. The Player's score is compared to a database of all previous scores, and any available potential Advantage above the desired House Edge may be awarded to a Player who demonstrates above-average skill. Of course, demonstration of skill does NOT guarantee a win.

There were no other employees to help in the operational side of NanoTech Gaming, so the responsibilities and logistics of getting our Vegas 2047 games to the show floor fell mostly on my shoulders.

We had many curious and skeptical Players, including gambling mathematician The Wizard of Odds, who began his short review of our game with, "Vegas 2047 Pinball was by far the most innovative idea at the show."

The highlight of the show had to be in the remaining few minutes of day 3. We were giving away an iPad Retina to the Player who amassed the highest bank roll by the end of the day (starting with $10,000 credits).

Two Players battled it out throughout the day, inching up their winnings to over $50,000, when who should swoop in but legendary pinball and slot machine designer, Joe Kaminkow.

Joe defied the odds by making two $5,000 bets to win $50,000. He lost the first bet, but won the second, finishing the day with a $55,000 balance and a shiny new iPad.

Here's Joe winning the iPad and saying Vegas2047 was, "My favorite game of the show!"