Table games continue to hold their own in the modern day location. InterGame finds out why
Table games such as pool, air hockey and foosball are popular worldwide and have provided many operators with a stable source of income for many years, creating a point of social gathering in many locations. In the UK, for example, while many pubs continue to close, a new venue dedicated to pool has just opened up in the seaside town of Brighton.
Rock & Roller is a venue with targeted appeal and is aiming at a fashion conscious market concentrating on the design, build and quality of its pool offering. A high quality interior design and cocktail menu is combined with the SAM Leisure American pool table K Steel 2, which was launched at EAG Expo in January, and according to the location’s owners business has been brisk and continues to build.
The popularity of pool in particular has forced the need for variety within the sector and while pool table cloth already comes in various colours, cuesport venue owners and marketers now also have the option to specify colourful on-table branding that’s directly linked to point-of-sale campaigns, advertising or other promotional activity.
ArtScape, produced in the UK by billiard cloth manufacturer Milliken, is designed to appeal to brand managers, club owners and table operators seeking something different - ArtScape technology reproduces any image in pin-sharp register. The product has already been well received in the UK, US and Australia, where, in particular, home-owners like to customise their tables with their favourite images. And for venue owners, Milliken research has shown that branded pool tables increase both table use and footfall with no downside - the imagery being hard wearing and lasting the lifetime of the cloth.
While all table games are popular worldwide, according to Pablo Madariaga of Billares Sam in Spain, different games are more widely spread regionally. For instance, while American pool is played all over the US, Europe and the Far East, the English version of pool is played more in the UK, France, the Mediterranean coast of Spain and Africa. Carom pool, which was a very popular game in Europe in the past, is now mostly played in South America and Korea.
Air hockey seems to be the exception to the rule, however, and doesn’t seem to be influenced so much by local traditions - it has become a must-have game for modern FECs and leisure facilities.
Sega Amusements Europe recently tapped into the popularity of the table sports sector with its branded Sonic Allstars air hockey table, which is built in partnership with a third party manufacturer. According to Sega’s Justin Burke, air hockey tables are an evergreen piece and it was important for the company to add such a product to its growing range in order to provide operators with the full package. "We have given the table a contemporary look by using white and theming it with the Sonic Allstars brand," said Burke. "There is also a redemption element to the table, which not many tables currently include."
The beauty of a table game is its size - small enough to fit in the majority of locations while being easy to understand so attracting all types of customers. As well as providing a social pastime to attract groups of friends to a location, table games can also be placed in areas where people are waiting around such as airports, motorway services, cinemas and bowling centres, with which pool tables in particular have had a long and healthy relationship.
New style entertainment facilities such as children’s play schemes, visitor attractions like farms, zoos, museums and themed attractions are also proving popular locations for table games - the universal appeal of table games means they have a place just about anywhere that people would want entertainment.
According to Madariaga, the technology behind table games is changing the face of the product permanently. "Pool tables and air hockey - even foosball, with power and electronic systems can now be seen as mainstream amusement machines," he said. "The new PCBs allow a large variety of game modes and prices including free games or happy hours depending on the public attendance. Data reporting enables table games to join rank with AWPs and other monitored machines."
The materials now being used for the tables are also allowing for more exciting and modern designs as plastic is used more and more over wood and metal parts. "Technical excellence also makes the games more accurate and improves playing experience," said Madariaga.
In an increasingly technical and immediate world the consumer needs real encouragement to venture out from their home for amusement. Table games offer something quite different to computer based and virtual entertainment - hands-on, face-to-face competition in a social environment.
"Man is both a social animal and one defined by and evolved through competition," said Madariaga. "For that reason table games will always have an integral role in entertainment venues driving footfall and generating income."
First published May 2010
