Apparently, the border dividing casino gambling and video games lies somewhere between a nightclub and a sports book — at least that’s where Hakkasan Group will open a space named Level Up in MGM Grand later this month.
Level Up — which Hakkasan describes as a social lounge — will sit between Hakkasan and the sports book and will be roughly divided into two areas.
One is a new arena with stadium seating where 40 gamblers at a time can play social versions of table games, such as blackjack, poker, keno and roulette.
At craps, roulette or other traditional felt-covered table games, the number of people who can play at any one time is limited to the space around the table. In the new stadium-seated versions of the games, digital versions of the games are projected on large video screens in front of a few to several dozen seats arranged like seats in a movie theater or stadium.
Along with skill-based gaming, stadium-seated versions of table games were one of the innovations touted at this year’s Global Gaming Expo, one of the gaming industry’s largest business-to-business gatherings.
Other areas of Level Up will be dedicated to nongambling activities for which customers will have to pay.
Some include traditional bar games such as pool, foosball and ping pong. Others are electronic arcade-like games such as QuadAir Hockey, Bubble Hockey, Sigma Derby, Giant Pac-Man and Connect Four.
Also in Level Up, Hakkasan is building the Golfstream Suite, an augmented-reality area where people can play digital versions of real-world golf courses, as well as other mini games.
“Level Up will be a popular, high-energy gaming lounge that will offer our guests and visitors the newest entertainment experience to see and be seen,” said Scott Sibella, president and COO of MGM Grand. “Our goal is to create a fun, social atmosphere featuring a variety of traditional games, as well as games of skill, that showcase the industry’s leading technology.”
Level Up is being built in the space where the Rainforest Cafe was located. It’s scheduled to open Dec. 29.
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