New Sigma Derby Debuts at Four Queens Before Hitting the Strip

_{The new Sigma Derby horse racing game was a big attraction at G2E in October. (Photo: Dan Michalski / Casinos.com)}

LAS VEGAS – The cult classic new Sigma Derby horse racing game we saw at G2E earlier this year will be in Las Vegas casinos before the year is over.

According to Mike Darley, CEO of Next Gaming, the first installation will be at Four Queens in downtown Las Vegas before the year is over. 

At first glance, this is an interesting location for the new game. The only Sigma Derby machine in Las Vegas casinos today sat on the second floor of The D, next door to Four Queens, until it was moved down the street to Golden Gate Hotel & Casino earlier this year.

Darley told CDC Gaming that choosing Four Queens was a no-brainer. The casino’s owner, Terry Caudill, also founded and owns Next Gaming. It almost makes too much sense.

More Vegas Casinos Installing Sigma Derby

While Four Queens will be the first Las Vegas casino to feature the new Sigma Derby game, it won’t be the only one. Expect to see the new Sigma Derby at the Venetian, the Palazzo and The Strat.

Darley didn’t share a date for those installations. It seems likely they’ll arrive next year, which gives Four Queens some time to have the game to itself.

More Vegas casinos could follow. In a previous interview, Patrick Schmit of Highbrow Gaming said the company expected to launch in 15 to 20 casinos. Right now, Pechanga Casino Resort in California is the only other casino set to debut the game.

“We have an interest list of more than 100, and I’ve approached only five or six people," Schmit told CDC Gaming. "The rest have just heard and reached out to me. Supplying the demand is going to be the problem, not creating the demand.”

The game has so many parts and uses products from two companies, Next Gaming and VSR Industries, so it’s not a simple game to build.

A Sigma Derby History Lesson

Sigma Derby first hit casinos in the 1980s. The mechanical horse racing game was a hit when themed casinos in Las Vegas were at their peak in popularity.

Property-specific versions were created for a few casinos. Luxor had its own camel racing game, Caesars Palace had chariot races and New York-New York featured racing taxis.

Like many nontraditional games, Sigma Derby gradually lost popularity and nearly disappeared altogether. Only a handful of casinos still offered the game by the 2000s.

MGM Grand was the last casino on the Las Vegas Strip with the game and removed it in 2018. Maintenance wasn’t worth the time and money despite the game’s popularity.

After all, one of the reasons the game was so popular is that players could wager just a quarter. Despite a relatively large house edge of around 15%, the revenue wasn’t enough to move the financial needle for a casino corporation on the Las Vegas Strip. The game takes up the space of about 14 slot machines, which generate revenue with minimal maintenance.

The new Sigma Derby will bring mechanical horse racing back to the Vegas Strip for the first time in nearly a decade.

One Major Change…No Quarters

There are a few updates for the new Sigma Derby. One of the charms of the original game, still in operation, is that it takes quarters. Golden Gate has a change machine where players can get quarters for dollar bills. 

While bets can still start at 25 cents, there won’t be a need for quarters. The new Sigma Derby operates on a ticket-in, ticket-out (TITO) system used in electronic table games and most slots.

TITO isn’t just about sparing casinos from dealing with change. The machines are multi-denomination, so casinos can make the minimum wager $1, $2 or $5.

There will also be a display of previous winning horses, similar to the board at a roulette table showing recent numbers.

Casinos can choose a return-to-player (RTP) percentage from 86% to 94%, which puts the Sigma Derby house edge between 6% and 14%.

Refer to Cashback Terms & Conditions for full program terms.