Poker Offline: Texas Holdem

What is Poker Offline: Texas Holdem?

When walking back to our hotel after finishing CalvinAyre.com EiG coverage in October of 2013, I looked over to my producer (Rob) and camera operator (Mani) and said, “I think my calling is Bitcoin”. 

As a team that year we had already covered several Bitcoin events including Bitcoin London and Le Web, both featuring Bitcoin enthusiasts who were eager to educate the world on this groundbreaking technology. EiG 2013 attracted several professionals in the Bitcoin space as well, at the time with a focus on introducing Bitcoin as a payment system for iGaming operators.

Calvin took notice of Bitcoin in the early days, immediately identifying its vast potential for his “first love”, the iGaming industry. Little did I know just how significant Bitcoin would become for CalvinAyre.com, Calvin Ayre as a person and myself as a professional. Fast forward to February 2021 and its time for CalvinAyre.com to hang up its hat. Bitcoin has actually become my calling. 

What is Poker Offline: Texas Holdem?

“Construction continues every day, and there are approximately 1,000 skilled tradespeople working on the construction of the permanent Bally’s Chicago resort,” Kim said.

The casino remains on track for an early 2027 opening, Kim asserted, but the company changed how it is “sequencing certain elements of the development”. Kim said that Bally’s was actually “over-delivering” on its commitments to the city and reset the construction timeline to better align with its Host Community Agreement. In addition, he noted that the company would soon be arranging tours of the construction site with investors and shareholders.

“Investors should view our actions through a straightforward lens: We are protecting the value of significant investments we’re making in Chicago while faithfully executing our contractual obligations,” Kim concluded. “And let me say this again – we remain fully committed to Chicago.”

What is Poker Offline: Texas Holdem?

While thousands of new casino games reach the market every year – with research suggesting the number of releases is growing by around 10% each quarter – volume does not necessarily equate to variety. Developing something genuinely different means taking a risk, while the industry’s familiar practice of reskinning existing games, or adapting mechanics and concepts that have already proved successful, offers a much safer commercial proposition.

For James Curwen, chief executive at Yggdrasil, the tension between the industry’s need for fresh content and the commercial realities of producing it goes to the heart of the challenge.

“The industry has a content problem,” he says. “There are thousands of games being released and too many of them are variations of something that already exists.