Microsoft Casino

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Microsoft Casino

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Platform: IBM PC Compatible
Release Date: November 01, 2000
Genre: Traditional
Style: Gambling
Similar Games: Caesars Palace (IBM PC Compatible), Hoyle Casino (IBM PC Compatible), Caesars Palace 2000: Millennium Gold Edition (IBM PC Compatible)

Game Description

Microsoft Casino features replications of three authentic Las Vegas casinos: the Bellagio, Treasure Island, and the Mirage. The game features ten gambling games including Baccarat, video poker, blackjack, Caribbean Stud Poker, craps, video Keno, Pai Gow Poker, roulette, slots, and the Big 6 Wheel.

The individual hotels feature their own in-house betting levels. For instance, the one-armed bandits at Treasure Island are nickel slots, while the Bellagio caters to five-dollar bets. A Vegas-style lounge soundtrack adds to the ambience as you play against animated opponents for table game's stakes or in tournament play. Each computer-controlled player comes with unique dialogue, complete with accents and individual exclamations.

Additional gameplay is offered through the Casino Challenge, hosted by Danny Gans, with stakes getting higher and competition tougher as you work your way through the casinos. Free play, in-game presentations of famous shows and landmarks, and complimentary free drinks, hotel suites and meals add to the "feel" of this Las Vegas simulation.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Roots & Influences

Microsoft Casino features rendered depictions of actual Las Vegas resorts, including The Mirage, Treasure Island at the Mirage and Bellagio Resorts.

~ Matthew House, All Game Guide

Review: Overall

Out of the many casino games available for the PC, Microsoft Casino is one of a few that actually does a good job of capturing the essence of Las Vegas casinos. This is because each casino has an introductory screen featuring actual pictures of the location. Inside, each casino looks similar, if not identical, and features its own variety of games. High rollers will make their way to the Bellagio, while those who enjoy nickel slots will head for Treasure Island.

At the beginning of the game, you choose a name, an animated persona, and the amount of your bankroll, ranging from a thousand to a million dollars. After the preliminaries, you can select which of the three casinos you want to visit for your gambling adventure. Assuming one already knows how to play the various games of chance, gameplay from this point is straightforward. For those not familiar with gambling rules, the documentation and in-game guides provide details about the games, how to bet, and a bit of strategy.

A rather interesting aspect that developer Glass Eye Entertainment adds to the casino experience is the complimentary amenities. If you play or win enough at any given table, occasionally a screen will pop up stating you've earned a complimentary hotel room, meal, drinks, and so forth. There's also a player's club card on your table of chips that you can click to see how many and what comps you've earned at each particular casino. By adding this element, the overall emulation of the Las Vegas experience is nicely enhanced.

With all of these aspects, the game comes as close to Vegas-style gambling as any computer game can, short of actual online gambling. Nonetheless, it would be nice to see the slots section developed a bit further so players are offered multiple pay lines. Aside from that, the slot machines in the game look and sound authentic and respond realistically.

The graphics, while decent, aren't particularly glamorous, but they perhaps don't need to be to capture the intended audience. Nonetheless, the graphics are still superior to a number of casino gambling games on the market, based primarily on the quality of the animated players and individual games. The interface is smooth and bug-free, providing seamless gameplay along with relatively easy-to-understand navigation.

While it's presumably easy to throw together a virtual gambling experience with a generic random number generator behind the graphical interface, Glass Eye Entertainment has taken extra steps to try and make the experience feel realistic. To that end, Microsoft Casino is as close as you can get without booking a flight and losing your life savings in "Lost Wages," Nevada.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Review: Enjoyment

This is as close as the casual player can get to being a high roller in Las Vegas without an oil baron's salary. All around, the games are fun to play, and the gambling experience is well within reach for those without a desire to take a second mortgage on their home.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Review: Graphics

Fairly run of the mill, but the animated characters and individual games are done well enough to make the game a cut above average.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Review: Sound

The characters' voices sound clear, though the dialogue could be a bit more developed. In any event, though, the game replicates the feel of sitting at a table and listening to the other players trying to make small talk or complaining about losing.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Review: Replay Value

If you're into gambling, {*Microsoft Casino} will keep you coming back time and again, as the games provide enough variation to eliminate that programmed "feel."

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Review: Documentation

The documentation adequately introduces the game and gives a brief rundown and "how-to" for each table or slot machine at the casino. Gameplay is simple enough to pick up quickly and the documentation makes the game accessible right out of the box.

~ James Carey, All Game Guide

Production Credits

GLASS EYE ENTERTAINMENT Executive Management: Ronnie Gauny, Monty Kerr; Executive Producer: Mike McShaffry; Lead Programmer: Earl Malmrose; Programmers: Kain In Shin, Erik Touve; Director of Technology: Tobin Rysenga; Core Technology: Ronnie Gauny; Additional Programming: Chad Hansing, Ramon "Grey" Romero, Tobin Rysenga, Matt Oswald; Art Director: Larry Vela; Lead Artist: Doug Prince; Artists: Shawnna Bass, Colin Blankenship, Sterling Brucks, Case Melton, Orlando Ramirez, Chris Wassum; Opening Cinematic: Doug Prince; Post Production: Flow Studios, Paul Jones, Bruce Schuurman; Producer: Bill Money; Associate Producer: Kenny "Hottman" Hott, Jon Wolf; Lead Design: Bill Money; Design: Glass Eye Entertainment; Audio Music, Speech and Sound: Paul Baker (Baker Sound and Music); Special Thanks to: Jack, Davood, Kevin Gilner, Chris Hightree, John Mayo, Justin Adams, Tom Bollich, all of our friends and families, Pat Taber, Jared Meaux, Carol Peralta, Ken Demarest, Iron Cactus (6th and Trinity); THE PAUL BAKER STUDIO ORCHESTRA Saxes: Rick Lawn, Tony Campise, Richard Fenno; Trumpets: Eric Johnson, Pat Murray; Trombones: Mike Mordecai, Randy Zimmerman, Kerry Williams; Keyboards: Jeff Hellmer, Hank Hehmsoth; Bass: John Blondell; Drums: Mike Koenning; Percussion: Arturo Garza, Steve Samuel; Guitar: Mitch Watkins; Violins: Jennifer Bourianoff, Paul Robertson, Bruce Williams, Jamie Desautels, Helen Bravenec, Wallace DePue; Cellos: Anthony Stogner, Margaret Coltman-Smith; Voice Production: J.R. Taylor; Voice Talent: Rob Bassetti, Jennifer Cargill, Kain In Shin, Robert Kraft, Hank Olguin, Jesse Pangelinen, Irene Pena, Lisa Robert, Meta Rosen, Roderick Sanford, Janis Stinson, Susan Dickson, Martha Merriell, Beryl Kniftin; Voice Studios: Powell Studio Productions; Music Studio: The Fire Station Studios; Music Production: Bobby Arnold, Paul Baker; Director of Operations: Patrick Bradshaw; Operations Assistant: Majick Robinson; MIS Director: Michael O'Reilly; MIS: Dave Webb, Kenny Hott; Human Resources Manager: Jessilyn Carter; Receptionist: Elise Goldfarb; MICROSOFT Program Manager: Charlie Peterson; Test Lead: Bill Metters; Test Engineers: Jason Baker, Domenic Koeplin, Paul Skavland, Jeff Stephens; Additional Testing: Adam Dare, Alejandro Gutierrez, Collin Moore, Pedro Perez, Ron Propst, Mark Shoemaker; Test Manager: Thomas Zuccotti; Config Testing: Jason Mangold, Kevin "Kenny" Connolly; Product Unit Manager: Shane Kim; Lead Program Manager: Bonnie Ross; Art Director: J. D. Alley; Artist: Bruce Sharp; Content Coordination: LouAn M. Williams; Product Planners: Phil Platt, Christine MacMaster; Lead Product Planners: Shawn Firminger, Keith Wintraub; Product Managers: Barbara Carter, Scott Lee; Marketing Manager: Justin Kirby; Setup: Jason Brown, Humberto Castaneda; User Education: Jeremy Los, Fred Northup, Jr., Alan Shen; Print Production: Jeannie Davison, Andrea Heuston, JoAnne Williams; Sound Designer: David Henry; Product Support: Steve Kastner; Legal: Jama Cantrell, Jeff Koontz; Localization Project Manager: Jennifer Bixler; Localization Engineer: Cosmo Greco; Localization QA Manager: Suzanne Boylan; Usability Lead: Kevin Keeker; Usability Specialist: Libby Hanna; Playtest Lead: Bill Fulton; Playtest Specialist: Michael Medlock; MIRAGE RESORTS President and CEO: Robert H. Baldwin; Vice President of Advertising: Susan Fleitz; Assistant General Counsel: Peter Walsh; Executive Secretary of Advertising: Cindy Moore; Advertising Coordinator: Vanessa Viner; Director of Multimedia: Randy Dearborn; MGM MIRAGE Vice President of Public Affairs: Alan Feldman; Assistant Vice President of Public Relations: Jenn Michaels; Public Relations Manager: Jackie Dennis; BELLAGIO Security Special Events Supervisor: Lauree Fujiuchi; Food and Beverage Training Manager: Jennifer Tipps; THE MIRAGE Table Games Trainer: Kellie Gorman; Baccarat Floor Supervisor: Cynthia Kiser; Casino Box Person: Jean Reed; Casino Assistant Shift Manager: Jeffery Norskog; Baccarat Pit Manager: John Ritsko; Casino Pit Manager: Michael Donoho, Michael Shema; Casino Floor Supervisor: Michael Ploof; Floor Supervisors: David Guyett, Michael Hanlon, Elizabeth Mannion, Janice Menley, Gary West; Slot Training Manager: Peggy Zimmer; Reg 64 Specialist: Dan Cravens; Dealers: Kenneth Babb, Richard Barrier, Byron Burns, Rachel Dentico, Douglas Glasgow, Sander Haugh, Katiz Hong, Freida Laub, Merodath Lowe, Ronald Mancini, George Sanderford, James Tatum; Security: Hector Alagar, Duane Boss, Jeannette Cavanaugh, Charles Hodgkiss, Gabriel Montez, Avit Roth, Aldwin Turnage; Room Service Food Provider: Jerry Poliskey; TREASURE ISLAND Vice President and General Counsel: Kathleen Delaney; Casino Administrator: Alan Chi; Casino Assistant Shift Manager: Daryl Britt; Table Games Pit Manager: James McCluney; Banquet Service Supervisor: Donna Parker; Entertainment Manager: Howard Croop; Buccaneer Bay Cast Principal: Bob Robotham; Slot Analyst: Ian Levitz; Slot Tech: Sean Knapik; Dealers: Jeff Best, Elle Filatova, Boris Mult, Gabriedl Petrescu; Director of Security: Tim Jeffery; Security Supervisor: Rhonda Hopper; Security Shift Manager: Gregory Wynn; Security Officers: Corey James, Tom Stafford; D.G. Entertainment, Inc.: Chip Lightman; Feld Entertainment, Inc.: Bernie Yuman, Frank Lieberman; Special Thanks to: Danny Gans, Sigfried and Roy, Kenn Wynn; ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS Las Vegas Public Relations Coordinator: Tanya Flemister; Xtremities Design: Randy Lim; Linna Photography: Jim Linna; Las Vegas Photo Assistant: Scott More; The Gambler's Book Shop: Howard Schwartz; Las Vegas Assistance: Jenan Bader, Marcello DiVincenzo, David Frankenhouser, Chris Gibson, Ed Kelter, Scott Kreeger, James Nunez, Bill Petrusky; PHOTOGRAPHY Corbis: Bill Ross, Larry Neubauer, Robert Landau, Craig Aurness, Charles O'Rear, Joseph Sohm; The Image Bank: Marc Romanelli; Index Stock Photography: Stewart Cohen, Daniel Bailey, Jeff Greenberg, Ernest Manewal, Carol Werner

~ Matthew House, All Game Guide