KK Aristocrat Technologies, the?main Japanese unit for Aristocrat Leisure Ltd of Australia, is closing. Aristocrat Leisure made the announcement on Tuesday April 21, 2015 stating that they would stop the pachislot game development at KK Aristocrat Technologies. The announcement and decision comes after a strategic review of the plant in light of new competition from IGT with GTECH’s takeover of the iconic American brand.
Aristocrat Leisure is not leaving Japan completely. Their subsidiary KK Spiky will continue to provide field support and service for game releases like Black Lagoon 2.
The Pachislot machine is a hybrid technology that melds traditional Japanese pachinko with modern slots machines. Pachislot machines were sold mostly in the Japanese market. Leisure’s CFO Toni Korsanos stated Pachislots are not as relevant to increasing the company’s “revenue footprint.”
Instead Aristocrat Leisure will continue to look for investments that in Class II, Class III and digital industries as it relates to casinos and gambling. The reference is to lottery and bingo games, with a secondary outlook towards slot machines.