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With "Garfield: The Movie" currently playing across the country, game manufacturer Mikohn Gaming Corporation is planning to parlay the latest interest in the 26-year-old comic strip character into dividends as it rolls out its Garfield slot machine.
The timing of the Garfield slot game has been sharpened with approvals in numerous gaming jurisdictions over the past few weeks and the company believes the convergence of the various developments should boost the title's marketability with casino operators.
The approvals did not come without reservations about the potential draw the comic strip cat might have on minors, particularly in Nevada. The state Gaming Control Board sanctioned the Garfield theme only after the company provided ample evidence that the character appeals primarily to adults, both in content and sentiment.
While Mikohn is definitely not interested in getting interest in its new slot title from children, the company is hoping the Garfield game can help expand its slot and table segment and quicken the company's resurgence from financial and other problems in the previous year.
"We are confident that Garfield will be a big hit for us," says Michael Dreitzer, general counsel for Mikohn. "There is significant adult and nostalgic appeal. It should be appealing and, most of all, entertaining."
In the past two weeks, the Garfield slot game was approved by New Jersey and Michigan gaming regulators, as well as 16 of 18 targeted gaming jurisdictions which use Gaming Laboratories International to approve submitted games. Approvals in the other two Midwest jurisdictions are pending.
When Mikohn...