"Wheel of Fortune" Roulette Comes to Massachusetts: IGT and MGM Springfield Launch 20 Games with Jackpots of Up to $1.125 Billion

Massachusetts already has its first progressive jackpot on the network. IGT and the MGM Springfield casino have announced from Las Vegas the launch of the first games of this type in that state. In them, machines connected to each other feed the same jackpot, which grows with each play until someone takes it.

The premiere has its own stage. MGM Springfield, one of the largest casino resorts on the East Coast of the United States, has opened a dedicated "Wheel of Fortune" area with 20 progressive network games from IGT's catalog. Jackpots start at figures ranging from $200,000 to $1.125 billion, the value at which the jackpot returns each time it is awarded.

Highlights include Wheel of Fortune Big Money on the Trio cabinet; Wheel of Fortune Cash Link Reels Double Diamond and Double Gold on the DiamondRS Wheel; Wheel of Fortune Triple Gold Gold Spin on the MegaTower; and Wheel of Fortune Triple Stars Gold Spin Deluxe on the CrystalWheel Stepper.

For Ariam Aponte, vice president of Casino Operations at MGM Springfield, the bet makes the difference: "Our newly opened Wheel of Fortune zone differentiates MGM Springfield" and offers "an attractive combination of experiences" of gaming, he explained, in addition to stressing that the casino is the first in Massachusetts to offer these jackpots.

IGT CEO Hector Fernandez stressed that "launching Massachusetts' first networked progressive games with MGM Springfield offers players a new way to live" the brand's experience. Fernandez linked the premiere to the 30th anniversary of the Wheel of Fortune machines and recalled that IGT has been shaping this category of games for decades, as it has done with other networked progressive jackpot products such as Money Mania.

The brand's numbers explain the interest. The Wheel of Fortune machines came on the market in 1996 and, according to IGT, since then they have distributed more than 3,600 million dollars in jackpots, made millionaires of more than 1,200 players and add up to more than 300 variants. IGT has an exclusive license with Sony Pictures Television to manufacture them until 2034.

To put the spotlight on it: IGT is the Las Vegas-based gaming technology provider that was born from the merger of International Game Technology PLC's Gaming & Digital business with Everi Holdings. MGM Springfield is a resort located in downtown Springfield, with more than 11,600 square meters of gaming space (125,000 square feet), a 240-room boutique hotel, and several restaurants. In 2020, it was the first gaming resort to obtain LEED Platinum certification for new construction.