A famous hotbed of gambling, Asia has been rolling the dice on one craps table or another for the last 4000 years. Even before the Mah Jong, the Chinese couldn't resist a toss at luck. They probably invented paper just so they could keep score. Or a black list of avid gamblers and struggling debtors. To honor one of the oldest frills in the history of mankind, the Asia Gaming Awards 2017 is hosting all the key stakeholders of the gambling world.

Regulators, operators, suppliers, slot machines designers and terrifying debt collectors, legendary cheaters, winners and losers, and all the game changers of the industry have been invitated to this ceremony of high stakes and rough waters.

The Votes Have Been Cast at the Asia Gaming Awards 2017: The Stakes Are High and the Waters Run Rough

The Asia Gaming Awards aims to celebrate 12 categories from the land-based and online casino industry.

The votes have already been cast, the ballots are closed, and while most participants will walk out losers, some eight rising stars are expected to shine brighter than most and change the future of a dying galaxy- the gambling sphere.

However, above and beyond the glamorous red carpet, this year's Asia Gaming Awards face a tough global challenge. With the fast disappearance of the ageing casino generation, the industry's strategists should better step up the game and come up with a solution to fill the gap in customer interest.

As millennials shift their focus on mobile-phone and augmented reality games, the house really needs a trick up its sleeve if it wants to keep its edge.

Even here, to the far Far East of the Last Vegas Strip, news of an increasingly wary casino industry has the tension running to high voltages.

And yet, it hasn't really reached Casino Royale proportions- where “the soul erosion of high gambling” knackers the dasher James Bond into a steady stream of death-dealing.

The Game Awards Nominees to Climb the Podium of the Asian Casino Industry

In 2016, the Asia Game Awards nominees ran in the thousands. There were more than 8,000 votes across the categories, and they span more than 1,000 nominations.

This year, the filtering process underwent a tightening of hinges. And only a selective number of 80 high-rollers will be vying for the coveted awards.

Below we list the top 3 categories that came into being in 2017, thus reflecting the changes undergone by a struggling casino industry.

1. Best Gaming Operator

The most coveted award, the winner needs to stand up as a visionary leader in the areas of corporate governance and financial performance.

The list of nominees includes Bloomberry, MGM China, and NagaCorp.

2. Best Integrated Resort

As casinos are waving the expansionist flag, aiming at a more inclusive menu of treats and delights, the award lists the quality of F&B and the retail offerings as the winning criteria.

Among the game awards nominees, Macao is the one city playing its cards closest to its chest. The “Last Vegas of Asia” has the strongest foothold in the category with the Venetian Macao, the Galaxy Macau, and the Studio City Macau dominating the podium.

3. Best Gaming Area Design

There's no denying the importance of the aesthetic appeal or the necessity of a positive Feng Shui when it comes to Asian casinos. The mood needs to be of a certain quality for a sombre, high-stakes game of Baccarat to genuinely raise the interest of the premium punters.

Some of the nominees include Grand Lisboa, Solaire Resort and Casino, and the Venetian Macao.

These are the Asia Gaming Awards players who understood how the wheel of casino fortune works in 2017. All in all, non-gaming revenue accounts for more than all the slot machines, sporting bets, and Texas Holdem tables put together. It is the experience that enthralls, and less so the win.