Brent's current redemption portfolio comprises more than 20 products from six manufacturers, a statistic that product manager John Brennan believes reflects the growing importance of the genre. He explained: "Games such as Hollywood Reels, Crazy Typhoon and Deal or No Deal really illustrate quite how far the redemption sector has progressed in this country. I think there was a view in some quarters of the domestic industry that redemption was the country cousin of coin-op. Thanks in part to the higher status enjoyed by redemption in the United States, a much broader cross-section of UK operators are now receptive to redemption. For example, the coupon version of Deal or No Deal has introduced redemption to new locations and we are currently trialling the compact street version in pubs, which I think says a lot about how far redemption has come."

Alongside Deal or No Deal, Namco Bandai's Crazy Typhoon and the high impact Hollywood Reels, which is out of the J.E.T stable, are the models most in demand. "The ticket version of Crazy Typhoon has been nothing short of phenomenal and Hollywood Reels is the most successful roll down on the market, out earning its main competitor by a margin of 50 per cent," stated Brennan.

Hollywood Reels encapsulates many of the qualities which make redemption so attractive to the family market. The movie-themed, two-player, multi-level coin roll down game includes a series of impressive design features which engage with players of all ages. The movie camera coin-entry points are equipped with optical viewers, enabling children and chair-bound players to see the sloping play surface, while electronic intelligence modifies the reel speed depending on the win rate.

Offering a host of proven performers and with a number of new projects under development, Brent remains fully committed to developing further the redemption genre in this country. "It is an area of the business that we take extremely seriously and one where we see robust levels of growth," argued Brennan. "The higher quality equipment that is now available is opening up new sectors, attracting families and underlining the appeal of the amusement proposition. For the operator, not only is it bringing in new income but the life span enjoyed by the products makes redemption a great investment - the future is very bright."