Play Card Systems – A Reflection

In 2017 I did a lot of research into debit card systems for my games. Many of the criteria I wanted was not really an option offered from most of the manufacturers. I really wanted to own the system. I did not want to have to pay residuals to the company for the life of the system. I wanted an extensive reporting system that could be dynamic to my needs. I also wanted the system to be stable and consistent for when and if I wanted to put it in other locations.

I had demos with Embed, Intercard and Sacoa. I was duly impressed with the options and functionality of all three and the people that represented the companies. I am sure all of these sales people tired of my many months of emails and phone calls with tons of questions. I wanted to be sure. We all do when we make such a decision. I loved many aspects of all three systems. I really wanted to frankenstein some of their coolest features! This is what makes for tough decisions.

I loved the look of Embeds kiosks. Intercard had those awesome low profile readers at the time. Sacoa had some unique features.

Ultimately I picked Sacoa because I do not have to pay them exorbitant fees for using their system. I own it. They give me free service and updates for buying cards from them and they give me a great rate on the cards. Of the three systems I know I made the right choice. Embed and Intercard have been having service issues and long delays. And think about this. You have to PAY for their services. Sacoa has no delays and I do not pay them a residual. Sacoa is a good system. It works well with very little problems. You do have to be a bit more technical to get the most of it. There is also a huge communication issue with Sacoa. Lots of misunderstandings and assumptions. They have little documentation of the powerful features the system has and you may never know about them. They are fairly inconsistent and have issues doing updates when they have done hundreds already. Still out of the three they are the best system.

I am sure a lot of people will disagree with me on this and that is fine. Some may have very legitimate reasons for coming to another conclusion but most just do not want to face their buyers remorse.

Now if I were to do it again I would have a serious look at Semnox. I do recommend them and love their features. They also have an option to own the system. That was very important. The system is always being developed with new rich features. So if you ask me what systems to look at I am always going to say Sacoa and Semnox with a strong leaning for Semnox due to their very impressive feature set and service.

If you have an opinion on this opinion please feel free to email me: [email protected] as I would love to hear your perspective.