Majestic Research has posted its top 20 Strip casinos, in terms of play (or, more properly, "game usage") in the second quarter of 2006. For the second year running, Wynn Las Vegas tops the list, with MGM Grand retaining second place. Steve Wynn benefits from not being in competition with himself but MGM Mirage execs can take comfort in the fact that they have three properties (including Bellagio and Excalibur) among the top five. (Harrah's Las Vegas rounds out the frontrunners.)

However, MGM Mirage seems to be having trouble integrating much of its newly acquired Mandalay Resort Group portfolio. Luxor tumbles from #8 to #13, Mandalay Bay from #14 to #17, and Monte Carlo is off the list altogether. More happily, Circus Circus jumps from thirteenth to ninth on the Majestic list and Treasure Island vaults from #16 to #10. Perhaps Felix Rappaport's magic touch is missed at New York-New York: the Gotham-themed casino fell out of the top 10, down from seventh to twelfth, year over year.

MGM archrival Harrah's Entertainment mostly held steady, but its Caesars Palace makeover appears to be yielding dividends. The toga-clad casino rose from tenth place to seventh in year-over-year comparisons. Another significant mover was the company's Paris Las Vegas, up to #15 from #19.

Vanished from the top 20 is Imperial Palace, which stops taking reservations on July 4, 2007 and has already been marked for death by Harrah's CEO Gary Loveman. One might suspect that the poor Q206 performance is a reflection of Harrah's siphoning off players and winding down operations, but Imperial Palace officialdom argues otherwise: Capital investment in the property is continuing, they say, including the installation of new, progressive penny slots. Liz Benston supplies further corroboration (second item in story). Loveman says the future of nearby Bally's Las Vegas is on the bubble and the fact that it's languishing at #20 is unlikely to help the blue-hued casino's case.

But if anybody's got a right to pop the champagne corks, it's Carl Icahn's crew up at the Stratosphere, who didn't make the top 20 in Q205 but who weigh in at #16 a year later. Coupled with the strong numbers for Circus Circus and Excalibur, this suggests that the bargain niche is alive and well on the Strip. Boyd Gaming's Stardust, in its death throes, still managed to crack the list, at #18, but the ever-in-progress Aladdin took it on the chin, declining from #15 to #19. Hmmmm … maybe they should investigate that Indian-burial-ground legend.