Here at Slots Play Casinos, we hear this question or variations of it quite often. Slots Play Casinos covers the online casino market for gamers. We provide information, advice, casino reviews, and advice to online casino gamers.
Actually, there are generally two kinds of people who are interested in signing up to play at an online casino. First are first-time players who truly don’t have any casino experience. The second type is people who have come to check out online casinos after deciding that playing at land-based casinos is no longer the thrill it once was for them.
Here are the main things people look for in an online casino.
- Safety and security.
- Absolute fairness.
- Smooth banking.
- Reasonable times for withdrawals.
- Promotions and excellent deposit bonuses.
- A wide selection of games.
- An excellent mobile gaming platform.
- Fair and fast customer support.
This is a very thorough and interesting list, but it does ignore the known convenience and comfort of an online casino over a land-based casino. The reason is that the comfort and convenience of online casino gaming are so well known that they are assumed by anyone starting out at an online casino.
What are the Parameters of a Safe and Secure Online Casino?
The casino has to be regulated by a recognized regulatory authority. In the past, there were regulatory agencies on offshore islands, in Malta, and on Native American land. There still are these regulatory agencies, but a lot of countries and many states in the United States provide their own regulatory oversight of online casinos.
An online casino is designed to keep gamers’ money on account. In order to guarantee the safety of each gamer’s money, an online casino has to use state-of-the-art SSL encryption software. This software scrambles data so that hackers cannot read it. In addition to the encryption software, an online casino needs a large bank of powerful computers in order to keep track of all outcomes in the games people play and the increases and decreases in gamers’ accounts as they play.
All online casinos use a random number generator (RNG) to determine the outcomes of all games. The RNG has to be inspected every so often in order to be sure that it is still in good working condition.
An online casino also has to be extremely well monetized. A casino that cannot pay out winnings makes all online casinos look like a bad place to play.
Finally, safety and security require that gamers know the by-laws of the online casino they want to play at. The by-laws are in the terms and conditions, or T&C. It is very important that the t and c at any online casino be written in everyday language so that the average gamer can perform his or her due diligence and understand fully what the rules are.
What Makes Online Casino Banking Simple and Easy to Do?
We spoke about the large bank of computers a solid online casino has to have. The computers follow every gamer from sign-up to deposits to bonuses to winning or losing, as the case may be.
Depositing and withdrawing money into and out of your online casino account is what we mean when we say banking at an online casino.
Every gamer has his or her preferred way to bank at a casino. Technology has developed banking advancements in online casinos and in banking in general. At first, when credit cards were still a new way to pay for things, especially online, a lot of gamers used direct bank transfers or money orders.
Credit cards provided a bit more privacy. They were easier to use than money orders, and for a very long time, credit and debit cards were the preferred way to bank at an online casino.
E-wallets came about in the 21st century. They provided and still do, a much greater degree of privacy. E-wallets were the rage until Bitcoin came along. E-wallets are still very popular, but now a lot of gamers use Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies for the fastest, safest, and most private banking.
Gamers also want fast withdrawals with few if any withdrawal restrictions. Here we have to talk about why online casinos make gamers provide another form of identification before the casino will release the money requested.
The simple fact is that gamers, like everyone else, are susceptible to identity theft. Someone could request a withdrawal from your account and basically steal the money. So, online casinos do add a measure of extra proof that you are you when you ask for a withdrawal.
What Do Online Casino Bonus Promotions Do?
They give you the chance to play online casino games with the casino’s own money. There is a major aspect to online casino bonuses that all gamers have to know about, understand, and accept.
In the early days, when online casinos were very new, some players took a deposit bonus and cashed it out immediately. The remedy for that was the wagering requirement that accompanies all bonuses.
The wagering requirement is a factor of the bonus that you have to bet before you can withdraw any winnings. A wagering requirement of 30x is considered fair. It is true that in many cases, there are no winnings after the player has completed the wagering requirements. But gamers have had the opportunity to play online casino games for a long time using the casino’s own money.
Is it True That Online Casinos Offer More Games Than Land-based Casinos?
In some cases, it is true. The very big land-based casinos might have more games. But there is a waiting factor at land-based casinos that doesn’t exist at any online casino. You might want to play a specific slot, but there are only two terminals of that slot offered, so you either wait, which could be a very long time, or you play a different game.
You might want to play craps or roulette, but there is no room at the table. Waiting can be a hassle at a land-based casino, especially in Las Vegas during peak season.
Online casinos can also offer several varieties of blackjack, which many land-based casinos cannot offer because blackjack tables take up a lot of space. Online casinos can offer quirky games such as Banana Jones, which is a spoof of the Indiana Jones movies and follows a pattern similar to the classic kids’ game Chutes and Ladders.
Finally, online casinos cannot run out of space, but land-based casinos run out of space every time they bring in a few new terminals with a new slot. So, online casinos can carry classic games that land-based casinos cannot carry.
Is it True That Online Casinos Have Bigger Return to Player Rates?
Yes, it’s true.
Land-based casinos have much higher operating costs, so they reduce the return-to-player rates where they can.
In slots, the rate at a good online casino will be about 97%, but it will be 90% or lower at a land-based casino.
In blackjack, the return-to-player rate with correct play on every hand should be about 99.5%, but many land-based casinos pay only 6-5 for a blackjack instead of the traditional and fair 3-2.
In video poker, the rate for correct play should also be about 99.5%, but many land-based casinos pay only 8-5 or 7-5 for a full house and a flush instead of the traditional and fair 9-6.
What Else Should a New Online Gamer Look For?
The last two items on our list are a good mobile gaming platform and fair and supportive customer service.
At least 70% of all games played at online casinos are played on mobile devices. Even some land-based casinos now offer mobile gaming in the hotel.
Customer service is the key to excellent customer satisfaction. Online casinos rely on many return visits from gamers, while land-based casinos are less likely to see a returning player. So, online casinos really need excellent customer service.
At Slots Play Casinos, We See Ourselves as Providing a Type of Customer Service for Online Casino Gamers
As we said above, we recommend online casinos, write reviews and guides, and offer advice for happy and fun online casino gaming.
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