Online Casino Spotlight

There are many features that add to the excitement of playing slots online.  One of them is the free spins bonus round.  As the name suggests, when triggered, then bonus round offers the player a number of free spins and payouts, which are provided according to the combinations on the slot reels.  The actual payouts are based on the wager placed on the spin that triggered the bonus round.  These bonus rounds are usually triggered when three or more scatters appear on the reels.  Although very rare, they can also be triggered randomly.  The free spins round can greatly increase your chip balance, giving you the opportunity to play longer and thus, increase your chances of winning big.

Popular Games with Free Spins Rounds

In online slots games, free spins rounds are defined by two parameters: the number of free spins and the multiplier.  With basic games, the house rules dictate that a specific number of spins will be given at a certain multiplier.  In more advanced games, the number of free spins and the multiplier are determined by playing a different game on a separate screen.  One example is the popular online slots game called Fat Lady Sings.  In this game, the first Fat Lady sings and the number of free spins is determined by the number of glasses she breaks.  Next, a different Fat Lady sings and determines the multiplier by the number of glasses she breaks.

The bonus game that collectively determines the number of free spins and the multiplier can also increase the element of chance in online slots.  A perfect example is Area 21, an online slots game recently launched by Cryptologic.  Microgaming’s Pedal Power is an example of slots games that allow you to select the combination you want from a list.  In Pedal Power, you have the option to choose from 25 free spins with a 2X multiplier, 10 free spins with 5x multiplier, or 5 free spins with a 10x multiplier.   Because you have to choose between a greater number of free spins and higher multipliers, making a decision is not always as easy as it sounds.

The free spins in slots games can be retriggered when playing at most online casinos.  This simply means that if the triggering combination appears on the reel during your free spin, you are rewarded with extra free spins.  However, some online slots enhance game play in more innovative ways.  A classic example is Sneak A Peek Doctor Doctor, a game in which a yellow capsule may appear on the fourth reel during your free spin.  When the capsule bursts, it provides you with additional free spins.  Likewise, the blue capsule may appear randomly on the fifth reel, which enhances the multiplier for the remaining rounds of the game.

Conclusion

Free spins rounds typically differ greatly from regular bonus rounds.  The background music often becomes more noticeable while colors of the reels or the background itself may alter to highlight the change in the game.  With online slots growing more popular by the day, new and innovative free spins features are sure to come in the near future.

Veteran online casino InterCasino has launched an impressive lineup of new games to keep players busy over the holiday season.  These games are based on two classic MGM movies and one of the most beloved comic book heroes of all time.

Medieval warriors are sure to love Brave Heart, a slot game centered around the sword slashing movie starring Mel Gibson.  This game even incorporates the memorable battle for Scotland’s freedom into the format.  Led by Gibson’s character William Wallace, the better the Scotts do in battle, the more points the player gains.  Brave Heart also offers a nice selection of progressive jackpots that are strategically named after different levels of movie success.  Ranging from Smash and Epic to Acclaimed and Blockbuster, each jackpot is individual but can be targeted by the player within a single game.

Forest Gump is another new slots game you can find in the Intercasino lobby.  This one is based on the historical film starring Tom Hanks and comes with two full bonus games.  Forrest Gump serves up many famous quotes from the hit film and caters to interactive fans with “Run Forrest Run” feature that provides players with control over Gump’s incomparable dash.

Fans of DC comic books will have a filled day with InterCasino’s new super hero-themed slots game – Superman.  This is an epic game based on the alter ego of Clark Kent.  It features an amazing 50 paylines and calls for players to court the lovely Lois Lane while thwarting the evil attempts of the sinister Lex Luthor.  This game is action packed because all this goes on during your pursuit for a wealth of free spins and prosperous jackpots.

In addition to the movie and comic book-themed virtual slot machines, InterCasino also has a new game called Perfect Pairs Blackjack.  This game is largely based on the classic hole-card variant known as Atlantic City Blackjack.  While very similar to traditional Atlantic City, the differences add a uniquely fresh touch to the game.  The most notable difference is the inclusion of an optional side wager that offers bonus payouts based on the first two cards the player receives. Another catch is that these bonuses only apply to pairs.  For example, mixed pairs payout 5 to 1, colored pairs payout 15 to 1, and Perfect Pairs pay out 25 to 1.  Perfect Pairs offers the highest quality graphics you will find in an online casino game, boasting brilliant animation and 3D graphics that give it a realistic look and feel.  It also includes dealer voice-overs that liven the flow of the game and keep the action moving.

Powered by CryptoLogic, InterCasino is one of the oldest casinos in the online gambling industry, first emerging on the scene in 1996.  In fact, it is the very first casino to utilize CrytopLogic software.  InterCasino is well known for welcoming customers with generous deposit bonuses and more exciting games than they know what to do with.  Unfortunately, due to the controversy surrounding online gambling in the United States, this casino does not accept U.S. players.

Recently, online casino software developer CryptoLogic introduced their Batman and Wonder Woman themed games into the online casino market.

“With the Batman and Wonder Woman on our side, we’re confident CryptoLogic will again demonstrate the connection between big brands and revenue growth,” said Brian Hadfield, CryptoLogic’s President and CEO. “CryptoLogic’s greatest strength is partnering with the brands that attract players to the biggest gaming sites in the world – providing increased revenue for our licensees and value for our shareholders.”

CryptoLogic developed the games after signing an exclusive multi-year licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Digital Distribution and DC Comics.

Both of the new releases are slot games. The Batman game is a 50-line game. In the game, Batman takes on the Joker. Players take on inmates at Arkham Asylum to stop the Joker in game that includes stacked wilds. The Wonder Woman game is also a 50-line game. The game features a bonus wager with Wonder Woman fighting an island of zombies.

The company has also introduced the Monkey to Mars and Triple Action Hold’em games into the market. The Monkey to Mars game is a 25-line slot game while Triple Action Hold’em is a new poker entry from CryptoLogic. This poker game uses only the top 28 cards in the deck. The player is given three betting options in the game. Their is a main ante bet plus a couple of side betting options. In addition, the company released updated versions of their Let It Ride and Three Card Poker games.

Other companies launch new games

On November 5th, online software game provider Microgaming will launch three new slot games into the online market. Each game features a 5 reel video bonus slot. The Dance of the Masai is a 25-line game with a 10 free spin bonus feature. The other new games are Alaskan Fishing and Kings of Cash.

Vegas Technology also has added some new slot games. Love Bugs and Bangkok Knights were recently launched into the online gambling market by the company. Love Bugs features a five-reel video bonus game with a romantic theme while Bangkok Knights is also is a five-reel game with themes tied to the Thailand city.

Realtime Gaming has introduced three new games, including a unique poker game. The company’s Texas Hold ‘em Bonus Poker brings casino poker together with the Texas Hold’em version of the game. Competitors will be able to place bets on the flop, the river, and the turn with the same structure and theme as regular Texas Hold ‘em. Also, the bonus feature allows for even more winnings in each hand.

Realtime has a couple of slot games as well. The Shopping Spree II is a progressive slot game. This game is a five reel, nine pay-line game. There is a minimum progressive jackpot of $100,000. The other new slot game is called Triple Twister. This video slot game is a five reel, fifty pay-line game. The game features two progressive jackpots.

Cryptologic has been one of the casino software development leaders since being founded in 1995. The Ireland base corporation offers a variety of games and business services for the online casino industry. Cryptologic is a publicly traded organization that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (CRY, CXY), the NASDAQ Global Select Market (CRYP) and the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (CRP).

Games

Cryptologic offers over 280 games as part of their software portfolio. The company offers a variety of games in several categories. Cryptologic has games in branded slots, card games, casual games, classic slots, jackpot games, multi-player games, table games, video poker and video slots. The company introduces over 20 new games every year.

Cryptologic is engaged in exclusive partnerships involving some significant brand names. The company offers King Kong, Spider-Man, Call of Duty and Jenga themed games. There are several Cryptologic progressive jackpot games that have been played in many online casinos. The Marvel, Rapid Fire, Movie Mayhem and Millionaires Club progressive jackpot games have paid out some significant jackpots.

Business services

The company offers a variety of business services to support their software development. Cryptologic has account and fund management services while also providing support for players and operators. Their unique reporting and analytic toolkit is a valuable resource for online casinos. The technology enables casino operators to identify their top players, incorporate appropriate marketing strategies based on the type/volume of games played at the casino, gain insight into under performing areas of the business and develop successful marketing strategies to bring in new customers.

A new deal with Rank Interactive

This week, Cryptologic engineered a major deal with Rank Interactive. As part of the agreement, Cryptologic will provide at least ten of their branded games for inclusion on Rank’s websites. Two games are already live with more scheduled to go live throughout the end of this year and further roll-outs are set for the first half of 2010.  Rank is a division of Rank Group, a leading European gaming business. With the deal, Cryptologic now has a total of 28 licensees.

Justin Thouin, Vice-President of Cryptologic, said: “Demand for our games remains strong as illustrated by this agreement with Rank Interactive, a well respected UK brand. With each new licensee, we open up a new recurring revenue stream that will improve our profitability and long term growth prospects.”

Rank also expressed their enthusiasm for the new arrangement. “At Rank Interactive we have been looking to build on our success and expand our increasingly popular games offering. By striking this deal with Cryptologic our customers are gaining access to the very best and most innovative betting games on the market, enhancing our relationship and revenue prospects going forward,” said Rank Interactive Gaming Director Angus Nisbet.

Rank was established and is one of the UK’s top 350 companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. The company has an active membership of 300,000 with annual sales of over 50 million pounds. While their primary market is Great Britain, it also provides betting and gaming websites in Spanish, German, Danish and Swedish.

Real Time Gaming, a leading provider of online casino gaming software, recently introduced a new video slot to its fast growing portfolio of casino games.  Known as the Mayan Queen, this bonus slot is the newest progressive jackpot game to hit the virtual casino market.  Though only available for a short time, this one already looks as if it could be a very profitable game.

When it comes to progressive games with twenty or more reels, hitting the max bet on the reels needed to qualify for the full jackpot can be a stern challenge.  The same holds true for the Mayan Queen video slots game.  RTG already has a vast selection of online slots that payout large winnings quite frequently.  Although your bankroll can diminish rather quickly attempting to win the progressive jackpot, it is essentially the same scenario when playing slots at online casinos powered by Cryptologic, Micrograming and Playtech, each of which no longer accept players from the United States.  And with Real Time Gaming possessing a huge network of more than one hundred casinos that are a big hit among American players, it also has a number of jackpots that consistently exceed and payout more than $1 million.

This past weekend, RTG casinos aided in building up the progressive video slot for Aztec Millions and helped produce the latest millionaire player at online casino gambling.  The jackpot, which required an additional $1 wager to participate, stopped at $1.26 million for a single player who is likely in the process of cashing a huge check as we speak.  Since the jackpot was spread out across such a wide network, it is still undetermined which casino this very lucky player games at.  We are banking that is one of the many RTG casinos deemed as the best of the best by the online gambling industry.

At the time of this writing, there are still two RTG progressive jackpots up for grabs worth more than $1 million.  Its Jackpot Pinatas has climbed to $1.4 million while both Mid-Life Crises and Shopping Spree combine for more than $1 million collectively.  As for Mayan Queen, RTG’s new video slots game maxes out at $150,000 in addition to the random progressive pot players can go after.   The game’s presentation is that of a jungle theme that portrays the Mayan culture and society.  The Emerald, which represents the scatter symbol, triggers a feature that awards a player with six free spins.  Also a multiplier, this symbol can award the player up to 500 times their original bet.  Players can also increase their winnings through a free spin bonus mode when the wild symbol, the Mayan Queen, is expanded over each payline of the third reel.

Mayan Queen was officially launched on September 16 and is currently available for play at all RTG online casino licensees.  The game is available in a Flash or downloadable version so give it spin and perhaps you could be the next lucky millionaire.

There are many advantages to playing blackjack online opposed to in a land-based casino and one of the most unique of them all is the luxury to play for progressive jackpots.  This is a significant benefit when considering that even the most skilled player may secure steady winnings over time, but rarely claim considerable single payouts when playing traditional games.  Over the past few months, some of the most well known online casino software providers have added progressive games to their portfolios and here are few that may pique your interests.

Cryptologic

There are many reasons to play progressive blackjack at a casino powered by Cryptologic.  For one, many players find that the pool is easier to win since it can be hit when you have four aces of the same color, meaning they do not have to be of the same suit.  Although there is no second jackpot to compete for, there are fixed payouts you can win through a number of combinations of both suited and unsuited aces.  If you want to contribute to the progressive jackpot, you can do so with a voluntary $1 wager.

Microgaming

Microgaming goes above and beyond to standout from the competition and this is reflected in its progressive blackjack game.  With this game, winning is not based on a combination aces but sevens, which makes the name Triple Sevens a fitting title.  If you assemble 21 from three seven of diamonds, then you hit the progressive jackpot.  Similar to the other games, this one also has fixed payouts for many different combinations of seven.  Microgaming’s Triple Seven blackjack game produces winners more frequently but the average payouts are lower than the games by other vendors.

Playtech

Leading casino software provider also offers a progressive blackjack game that gives you the opportunity to win big.  In this game, four aces of the same suit gets you the entire pool.  Unlike the offerings from other vendors, there is no combination that qualifies you for a smaller amount of the pot.  There are however, fixed payouts for specific combinations such as three aces of the same suit and four aces from different suits.  A major plus of progressive blackjack with Playtech casinos is that even a single ace offers a $5 payout.

Vegas Technology

In Progressive Blackjack by Vegas Technology, the jackpot is claimed when you are dealt out four aces of the same suit.  This powerful combination gets you 100% of the money in the jackpot pool.  However, if you are dealt four aces of different suits, then you receive 10% of the overall pot.  Vegas Technology’s progressive blackjack also has some fixed payouts that make the game more intriguing.  Keep in mind that you must place an additional bet of $1 in order to qualify for the pool in any of these progressive blackjack games.

Conclusion

Progressive blackjack carries the same level of high risk as any other progressive casino game.  What we mean by this is that your chance of hitting the jackpot are very low, especially if you are someone who prefers to play it safe all the time.  On the other hand, gambling in itself is all about luck so on any given day, you could hit big and make online casino history.

Online casinos emerged right alongside the mainstream introduction of the internet.  Software developers such as Boss Media AB, Cryptologic and Microgamming are credited with pioneering the development of internet casinos and online gambling in general.  Microgaming is known as the first to introduce software that allowed players to play free casino games while Cryptologic is famed for creating the first casino software platform able to facilitate financial transactions.  Boss Media got its start by powering Golden Club Casino and many casinos in the Europe, a jurisdiction where online gambling is arguably the most lenient.

In the Beginning

In the mid to late 1990s, online casinos evolved in terms of features and overall quality.  One of the most notable features introduced during this time was the progressive jackpot.  Still popular today, this feature allowed players across a network of online casinos playing the same game to contribute to a growing jackpot that grew large very quickly.  Another feature added in the late 1990s was a built-in function that gave players the ability to view details on their gaming and financial transaction history.

Evolution

Once the new millennium rolled around, online gambling had grown to become a phenomenon.  A large majority of the online casino software vendors improved their platforms significantly and new players were signing up at an amazing rate.   The 2000s saw the launch of many new features, including Flash implementation, which enabled casinos to be compatible with operating systems other than Microsoft Windows.  This revolution also provided players with a way to play casino games directly through their browsers without needing to download them.  With the industry growing fast, multilingual and multi-currency casinos were introduced to service new players emerging in the continents of Asia and Europe.  Around this time, the self regulation framework came into play and casino operators began to have their software platforms tested and audited by independent organizations such as TST (Technical Systems Testing) and eCOCRA.

The UIEGA Shakes up the Market

The popularity of online gambling continued to explode through the middle of the decade and it appeared as if that growth would proceed without interruption.  However, in 2006, the United States Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, a legislation initially put in place to prevent terrorist organizations from laundering money through internet casinos.  Under this act, it was now illegal for financial institutions to process and transfer funds for players involved in online gambling.  With leading online casinos such as PartyGaming already facing legal ramifications over the Wire Act, Cryptologic, Playtech and many other prominent software providers fled the market by closing their doors to American players.  Microgaming is another well known vendor to recently flee the U.S. market.

Online gambling has come a long way but its progress has not been without controversy. And while several software providers have abandoned U.S. players, vendors like Real time Gaming, Wizard Gaming and Vegas Technology have remained and actually strengthened their brands in the United States following the departure of Microgaming.  Will others follow suit?  Only time will tell.

Online casino games have certainly come a long way over the years, especially from a quality aspect.  Technological advancements in graphics and animation have introduced a much more vibrant atmosphere to the gaming experience.  However, high-quality game play requires the aid of various components, some of which must be installed on your computer in order to get the full effect.  There are many such elements and one of the most important of all is the Adobe Flash Player plugin.  Without this addition, your online gaming experience will be quite dull and may not even happen at all.

How Flash Helps

The Adobe Flash Player offers a number of features that add to the quality and overall efficiency of online casino games.  This utility greatly simplifies the manipulation of 3D graphics and is able to create various textured meshes in the 3D environment.  It also has the ability to manipulate textual data and create appealing topography by automatically restructuring and restyling text.  One of the greatest benefits of this multimedia player is that it reproduces color with superior precision, making it appear as if the images were entirely crafted by the program developer.  Not only does it assist with graphic acceleration, but also supports a variety of audio functions such as sequencing and mixing, thus allowing for the implementation of music in real-time.

Perhaps the best feature the Adobe Flash Player has to offer the online gaming experience is the processing power it lends to a computer to accelerate bitmap manipulation.  This speeds up the calculation of bitmaps, blend modes and video overlays to better support animation, audio and high quality video streams.  The player is also an integral part of instant online gaming software as facilitates the serving of SWF files to the web browser.

Identifying Flash Games

Most of today’s online casino software vendors insert functionality into their platforms that require the use of Adobe Flash to work properly.  Cryptologic, Microgaming and Vegas Technology are just some of the leading providers that require you to install the Flash player on your computer system.  Adobe’s Flash technology helps to power many of the popular online casino games including slots, poker, roulette and several others that utilize animation, audio and video elements.  Without this is application, there is a great chance that you will not be able to play any of your favorite games online due to the inability to provide functionality to the browser.

Don’t Have Flash? Don’t Worry

The Adobe Flash Player is a very useful tool that serves purpose in many other areas outside of online gaming.  For example, you can use it to play non-gambling games, watch video clips or even full length Flash movies.  If you do not have Adobe Flash Player installed on your computer, don’t worry.  Getting a hold of a copy is easy.  You can download this media player for free and have it up and running on your system in no time.  From there, you can then take part in a truly enriched online casino gaming experience.

Online casino sites take many precautions to ensure the security of their player’s financial transactions.  They do so by employing the latest security mechanisms such as SSL protocol and firewall applications.  While these measures are taken to protect the parties involved, all it takes is one act of carelessness by a player to override the entire security process.

Convenience or Security Risk?

As someone who participates in online gaming, it is up to you to be responsible and do what it takes to secure your funds.  When it comes to protecting your assets, the first place you need to start is a password.  Many online casinos provide facilities that allow you to store your password within the gaming software application.  This is convenient for two reasons.  First, you don’t need to enter your password every time you desire to log into the casino.  Second, you never have to worry about forgetting the password because it is automatically stored on your behalf.  While there are obvious advantages here, they fail in comparison to the gamble you are taking by leaving your password sitting in a piece of software.

If your password is stored in the gaming software, then anyone who uses your computer can go participate in the online casino at which you have been wagering, all without needing to enter credentials.  This also means that they have access to your account, your funds and can place wagers at your expense.  The next time you log on, you could find that your account is short of funds or in a worse case scenario, totally depleted.  There is also the chance of the unauthorized user changing the login credentials and preventing you from accessing your own account.  Now is that convenience really worth all these disasters?  Probably not.

The issue of passwords is handled differently among different software providers.  Some require that you enter your password each time you log in to play by default.  Examples of such companies are Cryptologic and Real Time Gaming.  Providers such as Microgramming, Wizard Gaming and Vegas Technology offer systems that allow you to choose whether or not you want to save your password within the gaming software.  You can’t really blame them as most players want to have as much control as possible.  However, these players should be very cautious as clicking that little checkbox could lead to big trouble.

What Type of Player are You?

There are essentially two kinds of players that share a desire to store their passwords in online gaming software.  One is the lazy type who just can’t muster up the strength to type a horrid 6 to 10 characters over the keyboard.  The other is the forgetful player who just couldn’t remember a password to save their life.  In actuality, there is no excuse for either player.  Look for tips online and you will find that there are a number of ways to create passwords that are both secure and easy to remember.  After all, if you can keep track of your winnings, you should be able to keep up with something as important as your password.

One of the biggest concerns for internet gamblers is the safety and security of online casinos.  These concerns are warranted when considering that sensitive information such as credit card and bank account numbers and residential details are often involved.  Not only must you be on the look out for hackers who slither through the cracks of the internet, but shady casino sites as well.  This article will provide some information to help ensure that your transactions are secure when partaking in online gambling.

No Encryption, No Gamble

When it comes to internet casinos, it is a good rule of thumb to look for a site that offers a level of security similar to online banks and e-commere stores.  These sites protect their transactions with a security protocol known as SSL.  SSL stands for Secure Lockets Layer and enables a method that creates an encrypted tunnel for sensitive information to pass through.  This basically means that instead of your credit card or bank account information traveling over the internet in plain text, it is scrambled in a manner where the content cannot be viewed even if it was to be intercepted by a cyber thief.  Although most online casinos incorporate SSL certificates, the level of encryption is what you need to pay attention to.  128-bit encryption is currently the industry standard, which essentially means that anything less has been rendered insecure.  Before opening and funding an account, you need to make sure your casino has mechanisms in place to protect you against the roaming threats.

Beyond Secure Transactions

Having a safe way to transfer funds is good, but it isn’t enough to ensure the full-proof security you need to gamble at an online casino.  Once the information arrives at the casino, how do you even know if will be sold or misused in some other way?  You will never know unless you are absolutely sure that you are dealing with a reliable casino.  So, how do you get the proof?  It is actually a simple process that shouldn’t take up much of your time.  In order to prove reliability, an online casino should meet the following criteria:

Be Licensed

Any casino you want to play with should be licensed by a certain jurisdiction.  This basically means that a local jurisdiction such as Antigua or Barbuda has provided them with an official license to legally host a gambling site on the internet.  If the casino has no such license, you shouldn’t play there.  It is as simple as that.

Have Reputable Software

The underlying software plays a major role the efficiency of the game and security as well.  This is especially true if you intend on downloading the application onto your computer.  To make sure you are not unknowingly infecting yourself with malware or using an insufficient gaming platform, check out the software and find out who produced it.  Some reputable names you may want to look for are Cryptologic, Microgamming and RTG as they are industry-leading software developers.

Legitimate Payouts

Online casinos often publish reports detailing estimates on how much they paid out in the form of winnings.  Be that as it may, these reports can be altered or bogus entirely.  To make sure a casino is honest about its payouts, check these numbers with an independent accounting firm.   Price Waterhouse Coopers has a great reputation for helping new players find out if they are dealing with a respectable casino, or another fly-by-night crook.