Whenever I am looking for a new website where I can play hundreds of my favorite computer-generated online fruit machines and cutting-edge live dealer blackjack, hold ’em, roulette, and game show titles, I always go to the same trusted review site that has guided me to countless other secure online casinos and check out their latest reviews.
I would always say that the expert reviews can be trusted 100%. They wouldn’t want to send people like me to a dodgy site because it would quickly come back to bite them. However, when it comes to reviews made by people who play on these sites, like me, I would say take them with a pinch of salt.
I’m not saying reviews made by regular players can’t be trusted because some of them can. However, I would suggest that if you are going to base your decisions on which sites might be worth your time, you listen to the experts before hearing what the regular players have to say. Here’s why.
Can I Trust Online Casino Analysis Written By Players?
Yes and no. The majority of reviews by people who join today’s most popular real money gambling sites tend to be written by disgruntled amateur players who lost their money.
Just like at a land-based venue, the people who kick off and start smashing up the fruit machines or bad-mouthing the dealers and other staff members are inexperienced people who have lost their money, and so take it out on the casino, they either give that venue a bad review or cause damage, neither of which is justifiable behaviour nor should it be tolerated anywhere.
I only visit [or avoid] sites reviewed by professional players – these guys are in the know and provide the best reviews that I know of. However, I do still read regular/amateur player reviews and see what kind of feedback they have given a site, but I’m always reading between the lines of what they are trying to tell me.
Most of the time, I don’t actually obtain any information I’m looking for when reading these types of reviews, which only seem to contain things like how they had to complete their wagering requirements before they could cash out their bonus winnings or how it took forever (maybe 48 hours max) to receive their winnings after they started the withdrawal process.
These aren’t ‘proper’ reviews in the true sense of the meaning.
For me, an honest, reliable, and unbiased review, like those that I regularly check out on the official AskGamblers review site, will have been conducted by experts/professionals with many years of experience in carefully scouring the internet, handpicking the most popular sites, reviewing them, and giving them a realistic rating/ranking score.
What Can Analysis Tell You About a Site?
Before signing up for a site that I have randomly stumbled across, I will always check the expert reviews because they will instantly tell me whether a site is safe. In each review, the crucial information that I tend to I hone in on are the following key areas:
- Licensing and regulation – I live in the United Kingdom, so I will ONLY ever play on sites that are UK-licensed and regulated. In other words, if a site I have been considering joining isn’t licensed and regulated by the UKGC (United Kingdom Gambling Commission), I won’t even bother reading the review. However, if you live somewhere else, such as Michigan, New Jersey, Ontario, Pennsylvania, or anywhere else where online casino gambling is legally permitted, then you should ideally be looking for sites licensed by your official licensing and regulatory authority.
- Ownership and reputation – the reviews typically say which company owns that site, how transparent they are, and whether they have a solid track record/good standing (for at least six months) in the iGaming industry
- Payment methods – reviews tell me exactly which online payment method that site accepts, so I know if I will easily be able to deposit/withdraw on that site and not have to use a payment method that I’m not so familiar with, such as cryptocurrency
- Bonus and promotions – the reviews will also tell me what the new player welcome bonus currently is, whether it’s worth claiming, and other things, like the wagering/playthrough requirements attached to those bonuses. Most reviews also talk about other lucrative bonuses/promotions/rewards programs that I can look forward to on that site.
- Games and software – the reviews will also tell me if the site has content from market-leading software providers, roughly how many online fruits and classic favourites they have, and whether the return to player (RTP%) payout rates are low, average, above-average, or high
- Security – reviews also tell me how secure a site is and whether it has the necessary SSL cryptographic encryption certificates
The other things I can learn from reading the expert reviews are things like how good/responsive/friendly the customer support agents are, how quick they are at processing withdrawals, which countries/locations are restricted from joining, and a general overview with much better insight into the website.
They can also tell me if the products, services, and features will work well on my preferred device and in my favourite browser and whether they have any safer/responsible gambling tools that will help me stay within my budget.
Final Thoughts
To sum up, if you’re looking for a new site to join, I would avoid taking too much notice of the amateur feedback and trust only the expert player reviews conducted by professionals.
I would also strongly advise you to read several reviews and then compare your findings before deciding which sites might be worth your time. Also, take time to read through the terms and conditions of the bonuses when signing up anywhere to ensure you get the most out of your welcome bonus.
Never sign up to an unlicensed/unregulated site with bad reviews/low rating scores, and avoid playing on sites like this while tired or intoxicated if you want to remain within your budget and keep things safe and enjoyable.
