Published by Programme B
Online casinos seem to be popping up everywhere. If the first years of the 21st century have taught us anything so far, it’s that we can find great online versions of almost every activity. Applications such as Zoom and Skype not only allow us to work online, they allow us to attend events like this virtual vacation to Istanbul and the Aegean. We do our banking online, stream movies and television shows on our laptops, and games on our phones. Why shouldn’t we also play casino games online? Besides the major societal shift towards online entertainment, what specific factors have contributed to the rise of online casinos?
Ease
A night out can be a ton of fun but it’s also a major commitment of time and energy. The ability to stay at home while still enjoying the same activities is very appealing. It’s one of the major reasons that online entertainment options have grown in popularity. Recent polls have shown that streaming movies is growing in popularity, as going to the cinema is becoming less popular. Online casinos and traditional casinos are seeing similar trends.
Going to a traditional casino does have its perks – the food and entertainment options are certainly attractive – but it also involves a certain amount of hassle. Driving there (or in some cases flying, if you’re going to a destination resort casino), getting dressed up, converting money to chips and then navigating the floor looking for the games you want to play all takes up a lot of time. Online casino games can be enjoyed from the comfort of your own home, during your commute or even while you’re waiting for a movie or a concert to start. This sort of easy accessibility is hard to resist.
Potential to win
Just like with traditional casinos, one of the major draws of online casinos is the potential to win money. Whether it’s hitting the jackpot on a slot game, yelling bingo! or getting exactly 21 in blackjack, winning is a rush. Making it big might be almost an impossibility but the chance is always there and that is an exciting thought. Many online casinos offer sign-up bonuses and progressive jackpots that are also great incentives to start and keep playing.
Variety
Unless you’re going to a large resort casino, it’s likely that your options for slot games will be fairly limited and you’ll have to wait for spots to open up at the table games you’re interested in. Online casinos don’t have that problem. Since space isn’t a concern, online casinos can host as many slot machine games as they want. For example, https://www.mrgreen.com/ca/ has almost 1,000 different slot machine games. With that much variety, there’s something for everyone, ranging from traditional slots like Cherries Gone Wild to those inspired by popular movies, and some more unusual games such as Astro Pug and Book of Crazy Chicken (versions 1 and 2!). Having that much choice is very appealing and also means you’re unlikely to ever get bored.
No commitment required
For many of us, going to a casino is a big trip. Traveling to a casino often requires a major investment in terms of time and money. Once you’ve made that initial investment, it can be very difficult to set a spending limit; it seems like a waste of time to have gone so far to only play a few card games. Imagine flying to Las Vegas or Niagara Falls and hitting your limit on the first day of your trip – what do you do with the rest of your time? This kind of experience can make it very easy to spend money that you haven’t budgeted for and can become a problem.
Online casinos solve this problem. Since you can play anywhere, anytime, on your phone or laptop, there is no commitment or investment made. This makes it much easier to stay within the limits you’ve set for yourself. It also makes online casino games more attractive to players who enjoy gambling but do not have enough interest in it to be willing to commit an entire day or a weekend to going to a casino.
Online casinos have grown in popularity because they are easy to access, don’t require a major commitment of time and money, and offer more variety of slot games than traditional casinos do, while still giving the same adrenaline rush if you win. Resort casinos will always be popular as vacation destinations but online casinos will probably replace them for casual gambling purposes.
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