Some say if you’ve seen one online casino, you’ve seen them all. This, of course, is not true. There are many – sometimes very big – differences between operators that fundamentally change the players’ experience. Sometimes, one might wonder why people choose one casino over another – especially in Canada, where offshore gaming is all the rage. Today, let’s take a look at some of the biggest differences between the best online casino Canada has to offer and its local competitors.
Game variety
Canadian casinos have a pretty impressive game variety for their players. Impressive, yes – but nowhere near as varied as offshore casinos. Canadian casinos usually work with the game library of selected providers – usually the ones their holding companies already have contracts with for land-based operations. This limits their offer to just a couple of hundred games, usually built with land-based use in mind – which means that they don’t make use of the possibilities for a purely online video game.
Canadian casinos usually have just a couple of hundred games in their libraries. Their offshore counterparts routinely have over a thousand – and counting.
Tournaments and bonuses
Once again, we’re speaking of variety – but this time, it’s about bonuses and other benefits for the players. The differences are apparent from the very beginning: offshore casinos simply have more attractive welcome packages for their new players. And the benefits don’t stop there: the players are treated with various top-up offers, recurring promotions, and tournaments with attractive prize pools that keep them coming back for more.
When registering an account with an offshore operator, players are greeted with a range of bonuses ranging from “trial” cash they can spend with no strings attached to free spins and various other offers that apply to their first few deposits. Besides, players are enrolled on “loyalty programs” that offer them points for every cent they spend, points that they can later transform into prizes ranging from bonuses to tangible prizes like electronics and such. Some loyalty programs even include prizes like cruises where the players with the most points – VIPs, as they are called – can meet with the staff and each other, and spend time doing what they like most: playing casino games.
Live dealer games
Another major difference between Canadian online casinos and their offshore counterparts is the presence of live dealer games. For those of you who don’t know them, live dealer games are the closest thing to a real-life casino that you can find online. Built around a digital interface and state-of-the-art video streaming, the service offers players the opportunity to play at gaming tables manned by real-life dealers sitting in a studio, in front of the cameras. The dealers deal the cards, spin the reels, draw the numbers or spin the Wheel of Fortune right in front of the players who can wager on their preferred game – or simply watch others do so – from the comfort of their homes.
Some live dealer games are streamed from brick-and-mortar casinos, others from studios purpose-built for this activity. Live dealer games are the perfect substitute to real-life casinos – especially in our pandemic-ridden times. They represent the perfect opportunity to enjoy a game of roulette, blackjack or even baccarat in an environment as close to a real casino as possible without social distancing and without wearing a mask.
In Canada, online casinos are a state monopoly, so they work exactly like any other state-run enterprise: they are often cumbersome and rigid, slow to respond to the needs of the users. Offshores are, in turn, flexible and agile, doing their best not only to attract but also to hold on to their customers. And to do so, they always try to offer the best possible experience.
