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Microgaming aiming for dancefloor domination with new Deadmau5 branded slot in October

September 18, 2020 by Admin

Microgaming’s highly anticipated Deadmau5 themed slot will soon be live and ready to play. The title is based on the world-famous electronic artist’s cube v3 tour and will include the mesmerizing artist-created visuals and music that made the tour an electrifying experience for audiences across the globe.

With a planned October release, the game will fuse electronic music with online gaming, giving a whole new audience the chance to be enchanted by the rhythmic beats and visuals.

Deadmau5 who is now 39 originally hails from Germany and is one of the most successful electronic dance music artists in history with Grammy nominations and a catalogue of chart-topping albums under his belt

Gameplay at a glance

The Deadmau5 slot will play out on a 5×3 reel, 243 ways to win format, and offers a top potential of 2100x your stake. The top-end may feel a bit low, especially considering the game’s high volatility and less-than-friendly RTP of 95.22%. The well-known Rolling Reels mechanic makes an appearance alongside free spins, wild reels, and multipliers up to 10x your stake.

Wagering and winning

You can bet anything from $0.20 to $100 and, as mentioned before, the most you can win from a single spin is a somewhat meager 2100x your stake. Players are likely to conclude that a more forgiving volatility would have been a better fit for this slot.

The features explained

The rolling reels mechanic ensures that your wins work for you. Winning symbol combinations will award you your initial payout, but then the symbols are removed from the reels, leaving empty space for new symbols to land in their positions. This can potentially trigger a chain of winning combinations.

The game logo acts as a wild symbol and appears on reels 2, 3, and 4. It substitutes for any other symbol except the scatter. The combo-bridging magic of wilds is also given to you in the form of the random Drop the Wild feature where any one of the middle reels can spontaneously transform into a full wild reel.

As with most cases, free spins is where all the magic happens. Landing 3 to 5 scatters on the reels will activate this feature, giving you from 15 to 25 free spins and an instant prize of up to 250x your stake.

A multiplier trail is a logical complementary feature for Rolling Reels and Microgaming has incorporated one into this title. You can get up to 10x your stake after 5 consecutive winning rolls, just remember that the multiplier will reset on a losing spin.

Look & feel

The background images are laser-spun abstracts and beat visualizations to complement the neon-lined card suits that serve as lower-value symbols and ecstatic female dancers getting lost in the beat who represent the higher-value symbols.

The graphics are fitting and representative of the artist and the music genre, but the whole package feels a bit minimalistic and basic, with players likely expecting much more of a spectacle than they’re going to get.

Conclusion

This slot will be a treat for Deadmau5 fans as it includes the artist’s iconic visual style and music. This is a solid branded game, however, there is a lot of room for improvement with regards to the inner workings of this title. The RTP is particularly concerning as it is a clear indication that you are likely to get less winning joy from this experience that the average slot out there. This slot’s appeal, sadly, may not extend much further past die-hard fans of the artist and art it is themed around.

Aussie punters rush to patronise pokies

September 15, 2020 by Admin

The COVID-19 pandemic means that most Australian residents who gamble as a pastime have been unable to access their favourite establishments due to the national lockdown. Now, with many restrictions being lifted, punters are making up for lost time, flocking to pubs and casinos in their numbers to scratch their itch on real money pokies.

In the first month following the relaxation of restrictions, Australians have lost a total of approximately $800 million to gambling. Anti-gambling advocacy groups are understandably concerned.

Gambling increases by state

The following is a summary of recent data for all six states:

Tasmania – Residents had spent $2.6 million on pokie machines within five days of the reopening of venues in June. July saw that amount skyrocket to $19 million.
New South Wales – NSW citizens lost a total of almost $571 million in June, an increase of $40 million from the same period in 2019.
South Australia – July of 2019 saw SA residents spend $62 million on pokies. A year later, that amount has increased to $73 million.
Queensland made $300 million on pokies in July despite capacity restrictions at pubs and clubs. This is the state’s highest total in 3 years.
Victoria – A second wave of infections necessitated Victoria remaining at a stage four lockdown for the foreseeable future. In July of 2019, locals and visitors had spent $235 million on pokies. We can expect that total to be obliterated once the state moves to a more relaxed lockdown.
Western Australia – WA law states that electronic gaming machines may only be made available in casinos, so there is no official data on gambling spend available.

The opposition

80% of adult Aussies engage in some form of gambling every year and some individuals are actively speaking out against the practice. Anna Bardsley is a former problem gambler and current advocate for the Alliance for Gambling Reform.

Ms. Bardsley had this to say about the recently published stats, “The money that wasn’t lost in those few months when lockdown was on instead went to small businesses. It went to supermarkets. It went to putting food on the table.”

She further stated that receiving relief for a few months was helpful to many problem gamblers, although it is far from enough.

“I know from my own experience it took longer than a few months to rewire my brain.”

She also called for additional reforms including $1 bet caps and reduced hours for pubs and clubs.

“Gaming rooms are the only part of a pub that’s open at four o’clock in the morning. Nothing good is happening then.”

More advocates stand up

Veteran anti-gambling advocate Tim Costello echoed Ms. Bardsley’s thoughts, calling pokies “an effective economic drain” on the state. He pointed out that every dollar bet on poker machines would have gone a long way to benefit the local economy.

He went on to make the startling point that the events of 2020 might cause some citizens to become even more susceptible to problem gambling. Mr. Costello pointed to high unemployment rates and additional stress as two of the main causes.

Food, booze, and gambling

As a result of the recent lockdown, millions lost their jobs, with over 700,000 individuals turning to Jobseeker benefits. As a result of lost income, 1.35 million Aussies also applied to access $10,000 of their organizational pension funds.

The economic impact of the coronavirus caused many Aussies to shift their priorities and not always for the better. Travel expenditure dropped 33%, while pubs and clubs lost 45%. The public transport sector took the hardest hit, losing 58% in revenue against the average week.

It wasn’t all bad news for Australian businesses, Alcohol and tobacco sales were up 22% over this period. Online gambling increased by 94% and food deliveries came out on top with a total revenue increase of 277%.

The increases were only good news for some, Indigenous leader, Noel Pearson had some harsh words to share on the topic, “There is grog chaos all over the country, from Cape York to the Pilbara. With JobSeeker and superannuation withdrawals, the normal level of grog and gambling has gone through the roof.”

Gird your loins for the Battle of Troy in Achilles Deluxe slot at Fair Go Casino

September 11, 2020 by Admin

Visit Fair Go casino to be transported to ancient Troy in the new Achilles Deluxe slot. Battle alongside ancient warrior, a dashing prince, and an enchanting princess in this progressive jackpot title from Realtime Gaming where your wins are tripled or doubled during Free Spins.

The legendary hero Achilles is known for his defeat of the Trojan prince, Hector in a fierce battle at the gates of Troy and the two legends cross swords once again in this legend-inspired slot.

Achilles Deluxe is a medium volatility pokie with 20 paylines where you trigger Free Spins by landing 3 or more scatters. In the bonus game, you will get 10 free spins and a 2x or 3x multiplier will be applied to your wins. Three of more wild symbols activate Wild Free Games where all your winnings are tripled, and scatter symbols will transform into wilds or the highest value regular symbol.

One of two progressive jackpots can be randomly triggered on any spin. The Major jackpot starts at $1000 after the first win and increases with each subsequent spin while the Minor jackpot starts at $250.

If you’re ready to draw your sword and claim legendary victory, head over to Fair Go Casino to get your hands on this thrilling sequel to Achilles slot. Use coupon code ADELUXE30 to receive a 125% bonus and 30 free spins for a minimum deposit of $20.

Crown Resorts faces money laundering accusation

September 8, 2020 by Admin

Australian casino operator Crown Resorts has weathered extraordinary amounts of speculation into its affairs recently. Unfortunately, the attention has been overwhelmingly negative, mostly consisting of governmental inquiries into alleged criminal behaviour.

Most punters aren’t too fazed by the ethics of casinos, provided it doesn’t affect them directly, but the state and federal governments aren’t as forgiving.

Caught on camera

From the first emergence of a whistle-blower in 2019, Crown Resorts has been plagued by accusations of improper and criminal activities. These include allegations of money laundering backed up by spectacularly damning video evidence.

The video in question is reportedly from the Crown Melbourne’s security footage and was obtained by the anti-gambling legislator, Andrew Wilke. It shows gamblers walking in with cash-filled bags and some are seen to hand over large stacks of $50 and $100 notes at the cashier’s cage.

The whistle-blowers’ identity is still unknown but, in a statement, they offered justification for their actions.

“Anybody can walk in with any amount of money and launder it. Nobody really cares. They get to do what they want.”

They further went on to ask, “If it was legit, why wasn’t it in the bank?”

Accounts created for laundering

The investigation has unearthed two suspicious accounts held at the ANZ and Commonwealth banks that belong to shell companies. Upon further investigation, it was revealed that the accounts, which are in the names of Southbank Investments and Riverbank Investments belong to Crown Resorts.

VIP clients have been depositing large amounts into these accounts before visiting the casino to gamble since 2013. This practice flies in the face of Australian law as high-risk money transfers are meant to be reported to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre. Crown’s financial team wilfully left these two accounts unsupervised.

A history of bad PR

Former chairman James Packer seemed to display an eerie level of instinct as his departure from the company for mental health reasons came very shortly before all the bad news started for Crown.

Three of Crown Resorts’ most notable PR disasters in the last few years have put the company’s resilience to the test.

Indonesian citizen Joseph Wong Kiia Tai, who was later revealed to be an arms dealer with ties to Liberian autocrat, Chares Taylor, spent $6 million at the Crown Perth and Crown Melbourne from 2004 to 2015. This happened despite him being on a United Nations sanctions list, which was meant to prevent him from travelling.

Crown Resorts’ planned sale of 20% of its holdings to Asian tycoon Lawrence Ho was halted in its tracks when an investigation showed that Ho was a former director for Lanceford Company Ltd. Lanceford, previously headed by the late billionaire and triad-connected Stanley Ho, is one of 59 entities that Crown was prohibited from doing business with.

Allegations of pokie machine tampering were brought forward by whistle-blowers at Crown Melbourne. Management had told staff to disable lower bet provisions and enable prohibited autoplay. This would have ultimately resulted in higher gambling losses. The disciplinary action to be taken against Crown, in this case, is being handled by The Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.

A murky future

The number and severity of accusations that Crown Resorts is facing are unprecedented in the industry and there is speculation that the company could be facing more than just the usual fines and reprimands.

The negative attention has begun to jeopardise the future of some ongoing projects, such as Crown’s $2-billion casino project in New South Wales, where regulators have started to back off from their initial enthusiasm, leaving the entire project in peril.

Microgaming launches new Megaways slot with more titles on the horizon

September 4, 2020 by Admin

The industry-leading online casino content developer, Microgaming recently announced the release of its newest title in partnership with Iron Dog Studio.

Megaways BC is the first Megaways video slot offering more than a million different ways to win.

It’s time to get primal

The formidable terrain of the ice age is the setting for this slot, but while the environment is harsh the winning potential is decidedly luxurious as the slot offers you up to 1,058,841 ways to win.

The base game has an increasing multiplier up to 8x your wager and is activated by winning tumbles. Four winning tumbles in a row will trigger free spins where the maximum payout is 1500x your bet.

The free spins feature also adds another reel to the grid. This ‘Mammoth Reel’ can expand to a height of nine symbols and the Lock-it feature keeps the reel locked once it has reached its maximum height.

If the Mammoth Reel and Lock-It system are simultaneously active, all 1,058,841 ways to win will be available to you, allowing for massive payouts of up to 45 000x your stake.

Waiting in the wings

Slot enthusiasts have always been able to rely on Microgaming for a steady stream of premium content and the developer aims to keep up with demand with a series of new launches.

There are three new titles due to join the company’s world-famous progressive jackpot network, which means three new opportunities for punters to score the win of a lifetime.

All41 Studios and Triple Edge Studios will be launching Book of Atem: WowPot and Sisters of Oz: WowPot, respectively, both of which feature the newly revamped WowPot progressive jackpot.

Later in the month, Stormcraft Studios plans to release Fortinium Gold: Mega Moolah and Slingshot Studios’ African Legends has a planned October release.

Whittlesea venues lead Victoria in pokie losses

September 1, 2020 by Admin

Whittlesea venues lead Victoria in pokie losses

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation recently revealed data regarding the venues in the state with the highest levels of pokie losses from 2019 to 2020. The town of Whittlesea claimed the unfortunate recognition of having four of its establishments featuring in the top 10.

The Epping Plaza Hotel occupied the first spot on the list, its players lost $15.29 million on poker machines during the 2019/2020 financial year. Mill Park’s Plough Hotel was second, with its pokies claiming $15.04 million over the same period.

Excelsior Hotel and Bundoora Taverner are both Whittlesea venues that also made the list with the former raking in $13.12 million via pokies, while the latter took $12.87 million from players.

Pokie spend per day

The report broke down the data in several aspects, including a per-city ranking of daily expenditure on poker machines. Whittlesea didn’t claim the top spot but still managed to break the top 10. Here they are in descending order.

Melbourne ($231,523)

Kingston ($234,798)

Wyndham ($290,567)

Monash ($301,945)

Whittlesea ($303,716)

Hume ($306,016)

Greater Geelong ($326,219) This city boasts the largest number of venues with pokies and most overall pokies on the list.

Greater Dandenong ($326,882)

Casey ($362,632)

Brimbank ($391,518)

A matter of concern

While some may have seen Whittlesea’s high place on the rankings as something to be proud of, others were troubled by the news. The Whittlesea City Council has recommended changes to the pokie industry before COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. This request is backed by the fact that $1 billion has been saved by Victorian residents who were unable to access gaming establishments due to their temporary closure in April.

Ms. Lydia Wilson, Whittlesea’s Chair of Administrators gave her perspective, “Some gaming venues are open until the small hours of the morning. Unemployment and stress caused by impacts of COVID-19 are at a record high, putting added pressure on vulnerable people succumbing to gambling harm.”

The city council recommends that gaming venues should be required to close at midnight and that this measure be implemented before their post-pandemic re-opening. A pokie buyback scheme was also proposed that would enable venues to create more family-friendly environments, similar to a program currently underway in the Australian Capital Territory.

Crunching the data

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation’s website contains a repository of research, statistics, and state-wide polling. Here are some pertinent facts relating to the state’s gambling habits.

From 2017 to 2018, the average loss per adult by gambling was $1163 in Victoria as compared to the average of the rest of the country of $1292. Over that same period, the average pokie loss per Victorian adult was $539, lower than the average for the rest of Australia at $650.
Victoria’s overall pokie losses rose by $86 million from 2017 to 2018.
A survey reveals that one in 14 Victorians admitted to losing more than $100 on gambling in the previous month.
A moderate-risk gambler can negatively affect up to three others, which would be approximately 392,000 Victorians.
The Australian gambling industry’s 2018 advertising expenditure was $273.2 million, an increase of $89.7 million from 2011.
Victorians aged over 75 are least likely to develop problem gambling habits.
A survey showed that 18% of women had gambled in the previous month with the figure for men standing at 28%.
A third of Victorians think responsible gambling equates to betting less than once per month
One in five Victorians who do gamble could be negatively affected by their favourite pastime, which is equal to 550,000 individuals.
Another survey demonstrated that 2.8% of individuals had reported being harmed by someone else’s gambling in the previous 12-month period. Considering the adult population of Victoria, this is equal to 122,500 people.

Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation

The VRGF functions as a statutory authority that was established by the Victorian Parliament to address gambling harm in its community. The foundation’s mission is to provide support to problem gamblers and those negatively affected by another’s addiction. The organisation seeks to grow its strength and the resources to achieve its goals through strategic partnerships with similarly aligned groups and individuals.

Microgaming’s Mega Moolah unloads another Mega jackpot

August 28, 2020 by Admin

The winds of fate blew in a certain player’s direction recently, handing them one of online gambling’s ultimate prizes, thanks to the Microgaming Mega Moolah progressive jackpot.

The Swedish player was passing the time at the appropriately named Lucky Casino when they landed an enormous €14,239,532.84 jackpot prize on 17 August 2020. As with all Microgaming progressive slot wins, the prize, which is the highest single amount ever won at Lucky Casino, will be paid out as a lump sum to the winner.

This eight-figure win marks the eighth millionaire created by the jackpot network this year, with the seventh millionaire for the year recently being created in as many months.

Lucky Casino’s Casino Director Martin Sidenvall weighed in on the win, saying, “From everyone at Lucky Casino, it is a historic moment, to be able to call our lucky winner and announce that the third-largest euro jackpot win ever in Mega Moolah has gone to one of our customers in Sweden is something we could only dream of.”

Microgaming’s Director of Games Andrew Booth added, “Congratulations to Lucky Casino and their player on the tremendous win through Microgaming’s Mega Moolah. The win marks the largest euro jackpot win in Sweden through our progressive jackpot network Mega Moolah continues to be a favourite among players worldwide, and we are thrilled to add even more progressive games to the jackpot and network this year!”

Coronavirus consequences pile up for The Star Entertainment Group Limited

August 25, 2020 by Admin

Australian casino operator, The Star Entertainment Group Limited has purportedly recorded an overall loss of about $68.07 million for the twelve months to the end of June. Most of this downturn in fortunes can be attributed to the operation shuttering its Queensland and Victoria facilities in response to the Coronavirus threat.

Inside Asian Gaming reported that the company was obliged to close its The Star Gold Coast, Treasury Brisbane, and The Star Sydney properties for ten-weeks from March 23, resulting in an annual company-wide revenue drop of 31% year-on-year to $1.06 billion.

A hard knock

The publication went on to report that The Star Entertainment Group Limited would refrain from declaring a final dividend for the 12 months after noting a 49% year-on-year reduction in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization to only $202.04 million.

In the eight months to the end of February, before the arrival of the Coronavirus, the firm had already recorded a 10.1% decrease in overall revenues to roughly $966.78 million but was still maintaining a profit of around $47.97 million.

Better days

The Star Sydney’s performance had been on a comparative plateau before the Coronavirus made itself known with the domestic and VIP sectors both showing signs of slowing growth. In contrast, the organisation advised that its Treasury Brisbane and The Star Gold Coast venues were doing well, with an 80.3% increase in VIP revenues, contributing to a 62% improvement for the financial year, valued at approximately $167.99 million.

Fighting adversity

The Star Entertainment Group Limited reported that July saw its VIP turnover al by 95% year-on-year with its domestic business falling by a less alarming 20%. The Star Sydney venue’s ability to trade was severely hampered by stricter social distancing requirements in Victoria.

In an official statement, the organisation made a show of confidence, expressing the determination to make a full recovery.

“Our business is fundamentally strong, which is evidenced by the step-up in earnings growth from the first half to the early second half of the financial year. The long-term value uplift from investments in our network of integrated resorts and continuing operational improvements to drive visitation and earnings remain substantial.”

Star Sydney penalised amid underage gambling concerns

August 21, 2020 by Admin

The Star Sydney received a $64 000 fine when minors were discovered gambling at its premises. Surveillance footage captured a 12-year-old girl and two other juveniles gaining access to electronic games. The girl managed to place close to 24 bets on poker machines.

Dubious parenting

In a shocking outcome, it was discovered that the child’s parents helped her in her gambling exploits. The casino’s surveillance system also showed the child’s mother helping her enter the casino by holding the exit door open in an attempt to avoid detection.

In the video footage, which was released by Liquor & Gaming New South Wales, the girl can be seen to gamble for about 20 minutes with the assistance of her parents. Despite their crucial role in her actions, the casino itself is ultimately liable for the transgression.

David Byrne, the NSW Independent Liquor & Authority director of Investigations and intervention said that minors entering through deceptive means should have been an eventuality the casino was prepared for.

Byrne Stated that the casino failed in its duty to account for the risk and that casino staff should have taken note of a visibly young child having fun at the pokies.

More minors

Two other older minors were also able to gamble at the casino and a 17-year-old was also found gambling on the premises while being served alcohol. He managed to play several rounds of roulette and got a few poker hands in before being ejected from the casino. The teenager used his own license to gain entry and interacted with members of staff at least 15 times during the time he was there.

A different incident saw a 16-year old girl entering the casino through the VIP checkout. No ID was requested from her initially and when she was finally asked, she produced a fake ID that was accepted, and she was subsequently served alcohol.

ACT Casino doors open while Auckland Casino closes theirs

August 18, 2020 by Admin

Australia and New Zealand’s casino industries have been buffeted by uncertainty amid the global havoc that the coronavirus continues to wreak. Gambling establishments have found themselves have to close and reopen sporadically in response to the proliferation of the virus.

Gambling venues in ACT speak out

Clubs in ACT have been lobbying the government to allow their reopening as the closures have severely affected their collective bottom line with some businesses facing the prospect of permanent closure with customers heading elsewhere to satisfy their needs.

These statements are far from hyperbolic as several ACT clubs like the Kaleen Eastlake Club have already had to close down for good. A significant number of other similar businesses find themselves facing the same eventuality.

The Average pokie in New South Wales has seen an 89% increase in activity since regional restrictions were relaxed with the City of Queanbeyan showing some of the best performance in the region with a turnover increase of 453%. This can be attributed to ACT residents crossing the border in search of poker machines.

Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith put the government’s position into perspective, saying, “It is about managing the cumulative risk to our community of people coming together, intermingling in situations particularly where there may be alcohol involved, where they may lose some of their inhibitions or may stay in a venue for a length of time.”

ACT resolution

The clubs’ complaints did not fall on deaf ears and restrictions on ACT gaming venues, strip clubs, and brothels were eased shortly thereafter. Dine-in service can now be offered at food courts and pubs, clubs, and bars no longer have to enforce patron limits.

Casino Canberra reopened on August 8 after 5 months of hampered activity with several anti-pandemic measures in place.

A limit of 100 seated customers at any given time.
Only one customer for every four-square meters.
Patrons and staff must submit to temperature checks upon arrival.
Reduced player numbers at each table.
Chips are regularly cleaned.
Special protective screens are installed at table games.
Patrons may not physically touch playing cards.
Employees clean pokies after each punter uses them.

A COVID-19 marshal is present to monitor staff and patrons’ adherence to the rules.

SkyCity grounded in Auckland

ACT punters have reason to celebrate, however, these in New Zealand are facing a daunting situation. After 100 days without any documented infection, COVID-19 has made an unwelcome reappearance in the country.

Four new cases were recorded by government officials who identified the cause as community transmission.

Auckland is now back on stage 3 restrictions for three days with the rest of the country on stage 2. The stage 3 measures are fairly severe but have previously been highly effective, they include:

Restricted travel to and from Auckland.
A limit of 10 people at gatherings.
Bars and many other businesses must temporarily close.

As a result of this SkyCity casino in Auckland has once again had to close the doors to its casino and entertainment facilities with the hotel remaining open for existing guests. These measures only apply to Auckland, leaving SkyCity’s Queenstown and Hamilton locations remaining open for business for the moment.