News

Should affiliates be more honest when reviewing online slot games?

Published

6 months ago

November 18, 2021

Critics are paid to be impartial, they have no qualms about tearing into something they’ve been asked to review, whether that be a brand new box office release, album or video game. So why is it completely different in the world of iGaming?

There aren’t many industries out there that can match ours when it comes to the sheer amount of websites dedicated to one pastime (casinos and online slot games), for every new release there’s a minimum of ten reviews online within days of them arriving in casino lobbies.

Having spent the last year scouring the internet for slot games to critique ahead of their launch, Slot Gods, a comprehensive site dedicated to independent bias free online slot reviews have come to several solid conclusions about the somewhat dishonest business of slot write-ups.

Do some affiliates fear the truth will deny them acquisitions?

In last twelve months the expert team at Slot Gods have spent countless hours surveying the iGaming landscape with a fine-tooth comb, gauging affiliates ‘honest’ opinions on online slot games old and new, it’s certainly not everybody, but the conclusion to be drawn is that there seems to be a genuine fear about being honest when a slot game just isn’t very good.

Many of the reviews the team came across were written in a tone that suggested the game was 100% worth playing, positives were made out of negatives and despite a game’s shortcomings there’s always something that inferred to the reader that the game should definitely be played.

There’s no denying that approaching a review with a positive attitude is a good way to go, but it seems immoral to mislead a player in an industry that requires the end user to open their wallets and deposit money to play a game of chance which they might walk away from with nothing.

Obviously, players aren’t stupid and they know exactly what they’re getting into when they actively choose to gamble their money, but there’s a fine line between selling a game honestly and overselling it to the point in which the truth has been distorted to earn a sign-up.

If it were a table game such as roulette, poker or blackjack then perhaps we wouldn’t complain, because you know exactly what you’re getting with them… But with online slots there are many unique variables, and players have certain boxes a game must tick before they choose to actively play them.

To give some of these offending sites their dues, They never did shy away from giving players the raw data, they all clearly stated the RTP percentage, maximum win potential and volatility within the game specifications… It was just the written content that felt sketchy at times.

It’s understandable why an affiliate (in particular a smaller one) might want to put a little extra shine on a slot game in order to drive their visitors towards a sign-up at the associated casino. In doing so they’re likely going to leave the player with a bad taste in their mouth and a general distrust for the site that recommended it upon discovering the game isn’t exactly as described.

What can affiliates do to make their reviews more trustworthy?

If you’re planning on updating or adding slot reviews to your site then there are a number of things recommended and utilised by Slot Gods that you can do to ensure that your content comes across trustworthy and reliable, these are as follows:

Consistent structure

Make sure you have a consistent and well thought out structure to your reviews. Give players the key information in an order that makes sense to them. Don’t start your review with your personal opinion on how it plays, allow them to read all about the features, the design and other important elements before you summarise.

Most people understand how a review should look, so don’t try and reinvent the wheel and overcomplicate things… Just make sure each and every review is consistent.

Factual information

It almost sounds silly, but before you’ve even begun to write the review please make sure you play the actual game for a minimum of ten minutes, do your best to stick around until you’ve triggered a bonus feature as it makes a big difference to your overall opinion of the slot.

It’s easy to write a review based on the text provided by the developer, but trust us when we say the experience of writing a review based on your own first-hand experience is so much easier.

On that note, we highly recommend that players do not rely on other affiliates for information on a slot, it can be very tempting to check out what they’ve written and take inspiration, however, it’s worth noting that you have no idea whether what they’ve written is correct if you haven’t properly played the game yourself. It’s a risk that won’t pay off.

Demo games and original screenshots

If possible try and include a demo game within the body of your review. Admittedly it makes the entire process of compiling the review a little more complicated and time-consuming, but there’s no trust signal quite as strong as actually giving players the opportunity to play the game before or after they’ve read your review. It adds legitimacy to the page.

If you aren’t in a position to add demo games to your site then consider adding watermarked screenshots, this makes it clear to the user that you’ve taken the time to play the game yourself.

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News

Current Situation on US Gambling Law

Published

7 days ago

May 12, 2022

Gaspar Incze

According to the American Gaming Association, the United States gambling industry is worth some $240 billion. That’s more than double the value of the entire US film industry.

However, despite its size and popularity, it’s still illegal to bet on sports in almost all 50 states. Only three states — Nevada, Delaware, and Montana — are legalizing sports betting. New Jersey is allowing bets on single games through a court ruling.

In this article, we will look at what you can expect if you want to wager on your favorite sport in different states.

Ohio

In terms of legal gambling in Ohio, the state has an extensive history with horse racing and casinos. There are currently five racetracks in the state which offer various betting options. The most popular form of wager is pari-mutuel betting, where you can bet on certain horses or the race. You can also place wagers on greyhound races at one of the tracks in Ohio.

The most popular form of casino gambling in Ohio is slot machines available at riverboat casinos across the state and at three racetracks that offer slot machines. Several Native American casinos operate within the state’s borders.

Maryland

The state of Maryland is one of the most regulated states in the U.S. Therefore, it is no surprise that there are stringent laws regarding gambling. Maryland has some of the most restrictive laws regarding gambling in the country.

The state has a long history of gambling, and it is still considered one of the top gambling destinations in the entire country. Moreover, the state continues working hard to develop its casino industry. This is by creating new legislation on how casinos can operate and what types of games they can offer their customers.

Maryland has many types of laws that deal with all aspects of gambling. This includes licensing requirements, taxation rules, and other regulations. These affect every aspect of online gambling.

Arizona

The state of Arizona is one of the few states that does not have any laws against gambling. However, there are some exceptions to this rule. The state does have laws against certain types of games, including bingo and raffles. Bingo is like any game in which cards are sold by chance. This is at a price greater than the cost of the card.

In other words, if you buy a $1 card and win $50, you can be arrested for running an illegal bingo game. Raffles are also illegal in Arizona if they are conducted by someone not registered with the state to do so.

The exception to this law is that if you are running a non-profit organization like a church or community group, you can conduct raffles without being registered with the state first.

Final Takeaway

The state of online gambling in the US continues to ramble on. However, different states are making significant strides to legalize it for US gambling sites. The current situation is that the gambling laws vary from state to state.

Awards

Royal Partners as Platinum Sponsor of AffPapa iGaming Awards

Published

1 week ago

May 9, 2022

George Miller

Royal Partners as Platinum Sponsor of AffPapa iGaming Awards

Royal Partners will join AffPapa iGaming Awards 2022 as the Platinum Sponsor of the event, honoring affiliates and operators.

The event will convert into a genuine melting pot, mirroring the incredible dynamic of the iGaming industry – promoting and bringing along affiliates and operators for a unique chance to participate among the industry’s biggest names.

The virtual Awards will be accompanied by an offline event for industry members on July 5th of this year, in the heart of Netherlands – Amsterdam.

All attendees will not only get the chance to network and have fun, but the winners will also be handed with physical awards right there in front of their whole team and the rest of the iGaming industry, who will be cheering them on!

Denis Nikishin, Head of Affiliates at Royal Partners, commented:

“Royal Partners is delighted to be this year’s Platinum Sponsor of the AffPapa iGaming Awards. This is an amazing opportunity to not only reconnect affiliates and operators, but to also have some fun. We’re pleased to see several of our affiliate partners join the list as well.”

Royal Partners joined AffPapa’s directory at the end of 2021, and the operator’s collaborations with our AffPapa-registered affiliates have been quite fruitful to say the least. This is yet another milestone in strengthening the cooperation between the two companies.

Yeva Avagyan, CCO at AffPapa, stated:

“We’re honored to welcome Royal Partners as our Platinum Sponsor for our first-ever AffPapa iGaming Awards. Working with the operator has been a pleasure so far, with communication and honesty being at the heart of just about everything. Having a major sponsor for AIA that also shares our AffPapa values is a big win!”

Affiliate Compliance

Largest Dutch poker affiliate complies with regulatory changes post introduction of new Dutch gambling law

Published

2 weeks ago

May 6, 2022

George Miller

Largest Dutch poker affiliate complies with regulatory changes post introduction of new Dutch gambling law

PokerKamers.nl, one of the Netherlands’ first and largest poker affiliate sites, introduced a new policy that fully complies with the regulatory changes that came in effect after the Dutch Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit/ KSA) introduced its set of rules for operators to offer legal poker in the Netherlands.

As of October 2021, PokerKamers.nl, a Dutch spoken website existing since 2006, launched its new website. The founders introduced a policy to comply with new regulations, after the new Dutch gambling law took effect on October 1^st of 2021.

“Being fully compliant meant saying farewell to online poker sites that did not receive a license to legally operate in the Netherlands; this includes renowned sites like partypoker and bwin, as parent company Entain’s initial application got rejected,” said PokerKamers.nl founder Joris Koningsberg.

Entain plc, one of the world’s largest gambling/ gaming, poker, and betting operators, did not receive a license to offer their brands in the Netherlands, including their online poker sites, because they continued to accept Dutch customers after the market closed due to the Dutch Remote Gambling Act (Kansspel op Afstand/ KOA) on April 1^st of 2021.

“It was an easy decision, because the only other option was working with illegal poker sites. And besides, one of our favorite partners (ed: Hillside plc’s bet365) did receive their license,” said Joris Koningsberg.

Meanwhile, all Entain brands now comply to the Dutch Gambling Authority’s cooling off period and the company is expected to obtain a license in the first half of 2022.

With the decision to be fully compliant to Dutch law and regulations, PokerKamers.nl also improved the overall quality of its website. A new look and feel, a comprehensive audit of all existing pages and many new, were completed before the launch of their new website.

“And there is more,” said PokerKamers.nl co-owner Oscar Oosterling, “We have added a poker course, several tools including a tournament filter and the M-Calculator, and poker cheat sheets. And our to-do list is only getting bigger.”

PokerKamers.nl is a website to keep on your radar the next few months. New gambling licenses will be issued, and this website will only list the very best of them. You can expect continuous updates and new features that improve the overall quality and user experience. And with PokerKamers.nl being a compliant poker affiliate, you can rest assured that you’re not going to be misled into signing up with shady – or illegal poker sites.