Casino Golden Glory Review

Review of Casino Golden Glory

Casino Golden Glory marks our first encounter with a previously unseen (by us) casino software developer known as The Art of Games. Finding a brand new set of games from a new software developer is always a great surprise for us as it means we have something new to try rather than reviewing a casino with the same games as a hundred others. After being welcomed by a website adorned with pictures of the Statue of Liberty and Golden Gate Bridge we took a look inside to see if they are worth your virtual visit.

Software and game selection

The Art of Games has supplied Golden Glory with around 100 instant play games that were all new to us. The slot machines are divided into several categories: 3 Reel, 5 Reel, Fantasy, Photo, Deluxe and 3D Video Slots, which didn't really make much sense until you read the bonus terms (more on that later). Of these, the Photo, Deluxe and 3D Video Slots were definitely the most visually appealing and you can tell that a lot of work has been put into these games to make them fun and engaging. However it has to be said that while they aim high, they are not nearly as polished or spectacular as similar styled games from the likes of Net Entertainment, Microgaming, or Betsoft. Apart from being visually and aurally inferior, there are quirks that you don't expect to see these days such as the fact that it is only possible to wager in credits rather than actual monetary amounts which means you have to do the mental calculation necessary to work out exactly how much you are putting on the line when you spin.

Nevertheless I had a good time playing titles including Ninja Spirit, Freaky Frankenstein, Crazy Carnival, Cashanova (no not the old Microgaming game), and Awesome 5, a send-up on super hero groups like the Fantastic 4 and The Avengers. This super-parody game comes complete with an overweight burger munching hero with man-boobs that belches when you land him on a winning payline, and a geriatric superhero who is dressed like The Flash and gets around in a wheelchair. I am completely serious by the way, you could not make this stuff up! One interesting feature that some of these games possess is a skill-based bonus round - think whack-a-mole style games or flying a super hero around and attempting to bash meteors - that can reward skilled players with bigger wins. There are also a series of both 5 and 3 reel classic-styled one arm bandit slots that look very realistic. You have the option of zooming in and out of both the paytable and reel sections and they do a good job of giving you the impression that you are sitting right at a machine. There were no progressive jackpots on offer at Casino Golden Glory at the time of our review.

Much to our surprise, table game players are in for a bit of a treat at Casino Golden Glory. In addition to your usual variants of Blackjack, Roulette, Caribbean Stud, and Three Card Poker, you can find more exotic games that are rarely seen online such as Mississippi Stud Poker, Pyramid Poker, Asia Poker, Wan Doy Poker, Super Pan 9, Fan Tan, Chuck a Luck, and Catch the Wave. The table felts and layout are graphically impressive but the combination of the angle of view which wastes lot of space in the foreground and unique card designs could probably be improved, perhaps by making the cards a little bigger or bringing the virtual table closer to the viewer. That aside, fans of table games would have to search far and wide to find a casino with the same amount of choice as you can see here, as we certainly have not seen wider.

Bonus policy - early withdrawal allowed

This is the 2nd casino that we have come across this week that allows players to forfeit a bonus and the associated wagering baggage that come with it if they have an early big win. Let's hope that it is a trend that gains momentum because it really is a sensible rule. If you have not come across this before let me explain: Say you deposit €100 and the casino gives you a 200% match so you have €300 in total to play with. When you start playing, you play with your cash balance first and only start dipping into the bonus funds once your cash balance hits zero. So in our example this would happen when your balance dropped below €200. Once that happens the wagering requirements kick in and you have to complete them to make a withdrawal. However you can withdraw at any time before your cash balance runs out and forfeit the bonus. So imagine your balance was €250 and you hit a big win for another €250, making your balance €500. You could withdraw right then and there, forfeiting the €200 bonus, and taking home €300. Thumbs up.

Now if all that sounds positive, and it does, there is a bit of a drawback and that is the wagering requirements if you do decide to dip into the bonus. Initially it looks pretty juicy at only 20xB, but when you read the terms you find that the better slot machines we talked about above - Photo Slots, Deluxe Slots, and 3D Video Slots - only count 70% or 50% towards the requirements, and that the bonus is non-withdrawable, and after that it doesn't look such a good deal after all unless you're a hard core classic slots lover.

Banking, support options, and game fairness

The deposit and withdrawal options at Golden Glory are fairly standard these days with credit cards, major e-wallets and direct bank transfers supported. We were disappointed to see a paltry €2000 per day, €4000 per week withdrawal limit in the casino terms, something that all players, especially those of you that like to bet big, should be fully aware of before playing. However we were pleased to see our test withdrawal handled within a day.

Support at this casino is a distinct letdown. The only way you can contact the casino is via email and an online support ticketing system. There is no phone support, nor are there the almost-expected-these-days live chat operators, which means you will almost never get an instant response when you need one.

One other thing that we want to talk about with this casino is game fairness. At the foot of every page on the site, the casino has a meaningless RNG logo icon along with a claim of a 96.3% payout rate, and a logo claiming licensing within Curacao. However we searched throughout the site along with the website of its software provider, The Art of Games, and could find no evidence to back any of these claims up at all. There are no audited payout reports, no independent certification of the random number generator used by the games, and no link to a license certificate. Everything could be on the up and up, and we certainly did not notice anything untoward while playing here, but a little reassurance would go a long way towards building some kind of trust that the games are indeed fair. It is disappointing that the casino has chosen not to do this.

Conclusion

We have a mixed bag here. I enjoyed the variety of table games in particular, and I appreciate the good bonus policy and the quick withdrawals. It is definitely one of very few places that you can play several of their table games online. On the other hand despite the slots being new and different, and having the skill-based bonus rounds, I found them to be distinctly average and I am not in a hurry to go back and play them more. The extra wagering on most slots in the bonus terms, the lack of support options, and the missing licensing information brings things down further in my estimation.