Guru Play Casino Review

Guru Play is an online casino established in 2010 with games supplied by Net Entertainment. It is operated by Smart Gaming Group and is registered under the jurisdiction of United Kingdom. Last Updated: September 24, 2023.

This casino is no longer open for business.

1.5

Our rating: Bad

3
Blacklisted

Review of Guru Play

Guru Play is an interesting mixed live dealer and software casino that is licensed and operated out of London in the United Kingdom. It is in fact a white-label or "skin" of another casino known as Smart Live Casino that also broadcasts on Sky channel on British television, hence you will see the exact same live and software games at both sites.

Warning - delayed payments, rogue affiliate program

We have taken steps to blacklist Guru Play due to a large number of complaints from members of the casino's affiliate program that have not been paid after a change in the casino's ownership. In addition the owners of this casino are responsible for the demise of the also-blacklisted Grand Duke casino. We regard this as a sign of financial instability with the potential to put player funds at risk. The sensible thing to do is to avoid this casino.

Update May 2013: our suspicions proved well founded as the casino has been shut down.

Guru Play Live Casino

The live casino at Guru Play offers roulette, baccarat and blackjack games at various different time-slots during the day that are geared towards British Standard Time. Roulette is run just about all day and night, blackjack is available from the afternoon into the early hours of the morning, while baccarat is a late night only offering. The dealers operate from a studio that features a backdrop of the London cityscape visible behind them, rather than the standard fake casino floor look that most other live casinos exhibit.

As the casino is licensed in the United Kingdom, all the dealers must be licensed croupiers. There are both male and female dealers working shifts on the tables and during our time at the tables we found them to be professional and competent. The dealers do a good job of filling in the gaps in relatively slow moving games like roulette by chatting about current events and news, along with the games themselves.

Net Entertainment Software Casino

Of course a casino would be fairly limited if it only offered three games, so Guru Play also has a Net Entertainment powered instant play casino available that offers a much larger selection of games. The games on offer include a wide range of both video and classic slot machines, single and multi-hand video poker, table games including Blackjack, Baccarat, Caribbean Stud, and Three Card Poker, as well as a small collection of parlour and scratchcard games. We regard Net Entertainment games as just about the best instant play games on the market today, so the games are all high quality and fun to play. Guru Play also offers a mobile casino app if you own an Android phone.

The games are great, however the main drawback we can see here is that some of the newer and more spectacular Net Entertainment games and progressive jackpots such as Jack Hammer, Hall of Gods, and Mega Fortune are not currently available at Guru Play, and the progressive jackpot amounts are smaller than other comparable Net Entertainment casinos.

Promotions and bonus offers

An interesting fact about the sign-up bonuses and ongoing promotions at Guru Play is that they are exclusive to the live casino. There are bonuses for your first deposit, and ongoing daily, weekly, and monthly bonuses. Unfortunately we recommend that players interested in trying the casino should do so without claiming the bonuses because the wagering requirements are very high. Due to the slower nature of play at live casinos as opposed to software casinos, your deposits could be locked in for a very long time should you take up one of these offers.

Banking, support, and service

Guru Play has one of the most comprehensive lists of deposit and withdrawal options we have seen here at Casino Listings. Depending on your withdrawal method, you can expect to receive your winnings within 48 hours for most e-wallets, and in our test we received ours a little over day after submitting our request. Native English speaking customer support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, via telephone or email.

If you meet the qualifying requirements to gain membership to the VIP Club at Guru Play, you will receive the services of a dedicated account manager with private contact details along with various perks and bonuses.

Conclusion

Guru Play is certainly a mixed bag of good features along with a few drawbacks. Being licensed and regulated in the tightly regulated United Kingdom is a major plus point in our view. The live casino offers a decent set of professionally run games, but not all games are available at all hours. There are a bunch of bonuses on offer here but the wagering requirements are so steep that you would be better off not claiming them. The instant play software is great, but the latest and greatest games are not available. You get the picture! So it is a qualified recommendation we are giving here, mainly for players who like live casino games and aren't interested in claiming a bonus.

Warning! This casino is blacklisted and should be avoided.
1 reply • Last post

Comments

zaLambino
True PlayerTrue Player
Lambino's picture
Location: SA
Joined: 14 Apr 2015
Posts: 784
Thanks given: 382
Thanks received: 718
12 April 2021 - 10:29am
#1

A casino mainly targeting South African players has recently just opened under the name Play Live casino and I wonder if its linked in anyway to this one

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