888Casino review (UK)

I had the option of claiming double on my first deposit up to £100. This is a standard match deposit bonus, the wagering requirements are fair at 30x. This means I can claim a bonus of up to £100 but I would have to play through any bonus money thirty times before it can become withdrawable cash. The average wagering requirements for this type of bonus is about thirty-five, so 888 ticks the box here.

Any wins from the bonus money are capped at £500 which is quite generous compared to many online casinos. I do like the 888 welcome offer but I don’t think it stands outs. There is a no deposit offer too. You can grab £88 in free play but this offer has much heavier restrictions as you would expect. The no deposit offer comes with fifty times wagering with bonus wins capped at £10.

888 split their games out on the left sidebar menu with slots, casino games and live casino all separated. I tried my hand at the slots.

The selection is pretty impressive with a decent range across top providers. However, I did find it funny how they categorise their slots. The top menu categorisation includes Jackpot, NetEnt, Red Tiger, 888 Exclusive, 1-25 lines and 25+ lines. I’ve never seen this before and just seems too random. I don’t think many players will even be familiar with the likes of Red Tiger and 25+ lines etc. It just seems a strange and random way to categorize slots.

There is a search feature in the top left corner but it’s not very visible. There needs to be a proper breakdown or an improved search feature. I wasn’t a fan of the way the slots were displayed. They are broken up into more random categories such as ‘Mother of Dragons’, ‘Hungry Like the Wolf’ and ‘Night at the Movies’. It would be much easier to find a game if there was the search feature that broke games down into theme, provider and jackpot. The live casino section is neatly out with a more mindful display. Tables are categorised by game so it’s easy to find your preferred game on the virtual felt. There is a large selection with plenty of variations, it’s one of the more bulked out live casinos I’ve seen.

I opted to spin the reels of the Wings of RA slot which has a daily jackpot drop. Unfortunately, I had no luck on this game whatsoever. But that’s not the worst of it, there was a lot of lag on the spins. I’ve spun the reels across many online casinos and the lag on 888 casino slots was very much noticeable. I’m sure there are factors with the internet speed etc, but I’ve had no issues with other slot games on other casinos I played just yesterday.

The mobile site is a bit clunky and too close to that of the website. However, the mobile app is very good. It’s sharp, sophisticated and lays out everything clearly for a seamless user experience.

The games are presented very nicely with new slots at the top, then daily jackpots, megaways and exclusives. The slot thumbnails are attractive, round and perfectly sized for a finger which I found very inviting. You can find everything through the hamburger menu in the top left. Casino games, promotions, live casino and everything else. The live casino section has a nice and simple layout, you pick your table game before being welcomed by a variety of live streams. It also lays out tables by table limits. You can dive into something that suits your budget, rather than discover table limits after you’ve entered the live stream. The mobile app is very responsive and I found the gameplay on slots to be much better than on desktop - a lot less lag, great graphics and a lot of fun.

I did find the support section a little difficult to find. You need to click on your account section where you’ll find the ‘contact us’ option, which only gives you the option to send a web message. I did receive an email that said support was limited due to Covid-19.

While I was within the cashier I saw the Live Chat feature. I’m surprised this is not on the main site and you have to go within the cashier to contact support through live chat, phone and email. I didn’t think to go to the cashier to find the live chat section. When I opened the live chat feature, I was presented with a pop up that told me that live chat was unavailable. I queried this on a web message and found out that this is due to the lockdown rules. The web message response time took around eight hours.

This is another area I found it very difficult to reach. Annoyingly, after spending some time looking for the verification section. I had to consult the FAQs to find out that it’s located within the cashier section. You have the option of uploading your passport, driver’s license or general ID card. To verify my ID was very easy, I managed to swiftly upload a copy of my passport to the system, then I received a confirmation email shortly after.

After going through the three-step sign up process, I had the option to make my first deposit through one of three payment options. Visa, Mastercard or the Paysafecard eWallet. When I went back to the cashier for a second deposit there were a lot more deposit options available, including PayPal, Neteller, Skrill and even phone. I can only assume that the first deposit is limited for player security reasons. I used Visa to make a deposit, this was processed instantly. I used the same method to withdraw and I received a notification saying the payment will be processed within 24 hours and the withdrawal will show on my bank within three working days. Debit card was the only withdrawal option. I’m not sure if this is because it’s the payment method I used to deposit or not. However, you have to wait for withdrawals to appear on your statement after a few days. I also noticed that there was a ‘Reverse Withdrawal’ section within the casher. This sits between the deposit and withdraw option. I know some casinos do this but it’s more prominent on 888. I don’t like this as it’s not socially responsible. It encourages players to play after they have already made a decision not to play anymore.