Reel Island Casino in a nutshell
Reel Island is a new-for-2015 casino venture, and certainly the most impressive to date created by Imperium Network Solutions. This UK-based brand now has a dozen casinos to its name, including Jackpot Luck Casino and Diamond 7 Casino. They’re based in London and run with a UK gambling license.
Their latest creation has been designed with mobile users specifically in mind, although desktop players can still get just as much out of the casino. There’s a ‘huge’ (their words, not ours) deposit bonus available – 100% up to £100, plus you can grab yourself 25 free spins on some of NetEnt’s most popular online slot titles.
So, is ‘Reel Island’ a top gambling destination or a tourist-trap that you’d be better off avoiding? Read on to find out …
What’s the look and feel of Reel Island Casino?
The architects employed by Reel Island Casino seem to have done a top-notch job. The site is designed as a marriage between traditional online casinos and more contemporary ones. It’s a meeting of minds and styles that works well.
If you do manage to win big here then expect your successes to be announced via a rolling news feed to the right hand side of the screen.
What games are available at Reel Island Casino?
A journey to Reel Island Casino will reward you with plenty of gaming options – slots, table games, live casino games and even bingo!
There are well over 200 slots here. Aside from the three mentioned above that you receive your free spins on, we suggest you check out Neon Staxx, Go Bananas! and Twin Spin.
The casino games available are as follows:
- Roulette (12 varieties)
- Blackjack (18)
- Baccarat (6)
- Casino Poker (11)
You’ll also find the odd ‘other’ game such as red dog, sharp shooter and six shooter. No craps or sic bo though.
The live casino has roulette and blackjack only.
You can add a few virtual sports games, scratch cards and keno to the mix. There are also three bingo options – these are bingo rooms though, as opposed to arcade bingo games.
The following software providers all make contributions to Reel Island Casino:
- 1X2 Gaming
- 2 By 2 Games
- Amaya
- Aristrocrat
- Elk Gaming
- Leander
- Multicommerce
- NetEnt
- NYX/NextGen Gaming
- Quickspin
- Thunderkick
- WHG
That’s quite a long list, but we have to be honest as say that out of those providers only NetEnt, Leander and perhaps NYX/Next Gen Gaming usually excite us.
As mentioned in the intro, Reel Island Casino seems to have been designed with mobile players very definitely in mind. You’ll have no problem using the site on your smart phone or tablet.
Live support is available 24/7 but when we used them we found they stretched the definition of ‘support’ by some way.
What promotions are available at Reel Island Casino?
Let’s take a look at that ‘huge’ welcome bonus. We’re not sure what exactly is supposed to be huge about it, as it’s a very standard 100% welcome bonus up to a maximum of £100. You need to deposit an amount of at least £20 in order to qualify for your bonus. On top of your casino welcome bonus cash you also get twenty-five free spins on any one of three cracking slots: Starburst, Gonzo’s Quest or Spiñata Grande. These slots have all been created by NetEnt and are among the best slots in the business.
Naturally, it would not be a welcome bonus unless there weren’t more strings attached than Pinocchio. Thankfully, the custom at Reel Island seems to be openness, as details of wagering conditions are available right next to the bonus offer on the site, and not hidden away as you find at several online casino sites. Your wagering requirements are 35x the bonus and deposit amounts, so if you deposit £100 and get a £100 bonus, you need to wager (35 x (100 + 100)) = £7,000.
However, what is not ‘up front’ are game contributions. You have to dig a little deeper to find those out. Lots of games on Reel Island – such as table games and poker games – do not count towards wagering requirements. It’s really only slots, ‘fun’ games and scratch cards that make any contribution.
If you want to meet your wagering requirements using bingo then your requirements fall from 35x to 6x.
Any winnings from your free spins are counted as casino bonus money, so you will need to wager them 35x before you can cash them out.
Reel Island Casino does like to give players plenty of bonuses. Every deposit you make at the casino receives a ten percent casino bonus boost up to a maximum of £50, for example. There are daily specials as well – on Thursdays you receive double loyalty points for all your casino activity.
Loyalty points as earned in the usual way – by playing casino games at Reel Island. There are five levels to the scheme, from bronze to platinum. You need 5,000 points to progress from bronze to silver, and 50,000 to make it all the way to platinum. You earn a maximum of three loyalty points for every £10 you wager – but only on slots. There’s a sliding scale based on which game you choose – roulette is only 0.25 points per £10, for example.
You can redeem your loyalty points as soon as you have amassed 1,000 of them. Every 200 points are worth £1.
To make a deposit or withdrawal at Reel Island Casino you can use your Visa or MasterCard credit or debit card. You can also use alternative casino payment methods: Skrill, Neteller, Paysafecard (now incorporating UKash) or Poli.
The minimium depsoit is £20, and the minimum withdrawal is £30. There are no maximums, but if you ask to withdraw more than £2,000 in any one 24-hour period, then you’ll be asked to provide proof of your ID and address.
Deposits are taken via your chosen payment method instantaneously. Withdrawals take between 48 hours and five days to process depending upon your chosen banking method, and the amount you wish to withdraw.
The final verdict
So, do we think Reel Island Casino is the ‘reel’ deal or a ‘reel’ pile of gambling poop? It’s a lively and colourful site, and there are plenty of gaming options. We would like to see a couple more top-rate providers, and the addition of video poker games.
Other than that, we find very little for us to complain about here. If you fancy a wagering holiday, then blow the dust off your wagering passport and book your tickets for a trip to Reel Island Casino.