Why I hate playing casino games in practice mode

There are two ways you can play casino games online: for real money, or for free in practice mode. The latter option is essentially designed to give you a chance to check out the game catalogue before you sign up and deposit cash into your gambling account, which is cool if you’re looking for specific games or you’re comparing a few different international casino sites. For the most part, however, free-play online gaming is a frustrating experience and can’t hold a candle to the real cash equivalent. Here’s why.

#1	World's Largest! Stake.com The unrivalled VIP experience!	Visit Stake Stake.com Review
18+ gamble responsibly Full terms.
#2	Online Slots Kings Slots.lv 200% up to $1000	Join Slots.lv Slots.lv Review
#3	Top RTG casino Raging Bull Casino 250% deposit bonus + 50 free spins	Visit Raging Bull Raging Bull Casino Review
#4	Start your engines! Ignition Casino 200% up to $2,000 Pokies & Poker Welcome Bonus!	Visit Ignition Ignition Casino Review
We’re welcoming players to Ignition with a combined Pokies & Poker Welcome Bonus — our biggest ever. Get up to $3,000 when you make your first deposit with Bitcoin, or up to $2,000 when you deposit with a credit card. Full terms.
#5	Bitcoin Friendly Bovada Casino 100% up to $3000	Visit Bovada Bovada Casino Review

You can’t win real money at practice play casinos

The whole idea of online gambling is to win cash. Whether you’re playing blackjack or baccarat, video poker or slot machines, or even throwing dice on a street corner, the ultimate goal is always the same: to bet on the result in the hope of getting some real reward in return for a successful outcome.

Take money out of the equation, and digital casino games lose the very essence of their existence. It’s a bit like kissing your cousin, as they say in the classics.

Progressive jackpots require cash credits

Online progressive slot games are among the biggest draws at any real money gambling site – or any land-based gaming venue, for that matter. For just a couple of silver coins per spin, you can put yourself in the running to win millions of dollars. Just look at Microgaming’s Mega Moolah slot and Net Entertainment’s Mega Fortune pokie, the latter of which coughed up a world-record EUR €17.8 million jackpot in 2013. You can’t even trial progressive slots games in free mode, let alone partake in the potentially life-rewards on offer.

There are no free live dealer casino games

Live online casino games provide a nice blend of digital convenience and real-time human interaction, but they are only available when you gamble with real cash. Why? Because live dealer tables and casino studios are expensive to run. The croupiers, adjudicators and technical staff all need to be paid, after all, while the operators are always in search of profits – as with any other line of business.

So if you want to play real live blackjack, live baccarat and live dealer roulette games online, you’d best think about depositing some of those hard-earned money into your casino account.

Free slots and online roulette games aren’t much fun

There is a case for saying you can still get some kind of benefit from free play when it comes to online casino games which require an element of skill. In online blackjack and video poker, for example, practicing without cash on the table can be useful for learning the basics and developing your strategic play.

For games which function purely on chance, however, removing the thrill of winning money also kills all the fun. What’s the point of playing online slots when you can’t bet real coins? Why bother putting all those chips on the roulette layout if there is no big pay-off for that lucky spin?

Without cash on the line, free online slots, roulette, bingo, lotto and other such chance games lose most of their lustre. You’re just clicking a mouse button and watching a dressed-up random number generator churn out meaningless results.

Big casino wins pay nothing in demo mode

Every gambler has hot streaks and cold snaps – it’s the very nature of the beast. You can win nothing in 15 hands of blackjack, then hit the jackpot on your very first spin on the slots. It’s all random, and it’s all part of the charm.

Just about the worst thing imaginable for any punter is spending the best of one’s good fortune on practice casino games. There are few more frustrating feelings in life than scoring a huge win and knowing you can’t collect a single cent (we speak from experience on that front).

Stick to playing real money casino games, and you’ll never risk wasting your luck on a dry run.

We recommend Stake.com as our top-rated casino site for players from United States, which has some excellent welcome bonuses available for new players along with a great range of free-play and real money games to choose from.