For many online casino players, Intercasino is very well known thanks in no small part to the number of years it has been operating – indeed Intercasino was one of the very first virtual casinos to start-up in the late 90s. I play here on a regular basis so I decided it was time to update the review of this well-known gambling destination. I was particularly interested to see if the casino lived up to its 'Best Casino' award it won in 2005! Intercasino is powered by software from the Canadian provider, Cryptologic. As players of this software type will know, the best player experience is achieved through using the download version of the casino. However, for those seeking a quick gambling fix, a no-download version is available. It should be noted though that this instant casino contains only a fraction of the full range of games available. Similarly, with the initial installer being only 525k, downloading should not be a huge issue, even on a dial-up connection. Even more so, a free software CD is available on request. Installing the required software is easy and likewise so is signing up as a new user. A standard form is used to capture a new players details and players can opt to play on the US $ version of the casino or the UK £ one. My account was denominated in US $ and since I was already a member, I simply had to login with my username and password to be up and running. A quick visit to the cashier and I soon had $100 sitting in my account ready for some casino action. Incidentally, all bank processing is handled by E-cash Direct and a range of deposit options are available; I chose to use NeTeller to make my purchase although credit cards, FirePay, Citadel, Cheque and Wire transfer are also viable alternatives. On this deposit I was not entitled to any bonus. However, it should be mentioned that a huge $100 match is available each and every month with a wagering requirement of just 25 times the bonus. The Intercasino games are accessible in two ways. Firstly, a standard menu-driven system is used with games grouped by type, e.g. 'video poker' and 'classic video slots'. However, some of the available games are also displayed on a virtual gaming floor. Various tables and slots are shown and a player simply has to click on the game required to get playing. I quite liked this approach, particularly as progressive games shown on the floor display their jackpot amounts – good to see what looks like a good bet! With my $100 sitting ready for some action, I decided first of all to try out some of the table games available, and specifically my favorite, Blackjack. At Intercasino there are 5 different Blackjack games available ranging from a traditional single-deck game to more recent inventions such as Super Fun 21. I sat at a multi-player 8-deck table – a nice touch at Intercasino is that many of the games can be played at tables occupied by other players. Betting limits at Intercasino vary according to game, but as an example, Blackjack bets can range from $2 to $2500. This was fine for me and I am sure this range would be fine for low and high-rollers alike. For more high-limit action, players may also consider the multi-hand Blackjack which allows up to 5 simultaneous bets to be placed at once. I guess with the casino being so well established they are able to offer this great choice of betting limit to players. With regards to the actual game presentation at Intercasino, the casino has done a pretty good job. The graphics used are of a reasonably high quality, although I have to say the table game colors used were slightly dull in my opinion. Of course, as long as it's clear to the player what cards are being dealt though I don't see this to be a major problem. All of the games available are presented with suitable sound effects and some of the games, such as my Blackjack game, have an American voice over. My only disappointment with the games in general was the speed with which they are played. I like a fast game, whether it is blackjack or a slot game. At Intercasino, whilst there is no real delay, the time it takes for cards to be dealt or for a slot to spin and be ready to go again takes a little time. Again, this is probably just a personal thing but I like to play pretty rapidly. With regards to my actual luck at the Blackjack table, I put in a pretty average performance. I didn't really win anything but nor did I really lose anything. Of course, the randomness of the games at Intercasino is nothing to be concerned about – a random number generator ensures that a fair game is dealt. Whilst I have heard some people comment that Intercasino can be 'streaky', I personally have found that whilst bad luck runs do come along, I have seen a player have multiple runs of winning hands. Since I wasn't doing anything great at the Blackjack table I decided to try out some of the other table games available. The usual mix of games is present and I was able to boost my bank roll with a little Caribbean Stud Poker play. Although the $130,000 progressive jackpot on this game was tempting, I decided to give the $1 per round side bet a miss. Instead, I decided to put the money down on the Let it Ride table. I usually hate this game, but not this time! I was dealt an initial couple of 10s and since 10s or better pays out, I let all bets ride. What I didn't expect was for the other two turns to appear in the dealer's hand! This 4-of-a-kind saw my bank balance shoot up to over $700! What's more, my luck continued with 3-card poker and so with over $800 sitting in my account I moved on to the Video Poker selection. At Intercasino 8 different types of Video Poker games are available and each of these is offered in a both single-hand and multi-hand versions. This selection is reasonable, although I have seen a greater selection elsewhere. Nevertheless, I was still able to enjoy Jacks-or-Better 5-hand play as well as some Deuces Wild action. No mega hands on this one, but no severe losing streak to dent my bankroll! Although I was eager to stop playing and cash out, I realized it would not be fair to slot fans if I didn't report on the slot games available at Intercasino. As would be expected from a major casino operator, a decent number of slot games are available including some with huge progressive jackpots (the Millionaire's Club jackpot stood at almost $2.5m at the time of playing!). Some novel slot games are also available including a great selection of 'Marvel' games. These feature characters from the Marvel comics and are really great fun – playing a slot featuring the Incredible Hulk is a novel experience! In fact, I like the Hulk feature slot game for another reason. Apart from having great graphics and sound effects, it also has a killer bonus feature. With my bank balance looking huge, I opted to bet big at $18 a spin. This proved to be a great move though, as the bonus round spun in early on and rewarded a huge $1422! My luck just wouldn't die when I moved on to the Rags to Riches progressive game. Many people will report that progressives pay out all or nothing due to the nature of the game. This wasn't the case for me though – three lucky sacks appeared on the win line for a healthy $450 win for my $3 bet. Add to this a $606 Bejeweled winner and $227 Northern Lights winner and I ended up with around $2000 sitting ready for cash in! With this being pretty much my all-time biggest win it was at this point that I was thankful to be playing at a major casino operator – no concerns over receiving winnings here. I simply requested my withdrawal and within 4 days my cash-in was processed. One minor qualm is that all withdrawals are subject to a $1 processing fee, but generally banking works very well here. Finally, as always I tested customer support at Intercasino and have to say I was very impressed. Contact can be made through both email and telephone support and impressively, toll free numbers are available for pretty much every major country in the world. Similarly, email support is pretty good also with helpful personnel ready to reply to any emails they receive. All in all I think Intercasino has done a very good job, and the experience they have built up over the past few years definitely shows. The casino offers a varied selection of games which on the whole are very well presented. Although I found games to be a little slow on occasion, this is more a personal gripe and isn't something to be taken too seriously. On a positive note, key functions such as banking and support work excellently at this casino. Couple this with the great monthly bonus and simply the piece of mind that a major casino brings, and Intercasino becomes a very highly-recommended destination. Of course, the $2000 win will always bring a smile to my face!
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