Cocoa Casino: so delicious you don’t know whether to play at it or eat it. Seriously, that’s not hyperbole; check out the site’s homepage and see for yourself. Its logo comprises a red cherry dipped in chocolate. What’s that got to do with gambling? Okay, so the cherry could represent a classic slots symbol and the chocolate ties in with the Cocoa part of the name, but still, when was the last time you saw a casino that made your mouth water?
Cocoa Casino might score strongly for its arresting logo, but other elements of the homepage aren’t so alluring. The remainder of the site, which is available in English and Italian, favours an old school design, with dated glimmer effects, shadows and other graphical design flourishes that were last in fashion a decade ago.
Cocoa Casino is an unusual site in many respects. Its homepage header, for example, contains a welcome quote and a signature from Casino Manager James McKinnon. Virtual casinos seldom brand their website with staff names, but then Cocoa Casino doesn’t do things by the book.
Cocoa Casino started trading in 2006, and by the looks of it, that was the last time its site was updated. It speaks of having been named “one of the top online casinos worldwide” but you can safely discount that claim altogether. Rival Powered is the name of the casino’s proprietary software that’s used at Cocoa Casino. Sign up and you can take your pick from over 200 casino games, a figure that is allegedly augmented on a monthly basis.
Its ‘Vegas-style’ casino games are designed to attract everyone from casual players to high rollers. Whether you came here to spend a little or a lot, there’ll be a game pitched at a level that will be to your tastes. The site prides itself on its 24-hour customer service and urges prospective players to download its software and discover why it is “considered one of the best online casinos on the internet”. Hmm.
There’s a range of deposit options available at Cocoa Casino, though it’s worth noting that its banking page – like the rest of the site – doesn’t appear to have been updated in quite a while. Choose from Neteller, EcoPayz, Ukash, Skrill, UseMyBank and credit card in the form of Visa and MasterCard.
Withdrawal options comprise Neteller, EcoPayz, Skrill or credit card. Despite providing an FAQ, there’s no information regarding withdrawal limits and times. A UK freephone number, international phone number and email address are provided however; try speaking to a customer service representative if you’re seriously considering signing up at Cocoa Casino.
Once you’ve downloaded the site’s software to your PC and installed it, you’ll be ready to log in and help yourself to some bonus cash. There is a $10 no-deposit bonus to get the ball rolling, which is nice. Then, when you make your maiden deposit, you’ll be able to claim a 100% match worth up to $500.
Alternatively, if you’re the sort of player who means business, deposit $1,500 and you’ll be given a $1,000 bonus on top. There’s also $50 to be made for referring a friend when they make their first deposit.
Once you’ve signed up and claimed your welcome bonus, there’s not a whole lot else to look forward to in terms of bonuses; just a 15% super reload bonus whenever you deposit via Ukash, Neteller, EcoPayz and Skrill. Remember that Ukash is officially no more, having been taken over by Skrill – don’t expect to learn of this at Cocoa Casino any time soon though.
There are two schemes in operation at Cocoa Casino that will allow you to earn a little extra on the side. The first of these involves comp points that can be earned on every $1 you wager. You’ll receive 1 comp point while playing games such as blackjack and baccarat and more for games such as poker, slots and keno. In fact, with keno you’ll earn 4 times as many comps as you would for blackjack. Earn 1,000 comp points and these can be swapped for $1 of bonus cash.
The other incentive to play at Cocoa Casino is on account of the site’s VIP scheme, known as The Cocoa Prestige System. Deposit $25-100 a week and you’ll find yourself at a level called Club White. $100-200 elevates you to Club Yellow, before rising to Club Green, Purple, Silver and finally Gold when you deposit over $5,000 a week. At this level, you’ll receive a 5x comp points upgrade, personal account manager, 30% insurance upgrade and fast cashout. Believe it or not, there are actually two additional levels you can hypothetically reach: Club Diamond, for players who deposit over $10,000 a week and Jet Set Society, a tier that’s so elite information about its workings is only available on request.
Because Cocoa Casino is strictly a download-based casino, there’s no instant play facility. Mobile and Mac owners are instantly discounted, though they should be able to come to terms with this devastating loss. There are other casinos on the web after all, many of which have been updated in the past 10 years. You can tell that Cocoa Casino is ancient because its slots are in a category called i-Slots. The remaining categories are Slots, Progressive Slots, Table Games, Video Poker and Specialty Games.
Cocoa Casino features a range of 3 and 5-reel slots, over 40 titles in all, including Grandmas’ Attic, Scary Rich 2 and Shamrock Isle. If these sound less than impressive, that’s because they are less than impressive. Still, they’re different if nothing else, and by ‘different’ read ‘dated’. Even the games marked ‘New’ are ancient.
Cocoa Casino proudly introduces its i-Slots as being “multi-reel, multi-line slots that up the ante with amazing extras like animated video clips, interactive bonus rounds and story lines”. Newsflash: they’re called slots and they’ve been all over the web for years.
The table games at Cocoa include the usual suspects from Roulette to Blackjack. There’s Baccarat, 5-Card Poker, Craps, Pai Gow and Red Dog. Then there’s the video poker section, stocked with Aces and Faces, Joker Poker and Tens or Better, among others. Finally, the Specialty section has Keno, Sudoku and the odd scratch game like Gunslingers Gold.
The best thing that can be said about Cocoa Casino is that it has a nice logo. That counts in its favour. In every other respect, this hopelessly outdated site offers absolutely nothing. Visiting a site like this is the internet equivalent of exploring an abandoned building and hoping the rotting stairwell doesn’t give way and send you plummeting to the ground floor in a plume of dust.
Cocoa Casino might still work fine, but you just don’t know for sure without signing up, installing its software, crossing your fingers and praying for the best. You can do better than this and so can Cocoa Casino.
100% up to $500