African Palace Casino Review

When the word ‘palace’ meets the word ‘casino’, chances are only one image comes to mind. Along with the Bellagio, Caesar’s Palace is probably the world’s most famous casino. Even today, long after it first flung its doors open to the chip loving world, it supersedes all other Las Vegas gambling haunts, and long may it continue to do so.

It’s funny, really. So many addresses have looked to try and usurp the Roman-themed icon, kick it from the throne, as it were. Many are actually far more formidable in terms of design and overall offering. At the MGM Grand you get a full cinematic experience even if you’re just walking past. Luxor invites you to enter via a recreation of the River Nile. And New York New York has a miniature Manhattan skyline to ogle. And by miniature we mean actually much taller than the tallest buildings in many small towns.

In contrast, African Palace doesn’t really resonate anywhere near as much. This is partly because of the myth that has long been perpetuated about Africa itself. Impoverished, incapable of helping itself out of the economic turmoil that has defined the last half of the 20th Century on what’s often referred to as ‘The Dark Continent’. And yet this is actually the most resource-rich corner of the globe, with a history of civilization that stems back far longer than the majority of Europe could ever hope to muster.

As such, it’s less surprising to see the background imagery for African Palace is a gold and diamond-encrusted casino lobby, dripping with glamour and riches. Finally a depiction that contradicts the Western stereotypes, this alone made us feel rather enthused about the prospect of actually getting involved with this particular online casino. And we don’t often say that- granted, we’re online casino reviewers, but sadly the majority of them are just plain repetitive and uninspired.

A Different Perspective

Once you have got past the jarring shock of a reference to Africa that doesn’t involve Bono banging on about some new cause he’ll probably realise was actually pretty condescending in another five years, it’s safe to say that from a technical perspective the first impressions of African Palace are also very positive.

For starters, the central image changes intermittently to show off the various deals and offers. OK, so this isn’t that mind blowing- we see this ALL THE TIME. Nevertheless, the way in which this is seamlessly embedded into the background image – so the transitions are smooth rather than feeling forced- is an impressive piece of design that, whilst subtle and unnoticeable to those inexperienced in judging online casinos, is commendable because it is subtle and unnoticeable to those inexperienced in judging online casinos. Fine work then.

Above this central image you’ll see an easy to figure out row of menus offering click-throughs to various parts of the casino. ‘Getting Started’ tells you everything you need to know about, err, getting started with African Palace. ‘Promotions’ is where you can learn the details of the various offers on the table for new and existing members; some of these are the same as those that are ticking by in the central image. Some are not.

Next we have ‘Games’, where you get a flavour for the games you will be able to play when you’re up and running. Finally we have the self-explanatory ‘Banking’, ‘Winners’, ‘Loyalty Program’, ‘Support’, and ‘Privacy’. Just in case there were any doubts, that’s information on the banking facilities for withdrawals and deposits, the latest winners and how much they have won, facts and stats about the loyalty scheme on offer, where to get assistance, and details of the privacy policy. First, though, the ‘Games’.

Temptation, Everywhere

If there’s one thing that African Palace isn’t short of, it’s ways for you to spend- or rather gamble- money. Depending on how good you are at gambling will probably mean the difference between the two.

Progressive Jackpots are basically the same as classic slots, only with a bonus game as standard and a progressive- i.e. accumulating- jackpot. This means as you play the pot gets bigger and bigger, rather than canceling itself out when no bet has been successful, reseting for another shot at the titles.

Classic Slots and Video Slots are the next game type, and again it should be pretty obvious what these refer to. Classic Slots are like one-armed bandits in pubs and bars – money in, hit spin, hope for some matching rows in order to get the payout. The video versions are a little more high tech, but overall nothing mind-blowing. It’s worth noting there are much better places to get your slot-related kicks that African Palace, but then this is a real online casino, and so the slots, whilst popular, should be an after thought.

Card and Table Games, on the other hand, are the backbone of what’s on offer and African Palace has some really good versions ready to play. Blackjack, Baccarat, Hold ‘em poker, Progressive Blackjack are all on offer, and although the actual equipment itself is quite basic- these aren’t the most up to date editions- they are incredibly playable and in some ways actually better than more complicated, high tech, bells and whistles efforts you’ll find elsewhere. Sometimes less is definitely more.

Other than this, you also have Video Poker – which is as it sounds – and Scratch Cards, which are also pretty commonplace. However, less regular are the Arcade Games- which take the simulation part out of things to increase the intensity and re-play value- and Asian Games. These last ones are pretty unique even in the more specialist end of the online casino market. Japanese Solo, which sounds like something from a NSFW website, is actually Japanese Solo Mahjong, you just can’t see the full title due to a text bleed into the black background. On top of that you also get classic Chinese WMF Mahjong and WMF Mahjong Pro, along with Pachinko. The design of this area is clunky, and there aren’t many options, but the fact it’s here at all is a definite bonus in our eyes.

Anything Else?

Yes. It’s worth noting that both the loyalty scheme and the promotional deals on offer at African Palace are impressive. Simply by signing up, you are automatically a VIP Club Member at the Cub level (it goes right up to Lion), which is better than most- you usually have to earn the first stripe. Rewards for VIPs are dished out incrementally, depending on experience.

Promotion wise, there are sign up, first, second, third and fourth deposit bonuses which are relatively competitive in terms of the generosity. Not bad at all then, especially as more regular plays also get ongoing promotions that change each week, or thereabouts, keeping things pretty interesting. Oh, and as a complete aside, but reassuringly, the online support comes in the form of both telephone and email, with individual email addresses given out for specific departments. Meanwhile, the while site is built on industry standard security, so you don’t have to worry about bank and personal details.

African Palace in Conclusion

Realistically what more is there to say? African Palace could do with a face lift ASAP, but everything is where it should be, the games are incredibly playable, if not state of the art, the offers good, and support and security impressive. A definite hit then.