Play responsibly

Another form of paid entertainment

We all need to be entertained. All work and no play make Jack (or Jill) a boring boy (or girl), as the saying goes. Most of the entertainment in Canada cost money. A trip to the cinema, tickets to the opera, even an evening at the local pub with your friends; they all cost money, and online betting is no different.

What's different is that you can earn a few dollars when you play online slots or blackjack, or whatever. It is this thrill or, worse, the expectation, that can get you into trouble. You need to know how to play responsibly, and if you can't, you need to learn how.

Responsible gambling starts by doing some research

You should never blindly rush into anything. Every time you try something for the first time, you need to do some research to find out what you're getting into. You wouldn't, for example, start playing blackjack if you totally ignored the rules, would you? The same applies to any form of online gambling.

Take a look at some canadian websites. Don't sign up or play; it's just research, so check them out. Take a look at their terms and conditions. If there are words that you don't know the meaning of, such as "wagering requirements", for example, look for these words specifically. Check out some social media and chat sites related to the game.

Set limits before playing

It's too easy to get carried away by the moment. So you have to put limits in place.

#1 Set up a money limit for a gaming session

Limit the number of euro that you are willing to spend during a gaming session is a good starting point with a responsible gaming ethic. You should already know how much money you have left after paying your bills and living expenses. This is the only money you should be tapping into. Never try to spend what you don't have.

#2 Set up a time limit for a game session

Having decided on your cash limit, the next step on the road to getting ready to play responsibly is to set a time limit for each online session. It's too easy to get carried away with the moment, and the longer your session, the more likely you are to spend dollars. So, set a time limit for yourself and stick to it.

Control your behavior when you play

It's very good, leaving with good intentions. But, if they fall by the wayside, as soon as you enter an online betting session, you could find yourself in trouble. So, the next part of this LOGEN on learning to play responsibly focuses on defending your weapons.

#1 Beware of bonuses

Most of the players canadian start online betting by claiming a welcome bonus. This is the most popular type of bonus, and all casinos have them to attract new players to their platforms. They are formulated in terms that seem very generous, and players often claim them and win money only to discover that they cannot withdraw their winnings until they have satisfied the wagering requirements of the bonus.

This is a classic case where a player canadian may lose sight of the time and money restrictions that he has imposed as part of his responsible gambling rules. The excitement of making the necessary additional deposits and playing them to access their winnings takes over. Don't let him do it.

#2 Understand that the house usually wins

All online betting games, whether slots or table games, have a house edge and a percentage of RTP (return to the player). The smallest house edge is usually 1.5%, and this applies to some variants of blackjack. If the house advantage is 1.5%, it means that the RTP is 98.5%. You will never see an RTP of 100% or more, which basically means that you will lose in the long run. Understanding this is fundamental for responsible gambling.

The team of Frolicking ORB fully recognizes that you could turn the tide and win in the short term. But over a longer period of time or over many sessions, you will lose.

#3 Don't fall for the player's sophistry

The "sophistry of the player" is the belief that the repetition of circumstances will repeat a previous victory. It sucks. All online casinos canadian duly authorized and regulated have RNGs (random number generators) that determine the outcome of the games, whether they are slots, cards or other table games. The key word here is "random", and understanding it is fundamental to learning how to play responsibly.

The dictionary explanation of "randomness" is "a result that occurs without a defined purpose, reason or pattern". Online betting platforms spend a lot of money to have RNGs independently audited and certified that they produce random and fair game results. LOGEN confirms that repetitive circumstances are nothing more than a fluke.

Use of responsible gaming tools

If you want to take your responsible gambling approach to the next level, you may want to "formalize" your own restrictions using the tools offered by the online casinos you use. Here are some of the most popular tools.

The responsible gambling betting limit tool

This tool allows you to set a daily, weekly or monthly deposit limit. Once in place, the platform canadian will alert you if you attempt to exceed this limit. It is not affected by money transfers between different wallets or by withdrawals that you may make. Any increase you may try to make will only take effect for 7 days, while any decrease will be applied immediately.

The loss limit tool

As our team here at Gambling ORB can tell you, chasing losses is bad news. This is an easy way to increase your losses. But with a loss limitation tool, you can limit the amount that you can lose or transfer over a certain period of time.

The tool Plays responsibly

Punter canadian who are experiencing a losing streak can use this tool to suspend their access to the casino for a period of 1 to 30 days.

Other tools can help you play responsibly:

• The budget calculation tool - Helps you analyze your income and expenses to arrive at a potential betting budget.
• The Reality Check – This tool takes into account all the real money games you play. It works on the placement of bets. It is applied session by session and you receive a report after each session. It's not restrictive, it's informative.
• The self-assessment of responsible gambling – This is a tool that asks you a number of questions about your gaming activities. Based on your answers, it will indicate if you are playing responsibly or if you might have a problem.

The last of the available tools is the self-exclusion tool which is part of the discussion below.

What you need to do if you feel that you can't stop playing

If you feel that you want to stop playing but are having difficulty doing so, you may need to use a self-exclusion tool. This is the ultimate step that everything canadian must cross if he is worried that he will not be able to play responsibly.

Self-exclusion, also called self-prohibition, is a voluntary measure that any player canadian can take. Once in force, it completely excludes a player from the areas of gambling sites or an online betting site. All betting platforms canadian are required to provide this option to their customers.

There are various self-exclusion programs all over canadian . They tend to work in a similar way.

• Choose the platform from which you want to be excluded.
• Sign an act or validate electronically confirm with the platform the duration of the exclusion.

LOGEN advises players canadian to think long and seriously before activating a self-exclusion order. Once in force (there is usually a 24-hour cooling-off period), it can only be revoked after the requested exclusion period has expired.

If you think you need help, here's several support organizations to which you can talk to find out how to play responsibly before you make a rash decision and regret it in hindsight – companies like GamCare and BeGambleAware.org . You may also like read the guide "Gambling addiction and Problem gambling" on the website helpguide.org .