Question Questions About People's Experiences With Bonuses

[TheLastCylon]

I think that I've made it pretty clear that I'm anti-bonus in my own play, but the majority of people here are not. I'm curious about their experiences with bonuses.

I understand that no one wants to admit if they are losing, so feel free to keep your poll answer anonymous.

To go along with this, I'm curious as to why people play bonuses? Do they extend your play time? Do they increase your chances of winning? Do you see differences between when you play with a bonus and without a bonus? Does your favorite casino just happen to offer bonuses?

Also, for everyone, I am legitimately curious, use this as an opportunity to say anything that you want about bonuses. If you don't play, like me, why don't you play bonuses? Bad experiences? Don't like the math?

 

[Janek12]

IMO, mathematically, it does not make any sense to play without bonuses as long as the games you want and like to play count towards the wagering requirements.

The fact that the funds are "tied" by the wagering requirements is irrelevant - if the player cashes out, chances are they will deposit the funds elsewhere and will play with the funds anyway. Mathematically, it is just one life-long gaming session.

What makes best sense, IMO, is what KasinoKing does - deposit, get bonus; if you make a profit, deposit the amount elsewhere... and rinse and repeat... possibly with the snowballing effect of increasing your bankroll.
And even if you do not make a steady profit like KasinoKing, you inevitably lose less over the same playtime. In other words, by taking bonuses, you are IMO effectively lowering the house edge of the games.

 

[KasinoKing]

Janek12 has already answered for me!

It's very rare that I cash out less than I deposit - in fact I can't remember the last time I did that.
If I finish the WR and have less than my deposit left, I would play on for level or bust.
So I voted for option 1.

KK

 

[ChopleyIOM]

I mainly like bonuses to extend my playtime, I will always crunch the numbers to see what my chances are of meeting the WR with my deposit intact and don't take on horrible D+B bonuses, although I have to say I've been concerned from time to time by the 'play curve' that seems to exist when playing on a bonus at MG casinos.

Very crudely expressed it seems that the first half of the WR the slots are loose, and you'll often get nicely into profit and only need average luck to get out with a profit, but then when the second half of the WR kicks in and particularly the last 20% or so, they just go feral and what looked like a dead cert on average luck to get out with deposit + some profit turns into a bloodbath.

I've seen it so many times at so many different MG casinos I'm really quite wary of bonus play at them these days, although it does perhaps fit in with the 'streaky' behaviour of MG slots that even their fans seem to readily admit exists.

 

[ChopleyIOM]

And even if you do not make a steady profit like KasinoKing, you inevitably lose less over the same playtime. In other words, by taking bonuses, you are IMO effectively lowering the house edge of the games.

How does this work then? I assume KK must be getting bonus offers that I ever never see, because even the most generous ones appear to be deposit back with average luck.

Unless the chumps are subsidising the VIPs?

 

[Scampo]

Why I like bonuses

Like KK, I have been playing with bonuses for a few years now and I have cashed out with MG ones the most. I am not into maths or odds but I know the MG machines well. A 100 + 100 bonus allows me to try several games with reasonable sized bets, usually .90 to 1.50 very rarely more. Outside of my range I find the money goes too fast or the win is too small.

I have more chances of getting a hit on a high variance slot with 300 spins than 100. I look for a good hit then grind. Example: I hit 5 cheques/wilds in freespins on multispin BTBA betting 1.44 (or so) which netted around 700 credits. Then it was easy to make a playthrough on low variance machines betting up to 2.25 max. I would not have been playing BTBA on a deposit of 100 without a bonus for the simple reason I like playing and want some time for my money. It has been said many times before but don't get greedy and be patient, big bets and frustration are a great way to bust out rapidly. It takes 3-5 hours to clear a 30X 100% bonus at my level. I'm happy with 3X my deposit, I quite often get up to 6X. In this case I did well and reached 10X, I am about to move house and will spend the money on fun things. Well apart from a couple of hundred for my bankroll

Of course I can't do this every time - but I do believe choice of game is a major factor along with avoiding tilt and loss chasing.