PlayOLG.ca Review

After successfully offering its residents and the world impressive casino action in Windsor, Niagara Falls, and Rama for two decades, Ontario has proven it can deliver a great gambling experience. Tired of surrendering their potential piece of that lucrative internet gaming pie to offshore sites, taking the action online was inevitable. It was simply a question of when would it happen and it finally did.

PlayOLG.ca finally opened its virtual doors in January. Casual gamblers and hard-core casino enthusiasts can finally enjoy all their favourite slots and table games from the comforts of home. Plus it’s all legal, regulated, and tax free in Canadian dollars.

Does PlayOLG.ca Stack Up?

Simply put, PlayOLG.ca is fun and filled with promise, however it’s not without some small shortcomings. Read on as we dig deeper to discover the strengths and weaknesses of gambling with your government.

PlayOLG.ca has only been in business since January 2015, but it’s backed by the government and regulated by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.

Residents of Ontario no longer have to take a road trip or rely on offshore sites if they want to gamble. PlayOLG.ca delivers exciting casino action from the convenience of your Ontario home.

It's something Ontarians have been doing for years at many popular online casinos. But now Ontarians can play a variety of table games and slots with proceeds going to the Province of Ontario to meet community, healthcare, and infrastructure needs. If your goal is to help your province make money, this is a good place to play. But if your goal is to be treated like a VIP and enjoy big promotions, there are far better choices.

Who Can Play?

You’ll need to be at least 19 years old and reside in Ontario to play at PlayOLG.ca. Several other provinces do offer their own online casinos, which are reviewed on this site. They vary in their quality and offerings.

Getting Started

Registration is quick and easy. You’ll need to provide your name, address, and date of birth before selecting a username and password. You’ll also be encouraged to set your own safety limits like weekly deposit maximums and restrictions on how many hours you can play per week. These are optional but they will be enforced if you opt in. You can start playing for free or make an instant deposit to win real money. With no software to install, getting in the game really is that fast.

Game Selection

If you’ve visited an offshore online casino, you’ll probably find Play OLG’s game selection a little lacking. However, depending on your preferred games, it may be all that you are looking for and nothing more. Players in Ontario can enjoy table games and a variety of slots or purchase lottery tickets online. Video poker is expected to launch at some point in 2023.

The site currently offers your choice of American, European, or supreme roulette, blackjack, three card fast poker, mini baccarat, sic bo, and war. Slot games include Golden Goddess, Kitty Glitter, Vegas Hits, and a dozen other titles that may be familiar favorites.

Given the crown corporation’s commitment to offering safe, convenient, and modern ways to play, you should be able to count on an online sportsbook, poker room, and bingo hall in the future. The OLG is launching the Ontario online casino in phases so they can iron out any kinks as the site grows.

Software

While the main website and gaming lobby are rather simplistic, the games themselves are exciting and authentic. The table games are vivid with fluid animations and vibrant sounds, however at times the software could be a little slow. While the games are powered by IGT and High5 Games, which are leaders in the industry, it definitely less smooth than the competition at times. It's possible that OLG is running on slower servers to start out with and will be upgrading to faster ones in the near future, though we can't be certain. The slot games at the time of this writing were a mixed bag with some titles feeling rather basic, but you can expect more elaborate titles in the future.

System Requirements

You can access the site from any modern PC or Mac. There’s no software to download, as the whole experience runs right inside your browser using Flash. Although it is technically possible to play from tablets and phones, the site simply isn’t optimized for smaller screens yet. Our team struggled to get the games working on an iPad and iPhone with Android devices presenting their own difficulties, but again, with the popularity of mobile play we’d be surprised if this kink wasn’t worked out soon. Keep in mind that you’ll need an internet connection even if you play for free.

Deposit And Withdrawals

Casino enthusiasts in Ontario can start playing instantly thanks to convenient deposits through Visa, MasterCard, and Interac directly from your bank account. No matter which method you choose, there’s a $15 deposit minimum but there are no fees levied by the casino.

Unfortunately American Express isn’t accepted at this time. Also, we were warned that our credit card issuer may charge a cash advance fee. You can avoid this by using Interac or checking with your credit card issuer. If you rely on gift cards or prepaid credit card for online gaming and shopping, they won’t be accepted here. Many online casino players are used to using prepaid cards, so this was kind of disappointing.

Withdrawals are made directly to your bank account. You will need to submit some paperwork the first time you withdraw your winnings, but that’s as simple as submitting a voided cheque. The good news is withdrawals only take 3-5 days including processing and there aren’t any fees, taxes, or currency conversion fees to worry about.

Service And Support

You can count on solid support at Play OLG. Besides actually having easy to understand tutorials and informative FAQs on the site, you can expect around the clock help. Take advantage of toll-free assistance by phone, email, or using the live chat feature. You can rely on a knowledgeable customer service team that is based in Ontario and fluent in English and French.

There are three ways to get help:

• Dial 1-855-978-7529 on your phone
• Click on the live chat icon in the top right hand corner
• Click on the help icon and fill out the support form

Welcome Bonuses

Play OLG does offer deposit bonuses. Although offers are subject to change, players can receive a 100% deposit bonus and $10 in free cash just for setting a weekly deposit limit. As part of the site’s commitment to social responsibility, players are encouraged to set their own deposit limits, which the site enforces. It’s worth noting that these bonuses come with strings attached, namely that you have to reach a certain gambling threshold before you can withdrawal these funds. The bonuses also aren't as impressive as what other sites offer. Hopefully that will change, but if you're solely after big bonuses, you might want to consider other online gaming options for the time being.

Limitations

While the table games are fairly standard in terms of payout percentage, the slots tend to be better than at live Ontario casinos and just slightly below average compared to other online casinos. Of course, it’s easier to trust the government odds over more lucrative offerings seen elsewhere that aren’t subject to the same scrutiny.

The current lack of poker is disappointing, and our team also wonders how soon it will be until Play OLG will be able to offer the poker traffic and guaranteed tournament prize pools of top international sites. Nonetheless, it’s good to have options that are backed by a name you can trust.

Play OLG FAQ