Online casinos come up with all sorts of themes and names and don’t we just love the operators that built their websites around safari oriented themes. This explains why this website goes with the name of Big5Casino and why you’ll find all 5 Big Five (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and the buffalo) on this website, but it’s the lion who really steals the show. Whatever animal you prefer, Canadians have a complete online casino waiting for them that combines casino and sports on one platform, giving them a one-stop-solution. For casino and sports there are separate promotions which will make you feel welcome from the very beginning. Ready for your next safari? It’s time for our Big5Casino review.
With nearly 60 game providers Canadians who create their account at Big5Casino will have over 2200 games to their disposal. This casino is yet another brand by Condor Malta that gives their players an outstanding assortment of casino games where visitors can play their favourite slots, table games, jackpot slots, and live dealer games. As for the software providers Big5Casino has teamed up with, we found different leading studios including the likes of Relax Gaming, Microgaming, and Quickspin. NetEnt is not listed here, which is a pity as they are part of lobbies of Big5’s sister brands. Furthermore, Big Time Gaming, NetEnt, and Nolimit City are not part of their game lobby who we consider crucial names.
Big5Casino is a casino operator that works with a licence that is issued by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) which is about the strongest licence one could wish for. This licence has been obtained by Condor Malta, who were founded in 2012 and are a very experienced iGaming concern. Condor Malta now has 5 online casino brands operating throughout Europe, with some other brands being Casino Sieger and Lucky Bull Casino of which the latter has opened their virtual doors to people from Canada in recent years.
As for web security, Big5Casino is fully secured with SSL encryption which makes sure your data is kept safe at all times as this casino follows the same safety procedure that is applied by banks and other financial institutions. In order to guarantee a safe environment and to comply with international standards, Big5 Casino adheres to Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) guidelines which means that transactions are double checked before they get paid out. An id-verification is therefore needed for the first withdrawal after which you should usually be able to enjoy instant payouts once performed. In your account you’ll have a clear overview of all the KYC-requirements this site works with.
Big5Casino gives their players the chance to set your account limits. This is done upon sign up which we recommend you to do straightaway. We believe that this should be the first thing to do by every player in Canada, even before claiming your welcome bonus. If you choose not to set your limits you can also find this option in your online account, although we found it a bit difficult to find (Go to My Account > Wallet > Protection Settings). Here you’ll be able to set different limits with the most important options being Deposit Limit, Loss Limit, and Time Limitation. Do so for every limit you find relevant.
Our mobile experience at Big5Casino was just about right and in our opinion a lot better than our desktop visit. Although the same responsive website is used, we were able to visit a separate live casino lobby which wasn’t the case on a desktop device (using Safari and a Macbook). It happens every now and then that the mobile site is better than the desktop version and with so much mobile traffic we think that most players will enjoy their mobile casino and might make this their preferred way of accessing Big5 Casino.
Big5Casino gives us a very complete assortment featuring more than 2200 games. Whether you’re after jackpot games, table games, or regular slots, you’ll have plenty of options and game developers to choose from. A lot of popular slots are found here, powered by leading providers like Quickspin, Relax Gaming, Red Tiger Gaming, and Pragmatic Play, with a dominant role for the latter. In most categories, games by Pragmatic Play are highlighted although it is true that there aren’t a lot of game studios that enjoy so much popularity as this provider. The online casino lobby features 58 different providers, but we missed the names of the usual suspects like NetEnt, Playtech and Nolimit City.
In the top menu there are several icons that guide you directly to the right lobby and the symbol that shows a playing card and dice will take you to the table games. The page lists several categories such as Blackjack, Poker, Baccarat, Roulette, Video Poker, Scratch Cards, and Other Games which are about all the table games we could think of ourselves. Live dealer games are unfortunately featured on the same page. This is not everything we have to say about the way their live dealer table games are presented as this is where it gets a bit messy. Anyway, some RNG games you’ll encounter here are:
Mixed feelings can be frustrating and this is what pretty much describes our visit to Big5Casino’s live dealer casino. Yes, you’ll find about 90+ games here and yes, they’re all powered by Pragmatic Play Live which is one of the leading providers in this segment, but boy, what is hard to access the live dealer casino. Insteading of putting them together in a separate live dealer lobby you’ll need to navigate through separate categories like “Roulette” and “Blackjack” instead where both RNG games and live dealer games are found. The button to the live dealer lobby is shown in Chromecast, but all Macbook + Safari users will have a problem here. We checked back on different days and on different Macbooks, different IP-addresses, and we all had the same problem. There are also very few game shows. We haven’t come across a lot of casino websites Canada that makes such a mess of their live dealer offer. Such a shame.
There are more than 2100 slot games at Big5Casino and numbers like these generally indicate that the casino meets Vernon’s quality standards as well. Some categories you’ll see here are “New”, “Popular”, “Summer”, and “Jackpots”, whilst selecting the games on a provider-level should also make you find your favourite games in an efficient way. What we mentioned about the live dealer lobby and the selection of table games applies for the slots section too: quality wise it is very good, but they’ll need to work on their presentation asap. Nevertheless, here are some of the most popular slot games you’ll find in this lobby:
Canadians that sign up at Big5Casino will immediately be directed to the deposit page where they will find a number of payment solutions to their disposal. This includes a mix of traditional payment solutions and modern payment methods such as crypto currency, prepaid vouchers, and e-wallets. Upon account creation your settings will include Canadian dollars as your favourite currency and bonuses are also offered in CAD.
You’ll need at least C$ 15 to make a deposit at Big5Casino as this is the minimum deposit.
The maximum withdrawal per month, however, is capped at $5000 American dollars, €5000, or the equivalent amount in CAD. This is very low and we definitely see this as a reason not to sign up at this casino, at least for players who pursue big wins. Speed-wise we don’t have a lot to complain about which isn’t very surprising considering the different e-wallets and crypto wallets they work with at this casino. After the KYC-check you will be able to enjoy immediate payouts which is something most players will enjoy.
When it comes to casino bonuses, most casinos don’t offer separate bonuses for casino, live casino, and sports, but we’re happy to let you know that Big5Casino went ahead and separated the different platforms. Your welcome bonus at Big5Casino gives you a 100% welcome bonus of up to C$ 500 + 500 Free spins which can be used for both casino and live casino games. There is also a separate welcome pack for those that prefer sports:
Bear in mind that casinos by Condor Malta Ltd aren’t very transparent about their bonus terms which is why you won’t find them listed on the promotions page. Instead, you’ll need to scroll down and go to the footer. Here you’ll see an overview of the bonus terms which are divided into the casino bonus terms and the sports bonus terms. Something else we didn’t like about these terms and conditions is that these haven’t been adapted to the Canadian market, but are shown in Euros instead. This is rather confusing and is yet another major drawback of this casino.
There are different weekly bonuses that are offered for both casino games and sports betting. The promotions are often tournament oriented and pre-announced on the promotions page so that you won’t miss anything coming up. As the other bonuses tend to vary we recommend you to check back every once in a while. Most bonuses are casino oriented, so sportsbook lovers will be a little less lucky in this aspect. There is also an archive of previously offered bonuses. This should give you an idea of what to expect.
Other than its sister brands, Big5Casino doesn’t offer a loyalty program which may be disappointing to players who are familiar with other brands by Condor Malta Ltd. We have a strong preference for operators that work with loyalty programs although it might just turn out relaxing not having to worry about any gifts or other perks that are usually tied to deposits. This makes it a lot easier to focus on what it’s all really about: playing slots or other casino games. You won’t be pushed by the casino to keep on making deposits.
Big5Casino offers a few options to get in touch with Big5Casino’s customer service agents, either via email or live chat. This can be done if you click on the Support button which can be found on the right hand side of your screen. The email form is already displayed on your screen while sending an email to support@big5casino.com serves the same objective. A click on the live chat button will connect you to the live chat agents too.
We went ahead and tested the live chat service and we’re glad to let you know that our own experience was very good. During our two live chat sessions we were promptly helped and we found their live agents to be both friendly and professional.
Yes, Vernons recommends Big5Casino, although we have to say that the drawbacks we came across during our review really need to be taken care of very soon. We’re thus not fully convinced this website is the best option for Canadian players and would suggest you sign up at their sister brand LuckyBull Casino instead. Still, Big5Casino offers a service that is good enough for our review team to recommend them as the amount of games is just about right, customer service performs well, and our mobile experience was fine too.
The lobbies and the bonus terms, however, are a complete mess if you allow us to be so frank. We haven’t seen a lot of casinos that fail to present their live casino like Big5Casino whilst the casino lobby could include some better categories as well. On a mobile, everything looks just fine, so no complaints here. Smartphone users also won’t need to download an app which saves them time and space on their phone. We also expected a bit more from their theme as the Big 5 do get some attention on this platform, but should normally enjoy a lot more status on a website with a name like Big5Casino.
What we did enjoy was their MGA licence which is about the best licence one can obtain while you can also freely deposit and withdraw your money in crypto currency like bitcoin. With their reputed MGA-licence and part of Condor Malta Ltd, we believe we’ve got enough reason to label this casino as trustworthy. Different from most other MGA-casinos, users can deposit and withdraw their funds in crypto currency which will appeal to a lot of players, especially in Canada, where crypto currency has gained a lot of popularity.
Overall, we believe that Condor Malta has shown to be an operator that is capable of marketing their websites effectively around the world and for Canadians looking for a casino + sportsbook under one roof, they will be able to enjoy a complete gambling site at Big5Casino. Launched in 2018, this is yet another casino website that has managed to survive the first fews years which are crucial for an online casino’s long term success. We’re just not sure if they can keep up with their competitors if they don’t take care of their weak points. For now, we would recommend you to sign up and see for yourself whether this casino suits your needs. Their bonuses are convincing enough to give it a chance.