6 Big Differences Between Live and Online Gambling
Online gambling and live gambling are two completely different things. Many of us may have our apprehensions about one format or the other, and it’s understandable. They do have some significant differences and one might be more suited to one type of personality over the other. However, in some cases, our ideas of these different formats come down to prejudice, and you could be cheating yourself out of tons of fun by shunning either one. Let’s take a look at some of the differences between live and online gambling.
The Free Money
One of the biggest differences between online casinos and poker rooms is the free money that is being thrown at you. Big casinos could care less about the little person, but for online casinos, it’s their bread and butter. Some of these offers might seem too good to be true, and some might be, but there are truly some incredible deals out there when you know where and how to look.
If you don’t know where to start, we suggest you check out the Online Casino review website. They will help you find the best online casino for you and rundown things such as bonuses, who the software provider is, and the selection of games. You’ll also get an idea of which types of games you can expect to find there, and some of the additional perks these offer to players.
Choosing the right casino will be essential if you want to enjoy your time online. A good casino will be there 24/7 and will be ready to help in most major languages, have a reputation for fairness, and make depositing and withdrawing money super easy with minimal friction and pending times.
The Pace is Very Different
One of the first things you’ll notice when you start playing online is how fast the action is at tables. If you’re involved in a traditional table game, there will usually be some banter involved. There is also no timer and each player can take as much time they want to read someone or do some theatrics to get some tell out of them.
There’s none of this online. Each hand has to be played within a certain time limit. It’s also not uncommon for online players to play tons of hands at once, so their time is precious. This change of pace might be a pro or a con for some people, but it’s definitely something you’ll need to be prepared for.
Competition can Get Tough Online
Players who make the transition from live play to online play are often surprised at how tough games can be online. An NL200 game online is nothing like a live one. This is because many live casinos don’t bother with lower limits. This means that the pool of talent at your average table will be much more democratic.
Online, however, you’re bound to see some absolute sharks at these tables. People who spent a good portion of their lives grinding mercilessly. We’re talking about tens of thousands of hands in the bank. Heck, you might even see some of these sharks having fun at the $5 tables.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no action for beginners at online sites. What this means is that you may have to rethink your strategy. Since you have all these low stakes tables at your disposal, take advantage of them. You even have players like Nathan Williams that were able to make an actual living playing micro-stakes. So, there’s always hope, and no matter your level, know that there’s always someone lower than you.
Keeping Track can be Tough
The main benefit of online casinos is how convenient they are. But this is also one of their biggest flaws. Online casino players need to be more disciplined and have a better strategy if they don’t want to lose track of time and their losses/earnings.
This is why we suggest that everyone starts sessions with a win/loss limit and a time limit as well. You also want to pick a game or table that will allow you to pace your play. You must respect your winning limits, so you don’t go overboard. This will also allow you to save that money for future games. Observing a loss limit will prevent you from playing when you’re on tilt.
No Reads
For live poker players, the biggest adaptation will be the inability to rely on physical tells. This might be a bit tough for players whose game revolves a lot around observation, but that doesn’t mean that it’s totally lost.
For instance, you can use your pattern recognition skills to look at betting patterns instead. Even the chat box could tell you something. Boisterous players could be loose or tight players trying to mimic strength. You also have the silent ones you have to worry about. You might start noticing that certain players bet a certain way in specific situations, or when a player has been quiet the whole online gambling games and suddenly makes moves.
You will also have to get into the technical and mathematical aspects of poker more. You’ll have to learn how to place value bets and know which hands you can put your opponent on depending on probabilities among other things.
The Variety
Another major difference between online casinos and traditional casinos is the variety they offer. You’ll never have a live casino with 5,000+ different games in their selection. Notice that we said games and not machines and tables here.
Some online casinos have an almost unlimited number of games. Some have every poker variation ever created and tons of players to play them with. If you like classic games, most will have all sorts of different versions of roulette, baccarat, or blackjack. Then there are the progressive jackpot machines with insane prices often going in the millions. Online casinos do know how to keep the party alive and players interested.
These are a few of the biggest differences between live and online playing. If you were recently forced to make the switch or were considering it for a while, make sure that you’re prepared for the adjustments and start slow until you get a hang of it.