So…I tried another type of instant win game.
Ever play a crash game before for real money?
I recently did…and I’m on the fence about the experience. Even now, I can’t decide if I like this type of online casino entertainment or if – like other casino games I’ve played – it’s just not for me.
Feeling indecisive is an odd thing for me, especially when it comes to entertainment and games. Usually, once I play something, I have a good idea of whether I like it and would choose to play it again – particularly when it comes to risking money. But not crash games.
This post is the story of my first real money crash game experience. I’ve also included a little background info about the crash mechanic in general, if you’re unfamiliar with this type of iGaming.
My First Real Money Crash Game Experience
Never heard of crash games before and/or never played one? Here’s what you need to know. π
What are Crash games?
A crash game is a type of instant win online game of chance that is made up of two main components:
- A Crash mechanic
- A multiplier feature
Crash are one of the fastest and simplest games you can play at an online casino. Regardless of its theme, the objective of every crash title is the same:
- Place your bet before the round starts
- Once the round begins, the starting multiplier begins to increase
- Cashout your bet before the multiplier crashes (the game round ends)
The tricky and risky part of these games is that the crash occurs at random every single round. This could be as soon as the game starts or seconds or minutes later. If you cashout your bet before the crash, you receive an instant payout at the exact multiplier amount displayed at the time you cashed out. If the game crashes before you cash out, you lose your bet.
Basically, if a slot machine and an instant win game were fused together, the result would be a crash game. That said, crash games are not the same as slot games. I want to point this out because a lot of times casinos, reviewers, and the providers behind these games refer to them as crash slots and file them under the slot category. However, they are completely different experiences.
Unlike slots, crash titles do not have spinning reels, you don’t match symbols to score a payout, there are no wilds, and you can’t trigger bonus features like free spins or mini games. Different themes and win multipliers are about all these two types of games have in common.
Popular crash games in Ontario
Examples of crash games you can play at Ontario online casinos include*:
- Aviator – Spribe (I played the demo)
- Speed Crash – Hacksaw Gaming (I played the demo)
- Gus’s Gold Minecart Mayhem β iSoftBet
- Spaceman – Pragmatic Play
- Golden Hook – Crazy Tooth Studio
- High Flyer – Pragmatic Play
- FlyX – Games Global
- Cash Plane x5000 – Playtech
- Big Bass Crash – Pragmatic Play (the first crash game I played for real money)
*Crash games are subject to availability. Not every Ontario online casino has them or offers the same selection of titles. If you want to play at a casino that has crash options, be sure to check the games library of the brands that most interest you first, before signing up. Both Betty and PlayOJO (online casinos where I play) offer crash games.
My Big Bass Crash Experience
Beyond my experience with this game (which I’ll elaborate on below), here’s some notable facts about Big Bass Crash, if you’ve never played this crash game before.
What is Big Bass Crash?
Big Bass Crash (also sometimes called Big Bass Crash slot ππ€·βοΈ) is a crash game from Pragmatic Play. As you might have guessed from the title – and if you’re familiar with Pragmatic Play slots – it is themed after the popular (and award-winning) Big Bass slots series.
In this first crash installment of the Big Bass series, the bearded fisherman is at a scenic lake. At the start of each game round, he drops a net into the lake and drives his boat across the water, capturing fish until the net falls away. The net falling away is the crash, ending the game round.
Each second the boat is on the move, the multiplier – which starts at 1.00x – usually increases until the crash. If you cashout your bet before the net falls away, you win the payout associated with the multiplier amount at the time you cashed out. If the net falls away before you cashout, you lose. The maximum win for Big Bass Crash is 5,000x. If this multiplier is reached, the game round will also come to an end.
Big Bass Crash Game Facts
- Software provider: Pragmatic Play
- Release date: September 2023
- Theme: Fishing
- Volatility: High
- Min Bet: $1
- Max Bet: $25
- Max Win: 5,000x
- Features: Autoplay, Auto Cashout, Live Chat, Leaderboard, Cashout 50%
- RTP: 95.50% (although RTPs may vary depending on casinos and jurisdiction)
- Free Demo: You can play a Big Bass Crash demo at Pragmatic Play’s site.
Other notable facts to know when playing Big Bass Crash include:
- Real Time Gameplay & Social Features – The Big Bass Crash game occurs in real time. This allows you to participate in live chat with other players as well as view a live leaderboard where you can track the performance of other players, including their bets, multipliers, cashed sums, etc.). Note: Real time and live chat are not a universal feature among crash games.
- Statistics – You can view the Crash values from the last 500 game rounds (via the “Last Results” section located within the “?” icon). You can also generate charts to view results. Just keep in mind, especially if you’re a strategy-type player, each game round outcome is 100% random and there is no strategy (like in the case of a blackjack strategy chart) that is useful in terms of helping you make an educated choice regarding the outcome. Note: Statistics are a regular feature of crash games from what I’ve seen.
- Cashout 50% – One cool thing about Big Bass Crash is there is a 50% Cashout option, which is always available for any active bet. At any time during the round (before a crash) you can select the “Cashout 50%” to secure winnings for half your bet, while leaving the remaining funds active if you want to try for a higher risk reward. *Note: This feature isn’t common in crash games.
- Auto Features – You can choose Autoplay, which lets you place a bet at a select amount for a certain number of rounds. You can also choose Auto Cashout, which lets you set a predefined multiplier for either or both your Cashout 50% and Cashout. Assuming a crash doesn’t occur first, as soon as these multipliers occur, the game will automatically cash you out of the round. *Note: Autoplay features are common in crash games.
My Experience
In total, I played Big Bass Crash for real money for about 10 minutes.
As soon as I loaded the game, I had the option to join the “Crash & Win Daily Prize Drops” promotion (these types of promotional campaigns are common – particularly when playing slots from Pragmatic Play). I opted-in. Spoiler alert – I didn’t win a price drop. π
I stuck to the lowest possible bet β $1. Considering, I’m the type of player who prefers making $0.10 / $0.20 minimum bets, $1 is a bigger risk for me. If $1 is too risky for you as well, you’ll be happy to know that there are crash games with minimum bets that start at $0.10. Big Bass Crash just happens to be $1.
Why didn’t I choose a crash game with a lower minimum bet? I’m a fan of the Big Bass series (and I like the Cashout 50% feature), so I wanted to play this one first.
I won a few times. Although, I only nabbed a screenshot of my $1.44 win, my highest win in a round was $1.95. Yup, a whopping 95 cents! However, I crashed a lot more than I won – which is saying something considering I didn’t hang in the game rounds for longer than several seconds (my risk level maxes out at 2.50x)!π
Throughout the 10ish minutes I played, the shortest crash was 1.00x. This is the worst possible crash because it is the starting multiplier and an automatic loss for every player due to it being impossible to cashout at that amount – 1.01x is the earliest you can cashout). The longest crash when I played was 70.50x. On average – when I played – the multiplier often crashed before hitting 3.00x. By the end of it all, I pretty much broke even.
What I liked about my Big Bass Crash Experience
- I liked that I could easily cancel my bet before the game round started (you have about 7 seconds before the start of a round to place or cancel your bet).
- I liked the Cashout 50% feature (I used that almost every round).
- I liked the Auto Cashout feature.
- Although the gameplay is simple, it got my heart racing!
What I didn’t like about my Big Bass Crash experience
- I didn’t like that the minimum bet was $1.
- I didn’t like that there are no extra bonus features to make the game more interesting.
- I didn’t like how the gameplay requires no real thought yet is oddly compelling. I sort of felt like I was wasting my time playing it, but at the same time was tantalized by the increasing multiplier. It was one part monotony and one part thrilling. Weird.
- I didn’t like how the longer I played it, the more I felt I had a better chance of winning. I don’t usually have a “chase my losses” feeling with gambling games. It made me glad that I’m not a big risk taker and that I use responsible gaming tools.
Crash Game Pros & Cons
In my opinion, here are the main pros and cons of crash games (based on my real money experience and the free game demos I’ve tried).
Crash Game Pros
- High excitement level
- Easy to play (and to control your bets)
- Don’t have to play every game round
- Keep track of statistics
Crash Game Cons
- High risk
- Tedious gameplay overall
- No bonus features
- Easy to chase losses
Mia’s Final Thoughts on Crash Games
Ultimately, crash games are not my go-to online casino game.
However, they are my favorite type of online casino instant win game for the moment, as I do find them more exciting to play than scratch cards and plinko. Still, I certainly don’t prefer them to slots, blackjack, craps, video poker, or live money wheel-based games like Mega Wheel.
On the whole, crash games lack components that I prefer to be a part of my typical online gambling experiences, such as bonus features, odds strategy, and an interactive/engaging theme.
Will I play crash games again? I probably will play a crash game again for real money β but a different one (with a lower min bet) next time. Like I said, the games aren’t my favourite, but they’re thrilling.
What about you? Are you a crash game fan? What’s your favourite game(s)? Have you come up with a strategy that works for you?
Until next time, good luck and have fun.
Mia π©π»
**I’m not affiliated with anyone. Opinions are my own.
***All links and images in this post are for informational purposes only.
