Bodog88 overview
Bodog88 was founded in 1994 by Calvin Ayre and has since established a strong global brand presence, partnering with big names like Playboy, Maxim, Los Angeles Lakers, NHL, CFL, EPL, Arsenal FC, Aston Villa FC and world snooker champ Ronnie O’Sullivan, who is the Bodog88 brand ambassador. The site offers a full online casino, sports betting and live dealer gaming, with software provided by industry leaders like Microgaming and iSoftBet, and the lesser known UC8, with live studios provided by AG, Deluxe Gold and HO Gaming.
Bodog88 is an online casino available exclusively to players from China, Malaysia and Thailand. If you’re from outside any of those countries, scroll to the bottom of the homepage and click the UK flag to view the page in English. Players from other regions can still sign up for an account to play games for free, and will be notified if Bodog’s services ever become available in their country.
What kind of players is Bodog88 suited to?
It’s important to note Bodog88.com caters specifically to the Asian market, suited only to players from China, Malaysia and Thailand if you wish to play for real money bets.
- Casual players? – games can be sampled for free in demo mode, with minimum bets starting from affordable rates, making it suited to the casual punter.
- Table game fans? – Bodog88 offers table games using its own proprietary software, and while the table games are high quality and offer good variety, some users may be uncomfortable playing using unfamiliar branded software.
- High rollers? – Bodog88 claims to allow the highest live dealer gaming bet limits available in Asia, and offers some exclusive VIP programs for high rollers.
Bodog88 bonuses, promotions and loyalty programs
Bodog88 offers many one-off welcome bonuses and promotional offers for new and loyal players. Unlike most other online casinos, the welcome bonuses available change constantly, so you’ll need to head to Bodog88.com and go to the ‘promotions’ page to see which promos are currently up for grabs. You’ll find a long list of offers available, along the likes of:
- Casino welcome bonuses
- Bitcoin bonuses
- Free spins
- Weekly rebates
- Sportsbook welcome bonuses
- Double your winnings promos
- Money back bonuses
- Casino reload bonuses
- Live dealer rebate bonuses
- Refer-a-friend bonus
These offers are available for players from Thailand, China and Malaysia only. There’s a lot going on on the promotions page, so it can seem a bit confusing. Read the full terms and conditions of each bonus offer carefully to ensure you’re eligible to take advantage of it and you understand the wagering requirements.
Site layout and interface
Bodog88 is an instant-play casino, allowing no-download access to all games directly over your chosen Web browser. Upon first loading the site, you’ll be presented with a bunch of promotional banners which you can either click to join, or simply click on the Casino, Live Dealer, Sports or Promotions tabs at the top of the homepage to navigate to your desired area. The casino section is easy to navigate, allowing you to search by game type, hottest games, themes or software provider.
The default casino is set in Chinese, so remember to scroll to the bottom of the homepage and click the UK flag if you want to view the site in English. The same goes for the mobile site.
Mobile app/optimised site
There is no separate native app available for Bodog88, but the instant-play mobile site offers a solid mobile offering of the casino games, including mobile live dealer games from AG and Deluxe Gold. The primary focus on the mobile site is the slots, with a majority of the most popular slot titles optimised for play on the go. Thanks to its instant-play nature, the Bodog88 mobile casino can be accessed directly over the web browser of your iOS, Android or Windows smartphone or tablet.
Games
Bodog88 offers a large selection of casino games, all which are available for instant-play directly over your Web browser. Here’s some of their most popular titles:
- Slots – Bridesmaids, MegaBoy, Win Sum Dim Sum, Red Sands, Mega Moolah, Atlantis Treasures, Bikini Party, Burning Desire, Pond of Koi, Basketball Star, Dirty Martini, Fruit Boxes, Big Bad Wolf, Hot as Hades, Mega Moolah Isis, Bulletproof Babes.
- Video poker – Jacks or Better, Bonus Deuces Wild, Bonus Poker, Bonus Poker Deluxe, Double Double Bonus Poker, Joker Poker, Loose Deuces.
- Table Games – American Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Caribbean Hold’em, Caribbean Stud Poker, Craps, European Roulette, European Blackjack, Pai Gow Poker, Vegas Three Card Rummy, Perfect Pairs, Double Deck Blackjack, Keno, plus a full live dealer casino catalogue.
Bodog88 also has a sports betting section, where you can bet on football, basketball, virtual sports and e-sports, however this is only available to players within China, Thailand and Malaysia, and if you’re located elsewhere you’ll be restricted from accessing the sports betting area entirely.
Deposit and withdrawal options
Real money gambling at Bodog88 is accepted using Chinese, Malaysian and Thai currency only – RMB, CNY, MYR and THB.
The only deposit and withdrawal options accepted are debit card and bank transfer (either online, via ATM or assisted over-the-counter).
Debit card deposits are processed instantly, as are bank transfers for Chinese players, but bank transfers from Malaysian or Thai banks may take up to half an hour to process.
The minimum deposits and withdrawals allowed are:
- Chinese players – CNY20 for online deposits, CNY100 for ATM, over the counter deposits and withdrawals
- Thai players – THB100 for all deposits and withdrawals
- Malaysian players – MYR10 for all deposits and withdrawals
Withdrawals for all players are available via bank transfers only, with processing times varying between country and banks. Bodog88 does not impose any deposit or withdrawal fees, but there may be additional transaction fees imposed by your financial institution.
Licensing, regulation and reputation
Bodog88 is licensed by Curaçao eGaming which is a highly reputable gambling jurisdiction authorised by the Government of Curacao. It is also regulated by the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority in the Philippines, with all RNG software and payout percentages audited monthly.
It’s an official Asian betting partner of the Aston Villa Football Club which helps add to its reputation. Bodog88’s main focus in on the Chinese market, with many Chinese high rollers favouring this casino for its lenient betting options, attractive live dealers and fast payouts in local currency.
What we don’t like about Bodog88
Although Chinese players are sure to find a lot of appeal to playing at Bodog88, there are some downsides to this casino:
- Only players from China, Malaysia and Thailand are accepted.
- The payment options available aren’t extensive – only debit card and bank transfer – we would like to see the option for a web wallet, credit card or pre-paid card.
- In our experience, the customer service we received via live chat was not very friendly and took a while to extract the information we were seeking.
- Proprietary table games can be a bit of a put off for some.
What we like about Bodog88
If you’re within one of the accepted regions, there are plenty of reasons to try your luck at Bodog88. Here are some of our highlights:
- The option of viewing the page in Chinese or English.
- Games are quick to load, with no downloads required.
- There’s a good range of Microgaming’s most popular slot titles.
- The live dealer casino allows for some of the highest bets in the Asian online gambling market, with games available from multiple software providers.