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Now Harrods is not a name you’d immediately associate with casino gaming; posh shopping, yes, but the whiff of baize and rattle of chips? No. Harrods has traditionally been all about its madly ornate Terracotta Palace in Knightsbridge, a temple to conspicuous consumption and glamorous goods. However in a modern commercial world where ‘brand extension’ has become rife, it’s perhaps little surprise to find that the distinctive green and gold logo of Harrods now adorns the virtual entrance to an online casino. With our consumer affairs hat on we’d say that these days Harrods’ department store is actually a somewhat ordinary shop with nice set dressing (the Heinz beans from its grand Food Hall taste just the same as those from the Co-op), so is this a bad omen for its online casino, or can it offer something genuinely unique to the online gambler?
First impressions of Harrods Casino are favourable, with a very clean, restrained website greeting you and hinting at a classy experience to come. The look and feel reminded us a little of The Ritz Club London Casino, and the impression is of an online casino looking to attract an upmarket player befitting the Harrods image. This impression was carried through to the registration page where we were rather tickled with the choice of ‘gender’ on the application form being given as ‘Lady’ and ‘Gentleman’ rather than the more prosaic ‘Female / Male’ option. Anyway, issues of discrete etiquette aside, registration was very quick and simple, leading us into the crucial hub of the Harrods Casino experience – its games!
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One thing that immediately marks Harrods Casino’s gaming out from the herd is it’s powered by Kismet software, indeed it’s probably the only UK casino we’ve seen at this time using this company. In a sea of Cryptologic and Microgaming powered casinos it’s refreshing to find an alterative suite of games, but is the ‘exclusivity’ of Harrods’ choice actually an indication that Kismet’s not got the class of its ubiquitous rivals? Well, it has to be noted that Harrods Casino doesn’t have the range of choice offered by many of its rivals, with less than thirty games to choose from, and we were surprised that the casino classic Craps was AWOL too. That said, we were pleased to see download and non-download options, the latter offering Mac compatibility and the promise of more games to augment its limited selection soon. There are no multi-player games, but we rather liked the delivery of what was on offer and the very neat console within which all the action takes place. Another strength was the modular approach to the download casino, letting players minimise download times by only fetching the games they choose to play. Neat. Particular kudos must go to Harrods Casino for its Blackjack games, offering an uncommon surrender function and low house edge. The surrender option is a great benefit to players and it’s also good to see that the modified basic Blackjack strategy that arises from having this option is published in the casino’s rules pages. Also worthy of mention is the low 4% rake on the Baccarat game, and the implementation of the La Partage rule in its European Roulette game.
Promotions for all levels of players are adequate at Harrods, but its high rollers who stand to reap the rewards of loyalty to this online casino through its VIP scheme. Like VIP Casino, Harrods’ VIP players earn cashback (currently 5%) on their losses, and bonuses on all deposits, however, unlike VIP Casino, they can also request customized games! This is a first in our book – sadly we didn’t have the time to check this out (or the finances either; VIP status comes only at Harrods’ discretion after wagering beyond £10,000!), but we like the idea that commitment to the cause could lead to games tailored to our whims.
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With Harrods’ reputation built in retail, where the mantra is ‘the customer is always right’ we’d expect good customer service at its casino but, whilst not bad, it’s rather limited in comparison to most of its rivals. For a start it is not round-the-clock, with the freephone support only available between 5pm and Midnight GMT. Also guaranteed response times to non-VIP e-mail enquiries is a rather generous 12 hours, although in practice we found it quicker than that. Live chat is another option but this service was unavailable at the time of review for an unexplained reason. The quality of advice is fine at Harrods Casino, but more comprehensive cover would be a definite improvement, especially for the international players Harrods is clearly courting with its alternative language and currency payment options.
The motto of Harrods in Knightsbridge is ‘Everything for Everybody Everywhere’ (apparently it once supplied an alligator, given to Noel Coward as a Christmas present!), but it’s probably fair to say that this is not so applicable to its online casino. What Harrods Casino does deliver is a reputation for reliability, with a compact selection of fine download and non-download games, powered by software that’s pretty much exclusive to it. Weaknesses are omissions in its selection of games - notably Craps - and restricted availability of customer service. Particular strengths are its excellent Blackjack and Baccarat games, which offer some of the most advantageous terms on the Internet. Harrods Casino clearly has a more selective appeal than some of its main UK rivals, but we think that high-rolling players will appreciate the long term bonus opportunities here, and enthusiastic players of both Blackjack and Baccarat would do well to pay a visit to see if their online fortune is better served by Harrods’ fittingly named Kismet games.
Click here to play at Harrods Casino now |
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