Do you ever wonder why casino games from some providers are seemingly unplayable in your state?
You might have heard they’re available at the casino you’re logged in to, or even seen them in the lobby, only to find they’re geo-blocked when you click through.
You’re not imagining it – this is a real issue, and one that goes beyond the standard state restrictions that most players are aware of.
Resources on Game Providers’ Additional Restricted States
| Game Supplier | Additional Restricted Territory |
|---|---|
| 3 Oaks | Hawaii |
| Ela Games | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Enjoy Gaming | Hawaii, Vermont |
| Evolution | Arizona, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wyoming, Alabama, Illinois, Ohio, Utah |
| Fantasma | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Four Leaf Gaming | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Gaming Corps | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Habanero | California |
| Kalamba | Hawaii, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, California |
| Koala | Pennsylvania |
| M2Play | Georgia, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island |
| N2 | Pennsylvania |
| NetGaming | Pennsylvania, Rhode Island |
| Octoplay | Pennsylvania |
| Octopus | Mississippi, Pennsylvania, California, Louisiana |
| OnlyPlay | Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii, Utah |
| Peter & Sons | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Playson | Hawaii |
| Playtech | Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, Oregon, South Dakota, California, Ohio |
| Red Rake | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| Reel Riot (1x2) | Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, California, Utah, Arizona, Minnesota, Tennessee |
| Relax Gaming | Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Utah, Arizona |
| Revolver | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
| RubyPlay | Pennsylvania, Rhode Island |
| Slotmill | Tennessee |
| Thunderkick | Mississippi, Pennsylvania, California |
| Trigger | Mississippi, Pennsylvania |
To compound the problem, it’s quite rare for social casinos and slot providers to indicate exactly which states providers are in or out of. However, SweepsKings has found that four casinos do offer a handy list of providers and their restricted states.
These sites all belong to the B-Two group and they are:
Each of these platforms has a link to a page called ‘Game Providers Additional Restrictions’ in their footer, but we’ve reproduced the states listed above for convenience.
How Sweepstakes Providers Show Up (or Don’t) in Gaming Lobbies
Let’s look at an example: Mega Bonanza sweepstakes casino has the following state restrictions, so players from these states cannot even sign up there:
- Alabama, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington, West Virginia.
But even within allowed states, availability can vary by provider. Peter & Sons, for instance, restricts itself in Pennsylvania, meaning Mega Bonanza players in PA won’t see this studio’s games at all.
And fortunately, Mega Bonanza has a system where it won’t show you games if they’re not available from the provider, so for Pennsylvania players, Peter & Sons games aren’t even viewable in the lobby.
Other casinos may handle it differently – Stake.us shows the game cards but grays them out, clearly indicating they’re not available.
Some platforms are less transparent: they display the game as playable, but the provider’s geo-block will kick in when you try to load it. This system is the most frustrating, as it can give players the false impression that more titles are accessible than actually are.
Why Certain Providers Might Restrict Their Games In Your State
The most common reason for providers to withdraw from certain states is to avoid legal or regulatory trouble.
The US sweepstakes landscape is patchy, with laws varying by state and often changing quickly. Even if a sweeps casino is legally allowed to operate somewhere, a provider may decide it’s too risky to offer certain titles there. These restrictions can help suppliers avoid enforcement actions or fines, while maintaining a presence elsewhere.
Evolution and Pragmatic Left California Last Year
One of the most notable examples of this kind of withdrawal activity came last summer, triggered by a lawsuit filed by the Los Angeles City Attorney. The suit named Stake.us as an illegal gambling operator, along with providers Evolution (Red Tiger, Nolimit City, Big Time Gaming, NetEnt), Hacksaw, and Pragmatic Play – and the fallout was serious.
Evolution and its subsidiaries soon withdrew from California, and Pragmatic Play ended up withdrawing from the sweeps casino space as a whole. In both cases, it was likely because the legal risk made continued supply unwise in the eyes of the provider. The lawsuit being filed by a public authority seemed to add weight to the action in this case, prompting providers to pull back rather than risk fines, license issues, or further legal entanglements. It’s worth remembering that many providers supply games to real money casinos too, which are more heavily regulated, so they often won’t want to jeopordize that arrangement.
Either way, this whole episode in CA highlighted how provider decisions often revolve around a ‘better safe than sorry’ attitude, and can directly affect what games are available to players. California has since passed its own anti-sweepstakes bill, effectively shutting down the vertical completely, but the lesson is obvious: regulatory pressure can reshape access to games anywhere.
Hacksaw Gaming Restricted Illinois Access
Another notable withdrawal came earlier this year from Hacksaw in the state of Illinois. This also affected studios like Bullshark Games and Backseat Gaming, which Hacksaw provides distribution for via its OpenRGS system.
The Malta-based provider is the creator of classic slot IPs like Le Bandit, Wanted Dead or a Wild, and Frkn Bananas, taking over as the de facto most popular studio in the sweeps world since Pragmatic’s exit.
However, players in Illinois are now without these titles, with no concrete reason given – in fact, it’s rare for studios to elaborate on reasons for withdrawal. That being said, we can speculate as to why.
Back in February, the Illinois Gaming Board issued cease-and-desist letters to 60+ sweepstakes casinos it deemed illegal. To be clear, these letters were issued to operators, not gaming suppliers, but the move could have been enough to spook Hacksaw, especially with the weight of the state’s Attorney General behind them.
At the time, Illinois AG Kwame Raoul said:
“Unlicensed gaming operators put Illinois consumers at risk and undermine the integrity of our regulated gaming market. We will continue to work with the Illinois Gaming Board to protect our residents and hold illegal operators accountable.”
In fact, it wasn’t just Hacksaw. Illinois became another state that Evolution withdrew from in January, and this company has given some context on its stance in the past. On a Q3 earnings call last year, Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund said:
“Sweepstakes is a popular product in the US, and we offer it in states where it’s not prohibited or in any way under regulatory scrutiny…If any regulator or authority would send a letter…stating ‘don’t do it here,’ we would immediately go away.”
Mississippi Is Another Common No-Go Area for Providers
From the B-Two restricted state lists referenced above, you may have noticed that Mississippi is another jurisdiction that many providers – including big names like Evolution, Peter & Sons, and Relax Gaming – have exited.
Again, the exact reasons aren’t clear, but a likely factor is the Mississippi Gaming Commission issuing cease-and-desist letters to 10 sweepstakes sites last year, which led to withdrawals from operators like VGW/Chumba.
That being said, other states have issued similar C&Ds without triggering provider withdrawals – as we’re seeing, the rationale behind these decisions often remains behind the scenes, leaving players and observers to piece together the picture.
Getting Around Game Provider Restrictions with VPN? Not Recommended!
Unfortunately, there’s not a great deal that players can do to get around the problem of missing games in certain states, but some players may attempt to use a VPN with a location set to a different state.
However, this is generally a bad idea. Most sweepstakes casinos explicitly prohibit the use of VPNs in their terms and conditions, so if you’re found to be masking your location, your account can be suspended or permanently banned, and any Sweepstakes Coins or winnings may be given up.
Secondly, casinos use more than just IP addresses to verify location. Payment methods, account verification details, and device data can all be used to detect inconsistencies. So even if a VPN works temporarily, there’s a chance it could be flagged later.
In short, while using a VPN might seem like a workaround, it introduces the risk of losing funds or even your whole account, and is rarely worth it compared to simply playing within the available pool of games in your state.
Temporary (Illegal?) Access to Certain Game Providers Explained
From time to time, some players report that certain once-banned games – particularly from Pragmatic Play – are temporarily accessible on platforms such as Sweet Sweeps, LuckyRush, VikingRiches, and TaoSweeps.
This is big news, as Pragmatic is still sorely missed by many. However, there is no confirmation that Pragmatic ever issued temporary approvals for these games.
More likely what happened is operators sourced content through third‑party aggregators that still had distribution rights before the mistake was noticed and corrected. These kinds of temporary windows are more likely to happen at rogue or offshore platforms, and can create the impression of access loopholes, but they do not reflect official approval by the studios themselves.
To be clear, as we mentioned earlier, Pragmatic Play has positioned itself as out of the sweepstakes vertical, and it shows no sign of returning anytime soon.
Key Takeaways
Author: Alex Windsor
Updated:
