If you’ve only played at online casinos before, you’ll be a little surprised by the terminology used at sweepstakes casinos. You won’t find a deposit or withdraw button, and you won’t be making bets.
Sweepstakes casinos have taken common gambling terms and come with their synonyms in a bid not to fall foul of the authorities. We’ve compiled all the most common sweepstakes terms, defined them, and identified their online casino equivalent. Keep reading to get your bachelor’s sweeps slang!
Casino vs Sweepstakes Casino Lingo
Sweepstakes casinos don’t offer gambling, which is why they can operate in so many states and don’t require an iGaming license. To distance themselves from online casinos, they must abide by certain rules, and that involves avoiding gambling-related language. Under no circumstances can they mention things like betting, depositing, and withdrawing.
Sweepstakes casinos have come up with their lingo, which is distinct from common online casino terms. However, if you’re familiar with gambling terminology, it won’t take you long to get up to speed with the latest sweepstakes slang.
Terms Used at Sweepstakes Casinos and Their Meaning
Here are all of the terms you’ll run into when playing at sweepstakes casinos:
Alternate Method Of Entry (AMOE) – AMOE is a unique bonus you’ll find at sweepstakes casinos. As part of regulations, sweepstakes casinos must offer an alternate way to participate in their competitions. To satisfy this condition, casinos hand out free sweepstakes coins when you mail a handwritten request. The standard AMOE bonus is 5 SC per stamped envelope.
Buy – At sweepstakes casinos, you can buy gold coins rather than depositing. The term buy is used interchangeably with purchase.
Casino-Style Games – Even though you’ll find slots, blackjack, and roulette at sweepstakes casinos, the sites refer to them as casino-style games rather than casino games. But don’t worry, the gameplay is exactly the same, and the titles are often powered by the same providers.
Converted – This is a synonym for redeemed. This is where you’ve exchanged your sweepstakes coins for a cash prize.
Enter – Enter is used at sweepstakes casinos interchangeably with play or spin. The online casino equivalent is bet, gamble, or wager.
Free Play – Sweepstakes casinos give you free play in the form of complimentary gold coins and sweepstakes coins which you can use to play games.
GC – Stands for gold coins.
Gold Coins – This is a virtual currency that you can use to play games at a sweepstakes casino. Gold coins have no monetary value and can’t be redeemed for cash prizes.
No Purchase Necessary – This is a condition sweepstakes casinos must abide by if they want to operate legally. The games must be free to play, and the site must provide an adequate number of free gold and sweepstakes coins. However, optional gold coin purchases are permitted.
Prizes – When you redeem your sweepstakes coins, you don’t receive winnings, a payout, or earnings. Instead, you receive prizes. Typically, you receive a gift card or a cash prize via online bank transfer or e-wallet.
Play – At sweepstakes casinos, you never bet or wager. The standard term used when participating in games is simply play.
Promotional Sweepstakes – At sweepstakes casinos, this refers to a specific type of game mode where you can play with and win sweepstakes coins.
Purchases – You don’t deposit at sweepstakes casinos. Instead, you purchase gold coins, which can be used to play games.
Redeem – You don’t withdraw cash from sweepstakes casinos, neither do these sites pay out. Instead, you redeem sweepstakes coins for a cash prize.
Redeemed – This is when your redemption has been processed, and you’ve received your prize.
Redemption – Redemption is the action of redeeming.
Responsible Gaming – Sweepstakes casinos don’t offer gambling as they’re strictly social casinos, so they promote responsible gaming rather than gambling. You’ll find similar tools like self-exclusion and cool-off. However, instead of deposit restrictions, you can set gold coin purchase limits.
SC – Stands for sweepstakes coins.
Social Casinos – Sweepstakes casinos are also called social casinos. They don’t offer gambling or real money winnings; rather you play games for free.
Social Games – This refers to games at sweepstakes casinos that are not permitted to be called casino games.
Social Play – This is the act of playing casino-style games at sweepstakes casinos, it’s never referred to as gambling.
Sweepstake – A sweepstake is a type of contest where a winner is randomly selected. When you’re playing games at a sweepstakes casino, you’re actually entering a competition.
Sweepstakes Coins – This is the other virtual currency available at sweepstakes casinos that is used to play games. Under no circumstances can sweepstakes coins be purchased. They are always given away for free via bonuses or when you purchase gold coin packages. Unlike gold coins, sweepstakes coins can be redeemed for cash prizes.
Spin – At sweepstakes casino, you don’t select your stake or bet. You also don’t win a multiple of your stake or bet. Instead, the correct term is spin. For example, a slot might have a minimum spin of 0.10 SC and a maximum win of 5,000x your spin.
Void Where Prohibited – This phrase is a disclaimer that you may not play at a sweepstakes casino if it’s illegal or not allowed in your jurisdiction.
Conclusion
So there you have it, you are now an expert in sweepstakes casino lingo. As you can see, the terminology isn’t complex and is closely related to existing online casino terms. Hopefully, you now won’t lose your precious time searching for that non-existent withdraw button!
Author: Alex Windsor
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