Guide to Play Scratch Cards Online

When people think of an instant game, scratch cards will generally be the first thing that comes to mind. And yet, not a lot of online players are aware that they can actually find the best scratch games at their favourite online casino!

In our definitive guide to scratch card games, we will be covering all the ins and outs of these popular online instant games, with some tips on how to play, an overview of scratch card odds, and even showcasing some of the best scratch games to play at Betfair Casino!

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As with all the best online casino games, scratch cards have a history that can be traced back to the times when the national or local lottery was the only form of permitted gambling for most people. Now, it is worth pointing out that lottery formats have not changed much over the years – a player would have to acquire one or many lottery cards/tickets, on which they would mark off the possible winning numbers from all the numbers available in that particular lottery.

As common for most lotteries of the early 70s onwards, there would be at least one draw that would happen on a weekly basis, or as dictated by the national lottery authority of that particular region. As such, each player would have to wait until the draw to see if their chosen numbers produced any winnings.

This ‘waiting’ element was part of the fun of the lottery game for most people, but some players had a preference for knowing immediately if they had won. Around 1974, John Koza was working for a company that produced bingo cards for US grocery stores. He developed a specific algorithm that allow him to produce a set of tickets with winning outcomes, which he covered with a special coating that could reveal a prize if scratched off.

The odds of these special cards were pretty favourable and the algorithm ensured a fair and balanced set of tickets. Initially, these ‘Instant Game’ scratch cards were produced for specific stores as a tool to attract more customers. They proved to be so successful that the instant game took off and became a national sensation!

Online casino games have grown in popularity considerably over the past decade, with more players flocking to online casinos rather than playing at brick and mortar establishments. The same can be said for lotteries and scratch cards.

A lot of people still prefer the excitement of purchasing real tickets and scratching away the foil to reveal potential wins, but there is a growing number of players that are opting for online instant games. These online scratch cards are digital versions of the traditional best scratch games that players can access at most online casinos.

As opposed to using a coin to scratch away at the special foil covering the prizes, players must use their mouse to virtually scratch away and reveal what lies beneath. There are several benefits that have made online scratch cards even more popular than the traditional ones.

Versatility is the most evident benefit of online scratch cards, as players can have instant access to a wide variety of the best scratch games on the market that come in a wide range of spending options. This also leads to the possibility of having bigger prize pools since these scratch games to play capture a far larger audience when compared to a more local traditional scratch game.

Another great benefit of the online instant game options is that payouts will be quicker and more efficient since online casinos have very easy and secure payment processing options. Lastly, these online best scratch games are much more accessible as they can be played at any time and any place from the comfort of a desktop or mobile device.

The majority of online casinos provide players with a wide range of interest and engaging games and services that cover a variety of formats. More the most part, online casino games share a similar element of slow play pacing and anticipation, which make the entire process more enjoyable in the long run.

Online slots are a very common and popular type of casino game where players must place their odds, spin the reels, and wait for the outcome of the spin to see if they landed any winning paylines. Online slots provide a variety of potential outcomes and playing mechanics that are mainly geared at being entertaining for players.

Table games such as roulette, blackjack and baccarat are more event-oriented, as they involve slow-paced games that do require players to have a good understanding of the game as they patiently wait for the outcome of a round or hand. Sports betting provides an even longer paced betting experience as players take their time to decide on the outcome of a sporting event that is only decided once that event is completed.

This brings us to another popular format which is the instant game. While it is true that some players do prefer a classic casino experience, others just do not want to wait around for the results to come in. They simply want to know if they have won or lost, to see if they want to continue or move on. Instant games are designed to give players an immediate result in a fraction of the time when compared to other online casino games. Scratch cards are a type of online instant game that is becoming quite popular in online casinos.

One of the best things about playing online scratch cards is that it is far less messy than the physical one that involves scratching off the ticket coating with a coin or a key! Players that choose this instant game at their favourite online casino will be presented with their virtual ticket and a series of panels and buttons to choose from.

Players will be required to ‘scratch off’ the virtual ticket in order to reveal if there are any winnings hidden behind the digital foil. The best scratch games will require players to use their mouse to scratch off the panel or their finger when playing on a mobile device, but most of these online instant game scratch cards will also have the option to ‘Reveal All’ or ‘Scratch All’ to speed up the process.

The process of uncovering all the relevant ticket information is much faster than the physical tickets, especially when tickets contain multiple scratch panels.

There are different chances of winning on a scratch card, and all of these games will have specific scratch card odds that are displayed in the terms and conditions.

Physical or offline scratch cards are distributed by a specific company or brand to consumers of a city, region or country. There is a limited number of potential consumers available which in turn informs the number of possible tickets that can be printed and the overall scratch card odds.

There are generally multiple different scratch card games that are in circulation at a given time, and tickets are purchased from licenced lottery providers and other official physical stores. Players would acquire a number of physical tickets and then proceed to scratch off the special foil coating to reveal any possible prizes beneath.

The majority of tickets will have one panel that reveals a number of possible combinations, but some tickets carry multiple panels that can be scratched off.

Online scratch cards are similar to the physical ones but have a higher distribution since the consumers can be anywhere and simply need a casino account to purchase an online ticket. The process of revealing the digital foil panel is similar to the physical cards but this is done by using the mouse or by ‘erasing’ the panel with a finger on a touchscreen.

How does this instant game compare to online slots, one of the most popular online casino games? Well, there is not much that links these two different online casino games but they do actually complement each other.

Online slot games are developed around a central theme and follow the simple premise of players placing a bet, spinning the reels, and then seeing if they landed a winning payline on the grid. There are thousands of different online slots that are produced by a wide range of reputable developers and come in a large variety of mechanics. The odds for online slots are set by the developer and are listed on the information page of the game. On the other hand, online scratch cards are less common as an online casino game, with very basic graphics and gameplay, and with scratch card odds that are also by the developer.

In essence, both these games are very different, but they also have a lot of similarities too! Both slots and scratch cards are very easy to play and require no skill when compared to other games such as blackjack and poker. This is one of the main reasons why so many casual casino players opt for online slots or scratch card games, as they simply need to place a bet and let the games’ random number generator produce winning or losing outcomes.

We will not go as far as saying that online slot games are also a form of an instant game, but they do produce a result much faster when compared to other casino games. As such, players that opt for either slots or scratch cards can expect a very quick result without too much time waiting for an outcome. This is one of the main reasons why players that opt for these games would generally play a number of slot reels or scratch card tickets in one session.

Both of these games also require a relatively low investment when compared to other online casino games. Betting options for online slots start from very low numbers, and some of the best scratch games require a small ticket fee to participate. This is also why players will generally spend longer playing sessions on either of these games.

Lastly, both slots and scratch cards share the concept of jackpots. While not all games carry a jackpot as part of their core gameplay, some titles allow for the possibility of jackpot wins which makes them a popular choice.

Most players will ask themselves what are the chances of winning on a scratch card. It is actually very important that players have a good understanding of scratch card odds before playing a specific game. All the best scratch games will display their scratch card odds as a return to player (RTP) percentage.

The RTP is a measure encoded into each online casino and instant game that calculates the probability of a winning payout that an instant game will give back to players for each unit that is wagered over time. In general, the RTP for scratch card games sits around the 92% mark, which means that for event 1 unit of currency spent by a player, there is an average return of 0.92 units.

Furthermore, players can also better understand their chances of winning on a scratch card by looking at the different types of RTP that individual instant games have. Scratch card odds are also dependent on the game’s volatility, which is a measure that describes the likelihood of players having a winning ticket and the amount of the payouts to be won.

In fact, there are high and low volatility scratch card games:

• high volatility instant games are more likely to give big payouts but will happen less often,
• while low volatility instant games give out frequent but small payouts.

As already mentioned, these instant game choices are not very common at most online casinos, but players can still enjoy some of the best scratch games at Betfair Casino! There are quite a number of impressive titles that offer players a diverse and exciting selection of scratch games to play.

Some of the best scratch games at Betfair Casino include Fishin’ Frenzy Scratchcard and the Deal or no Deal Instant Win Scratchcard that comes with a jackpot prize.

Betfair also has their specific set of 4 instant games that give players 5 games in 1 with 4 regular sections and one bonus section to reveal. These come in different potential top prizes of 10K, 25K, 125K and 250K.

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