GameMaster Rating: 92 points (of 100)

Here's what the River Belle
had to say about our review.

General Comments: This Internet casino has been an advertiser on this site for almost two years and in that time, we have never received word regarding any type of unresolved complaint. River Belle has an attractive interface and connections are quick and very stable; I was disconnected only once in quite a few hours of play and my 'bank' balance was correct when I reconnected. This is a 'complete' casino with virtually all games. The software gives you the option to not install certain games in order to save setup time. That's a nice feature and should you later change your mind about a particular game, it can be easily added. All of my play at the casino was for 'fun'; no real $$$ were involved at any time. The software behind this casino has a feature called "Playcheck" which is a complete audit trail of all your play. It lists the time each hand was played, the amount bet, which cards you got and so forth and it shows your result and updates your 'bank'. It's a fantastic tool which you can use to increase your confidence in Internet gaming. I just wish 'real' casinos had such statistics.

Recommendations: The River Belle casino could really generate some serious interest in their Video Poker if they would add a progressive Royal to the 9/6 Jacks or Better game. I'm sure they feel they can't offer games with 100+% returns (which a 9/6 Jacks game becomes when the Royal is at 5000 coins or more), but they need to remember that a game like that gives such a payback only to the person who hits the Royal; the rest of us are playing at about a 98% return or less. Anyway, it's a thought. They should also list the minimum buy-in and the minimum bet size on their home page where all visitors can see that information.

Games Analysis (All this information was correct on the date listed above)

Blackjack Single-deck which is shuffled after every hand. Double only 'hard' 9,10,11; no double after split; dealer stands on A-6; dealer does not take a hole card, so all doubled bets against a 10 or Ace are lost if dealer gets a Blackjack; insurance available. Only 'like' cards may be split. (You can't split J,K for example.) Resplitting of Aces is allowed. The casino's edge is approximately 0.2%.

Blackjack playing tips: This is a pretty good game, but you need to remember that both bets are lost if you double or split pairs against a dealer's 10 or Ace and he (she, it?) gets a 'natural'. This requires a change in basic strategy. For some odd reason, the casino has 'spreads' set up for betting: 2 to 20; 10 to 100 and 20 to 200. Why not make it 2 to 200? There's no gain from counting cards and, if you are at, say $20, you just need to choose the next higher spread if you want to bet more on the next hand. Never take insurance.

* The theoretical return is the long-term payback a player who is using the correct strategy may expect. The return is lower for 1-coin play because the Royal Flush pays less when fewer than 5 coins are played.

Video Poker Playing Tips: All the River Belle VP games offer an 'auto-hold' feature that will hold any 'made' hand, like a pair of Jacks or better on the Jacks game, trips on the Deuces game, etc. I recommend you use this option, but bear in mind that some hands which are held may not be the proper play. Auto-hold will not hold 'recommended' hands like four to a flush, however. The 10,000 coin payoff for 5 wild cards on the Deuces/Joker game applies only to 5-coin play. That's why there's such a large difference between the 5-coin and 1-coin returns.

Slot Machines: Ten different are available and one of those has a progressive jackpot.

Craps: This is a 'typical' game with single free odds. The Field bet pays double on 2 and 12, so the edge there is 5.26%. For some reason, your bet on the 'pass' line is moved to the point box when a point is made, so don't freak out; it only moved. You may then add odds on it up there. The graphics on this game are very nicely done.

Craps playing Tips: Be sure to read all the menu items at the top of the screen; this game leaves most bets 'on' during the come-out and you may not want that. Also, you may take back your odds bets by right-clicking on them at any time before the next roll.

Roulette: This is a 'European' wheel with a single zero, so the casino has a 2.7% edge. The 'en prison' rule does not apply.

Baccarat: They do not publish their rules for play, but do say that, "the rules are the same for Baccarat as played around the world." I checked a few hands and that appears to be true. The 'commission' on a winning Banker bet is 5%. Ties pay 8 to 1. The casino's edge is 1.06% on a Banker bet and 1.23% on a Player bet. The edge on a Tie bet is a whopping 14.05%!!

Cyber-Stud Poker: This is a version of Caribbean Stud with a slightly different payout schedule. The problem here is that they have lowered the pay on two-pair from 2 to 1 down to 1 to 1, but have increased the pay schedule for 'bigger' hands. The net result is that this game has a casino edge of 2.94% versus an edge of 2.70% for a game with a 'regular' schedule. There is no $1 side bet for a progressive jackpot.

Cyber-Stud Playing Tip: Call only if your hand is A,K,J,8,3 or better.

Keno: In the River Belle version, you may pick from 1 to 15 spots and the pay schedule varies accordingly. Unlike many other Keno games, this pays for some of the lower 'hits', so it reduces the 'variance' (bankroll swings), but they've shaved quite a bit off the higher end, so the net effect is to lower the overall pay back of the game. When I get a chance, I'll do an analysis, but on the River Belle home page, they claim the pay-back averages 92%. This is the game that seemed to 'hang up' the most; it sometimes takes a while for the balls to get into motion.

Sic-Bo: This is an Asian dice game which I have never played before. The 'Help' menu at the game says that it's an 'ancient Chinese game of chance and strategy', but I don't see where the strategy comes in. Basically you're betting on various combinations which can be made by the three dice that are thrown. For example, if you bet that all 3 will show 'snake-eyes' (1-1-1), it pays 180 to 1. The only snag here is that the odds are 215 to 1. Any 'triple' pays 31 to 1, but the true odds are 35 to 1. There are some pretty hefty house percentages here, so if you've got a craving for Chinese, you'll be better off ordering out.

Summary and Rating of the River Belle Internet Casino: All-in-all, I enjoyed my visit to the 'Belle quite a bit. It's attractive, the games offer, for the most part, a fair return when compared to other venues and it all works quite well. To be totally honest, when I first began playing the Jacks or Better Video Poker, I hit so many Four-of-a-Kind that I was worried that the games were 'juiced'. But as my sample size grew, things got back to normal and it appears to me that the games here are dealt in a random fashion. I did a check on the frequency of Full Houses at Video Poker ( a much more reliable benchmark for a relatively small sample) and they were within acceptable parameters. The River Belle is a nice place to visit and, based upon what's offered, and their longevity in the market, I'm happy to give it a score of 92 points out of a possible 100.