Bingo Games & Features
While many bingo websites host a wide range of games, from online slots to roulette, the bingo offering is our main concern. Bingo is a simple game, but that hasn’t stopped multiple variations popping up over the years. This often has a geographic basis — 75-ball bingo, which features 5×5 square tickets filled with numbers, is most popular in the United States. 90-ball bingo, meanwhile, was popularised in the United Kingdom and uses a 9×3 ticket.
If you fancy something completely different, there’s also 30-ball ‘speed’ bingo, 80-ball, progressive jackpot bingo, and bingo roulette. What’s more, if you’re a slots fan, there are plenty of great hybrids of these two classic games. Slingo is arguably the best example, a popular online casino game that originally rose to fame on AOL in the ‘90s.
Let’s take a look at some of the other features of online bingo we look out for in our reviews.
Bingo Networks
When playing online bingo, you’ll notice that many different bingo websites will host the same games. This is because these games are in fact part of a wider bingo network. These networks connect multiple bingo sites together to create a larger pool of players. So, you could be playing a game of 90-ball on one bingo website alongside players from a completely different site. This not only means there are always plenty of players in each bingo room, but also creates a larger prize pot for the winners to share.
Some of the most popular online bingo networks include:
- Virtue Fusion, subsidiary of Playtech
- Dragonfish Software
- The Real Bingo Network
- United Bingo Network
Bingo Developers
Many bingo networks are run by companies that also develop the games themselves. Playtech is a great example — as well as being a prominent online slots provider, Playtech is one of the major bingo developers on the market and also operates its own network. As a result, the company is involved in everything from the development of games to connecting 100,000 daily players across various different sites.
Playtech has also produced slot game-themed bingo games. Following its acquisition of Eyecon in 2017, it developed a bingo version of Fluffy Favourites, Eyecon’s most popular slot. If you win a full house on this game, you’ll gain access to a series of bonus rounds with additional prizes up for grabs.
There are also plenty of other bingo developers that aren’t part of networks. Neko Games, a subsidiary of Microgaming, has produced multiple slot/bingo hybrids, including Don Bingote and Immortal Romance Video Bingo.
Bingo Chat Rooms
Bingo halls have a rich history in the UK — in the 1960s, they were attended by more people each week than England’s top-flight football matches. The social aspect of the game was and still is a big part of why the game is so popular.
The same goes for online bingo — the bingo experience is enhanced when lots of different people are able to come together. Every bingo room comes with a chat feature so you can talk to the other players in the game as it unfolds, and ensuring the chat room functionality is up to scratch is another important part of our bingo site reviews. Test out your bingo lingo, psyche out the opposition, or congratulate the winner — it’s what bingo is all about.