One of the world’s largest and busiest online poker sites, PartyPoker.com has recently come up with a stunning promotional offer that no self-confessed petrol-head, young or old, male or female could possibly resist. A series of freerolls and satellites could result in players claiming one of five prize packages to a final that will be held in London on October the second. The event is to be known as “Drive the Dream and its title could not be more appropriate. The wicked set of wheels that will pass to the player taking pole position in this incredible event will be none other than the fabled Aston Martin DB9 Coupé.

Although the game to be won is Poker and not Baccarat, this unprecedented prize will certainly serve to fulfil the wildest dreams of all the red-blooded aspiring 007s and Bond girls alike and will very likely turn Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond green with uncontrollable envy.

There are still a good five weeks of play in which to grab one of those packages so you need to keep a sharp eye out for the freeroll and satellite dates.

Of course if it’s mere money that you are after, PartyPoker.com now operates a busy tournament schedule that includes more than $6 million in guarantees every month. They offer a wide selection of games as well as a wide range of buy-ins so there should always be something to match your tastes and your bankroll with ease.

Their monthly $1 million guaranteed tournament operates on the first Sunday of each month and there are always plenty of cheap qualifiers that could see you contending the main event for a buy-in of as little as a single dollar.

Among the other current promotions atPartyPoker during this month are the 3 in one Full House offer that could be worth a share of $ 350 000 and a chance to win a luxurious Oktoberfest package plus a share of $75 000 in the leaderboard challenge. Then there’s the Snowball with its $5K in cash prizes and $100Kin freeroll entries, not to mention the $7 500 package for the WPT Borgata event.

Did I mention that, if you happen to be signing up at PartyPoker for the first time, there’s also a very generous 100% matching welcome bonus that could add another $100 to your opening bankroll.

With all this and a lot more on offer, It is perhaps not too surprising that PartyPoker was honoured with the title of “Poker Operator of the Year” by eGaming Awards in 2009. It now appears to be well on track to pull off the double in 2010.

It’s not yet in full operation but one new online casino that is calling itself “Chat Spasm” appears to be adopting a radically different approach to the whole process of online gambling. I visited their site recently and was completely surprised to be met, not with spinning roulette wheels and an invitation to join some super slots tournament but, what appears to be a dedicated chat room with webcam capabilities and a strong dating theme.

The three simple phrases on its home page welcomed me to the anonymous, free video chat facility; advised me that I must be 18 or over and refrain from illegal behaviour and continued by telling me that, in order to conduct a video chat with a random stranger in my choice of five European languages, I just needed to click “Connect”. Now that’s scary!

A closer investigation suggests that the site is planned to become, not the home of voyeurs, exhibitionists and the seriously weird, but rather an online venue for entertainers such as comedians and musicians. Their participation is expected to include random, impromptu performances for the entertainment of visitors to Chat Spasm.

Although describing itself as an online casino, the only visible evidence of any connection to the online gambling industry at present is a couple of adverts for other online venues. Likewise, in the absence of any “about us” page and indeed any information pages at all, it is not even clear who may actually own the site.

Mysteries apart, the concept of upgrading an online casino or poker room chat facility does have an air of genius about it. The implications and applications are really quite staggering. Imagine a game of online poker played by participants from all around the globe in which, in addition to the table stakes, consenting players may simultaneously participate with a striptease on the side. For the ladies, this could be a far more effective means of misdirecting their male opponents than mere bluffing and for the guys; it could at least soften the sting of losing.

Lucky at cards, unlucky in love is a widely held superstition but with video chat surveillance in place it now becomes a simple matter for the winners to hook up with one another. What, however, if I chose to take my webcam and point it, not at me, but at the screen where my hole cards are displayed in all their glory? The Chat Spasm system would appear to offer the aspiring fraudster a perfect tool for collusion.

If it is really planning to operate as an online gaming venue, it would appear that Chat Spasm will have to restrict itself to casino games and confine poker to the video variety. Somehow, though, I don’t think a strip slots tournament will hold quite the same appeal so music and jokes will probably prevail.
 

You will recall all the hype surrounding the launch of our new joint venture Smokoo.co.za. First there was the nationwide guessing game that brought visitors to the site in their thousands as they competed for that awesome Apple iPad. Then, on August 1st, came the disappointment when, due to an unforeseen technical glitch, the proposed launch date passed without a launch and sceptics began to wonder if it was all just a big bluff.

Good News! The glitches are a thing of the past. It was no bluff! The monster Smokoo server is now running like clockwork. It is as secure as Fort Knox and today saw Smokoo burst into online existence with its first two innovative auction offerings. For her insight in accurately identifying the nature of Smokoo, a certain very lucky lady named Martie Jacobsz-Faber, will shortly be enjoying the promised iPad.

Although today’s auctions were modest and more of a first live test of the software than a serious attempt to knock your socks off, it will only take the briefest glimpse of things to come to get the adrenaline pumping and the crowds flocking to Smokoo’s virtual door.

Quite apart from the fact that this coming Monday will see a second iPad up for grabs as well as a stunning new iPhone 4 also from Apple. These two items alone are valued at R12 000 and R15 000 respectively and there’s also an X-Box 360 Elite worth about R3 200 on offer  but together these are still little more than a drop in the ocean if you take a look ahead to what Smokoo has planned for October and November.

October 1st will see someone walking off with a Sony Bravia 3D HD TV worth R45 000 while three days later, on October 4th, there will be a stunning Rolex Daytona to be won. Can you imagine picking up a watch worth over a hundred grand for perhaps as little as 5% of the market price? If that sounds like a bargain, then just fast-forward a few weeks to November 1st.

Mark this date in your diaries and on your calendars, tattoo it on your foreheads and set every conceivable online and offline reminder that you can find. The first day of November is the day that Smokoo will make online auction history once more, this time by offering one of the world’s most sought after luxury vehicles, the prestigious Mercedes C 180K. This masterpiece of German automotive engineering comes direct from the showroom and carries a price tag of R334 000. Furthermore, you could be luxuriating behind its high-tech dashboard for a mere fraction of the recommended retail price.

Smokoo will be taking time-out over the weekend to assess server and software performance but will be back with more goodies to grab on Monday. In the meantime, why not register as a Smokoo bidder and prepare to grab your share of the upcoming bargains. You will get 2 free bids just for signing up and even the bid packs can be won in auction at very generous discounts.

Smokoo.co.za is where online shopping can offer you every bit as much fun and excitement as a really great online poker tournament except that, at Smokoo, they always play open cards and nobody is bluffing.
 

If you are a regular player of online slots games, it’s certain that you will have seen signs that certain games will rise to prominence from time to time while others appear to descend into a sort of temporary obscurity. Aside from the novelty value associated with new releases that always draws the attention of those in search of something new, the level of attention enjoyed by any given slots game is usually the direct result of its most recent payouts.

We’ve been having a close look at recent trends among slots performance at Vegas Palms Online Casino and thought that you might find the results of interest. Part of the Fortune Lounge Group of Online Casinos, Vegas Palms offers its players a particularly wide variety of gaming options with an exceptionally well stocked games lobby that hosts a total of almost 400. Right now, the Mega Moolah Progressive jackpot total stands at over $4 million and climbing. However, it’s not too often that a progressive jackpot lands in someone’s lap so much of the recent interest among punters at this well-supported venue seems to be centred on a small assortment that includes video pokers, table games and slots.

Heading the casino’s popularity list right now are the video pokers, “Multihand Video Poker Double Double Bonus” and “Jacks or better” while, at the tables, European Roulette Gold is the one to watch.  Four of the games in the popular Microgaming bonus slots series, namely – “Thunderstruck II Bonus Slot”, Lumber Cats Bonus Slot”, “Dragon Lady Bonus Slot” and “Halloweenies Bonus Slot”. Bringing up the rear, comes the 5-reel video slot, “Carnaval”

The last month has seen this group of casino games coughing up one great win after another and the result has been a huge upsurge in players scrambling to see what these exciting online games might have in store for them.

There are always two sides two a coin of course. Among those games that have proved to be particularly reluctant to fill anyone’s pockets of late are two of the once equally-popular bonus slots, “Celtic Cross Bonus Slot” and “Magic Spell Bonus Slot” as well as one of the older favourites, “Monster Meteors”.

Right now the smart money would appear to be favouring the few games that have been making the winner’s wall of late. However, considering the very randomness of modern online casino games, who is to say how long this trend may last? Many would say that a lack of payouts is a sign of good things to come while others would say simply, strike while the game is hot.

There’s just one way to find out so why not join the fun at Vegas Palms Online Casino and see for yourself?