Hollywood Casino Review
Hollywood Casino launched as a standalone gambling site in 2019. That changed in late 2023 when its parent company, PENN Entertainment, launched ESPN Bet and integrated Hollywood Casino into the EPSN Bet app.
Now, Hollywood Casino is only accessible through the ESPN Bet app.
Since its launch, Hollywood Casino has been humbled by the likes of DraftKings Casino and FanDuel Casino, which continue to pull much bigger revenue figures despite a similar market reach.
- Legal and licensed in PA
- Extensive VIP program
- Run by a respected provider
Pros
Legal and licensed in PAExtensive VIP programRun by a respected providerCons
Limited (but growing) game selectionNeeds more deposit methodsNo iPhone or iPad app yetWhich States Is Hollywood Casino Available In?
Hollywood Casino is licensed, legal, and available in four states:
Hollywood Casino Promo Code
Title | Details |
---|---|
Hollywood Casino Promo Code | No code required. |
New Customer Bonus | 58 Free Spins on Select Slots |
Wagering Requirement | None; free spins winnings paid as cash |
Eligible States | MI, NJ, PA, and WV |
Hollywood Casino Bonus Details
Hollywood Casino offers 58 free spins to all new players who sign up, deposit funds, and place a $1 or larger cash wager on any casino game.
The Hollywood Casino bonus seems to be more of an afterthought aimed at ESPN Bet customers rather than an offer designed to tempt players away from other online casinos. As far as online gambling bonuses go, it’s one of the smallest welcome offers players will ever see.
Each free spin is valued at $0.20 each, making the bonus entire bonus worth $11.60. Players have 15 days to use their free spins on the following NetEnt slots only: Finn and the Swirly Spin, Gonzo’s Quest, Gorilla Kingdom, Jumanji, Starburst, and Wild Worlds.
Fortunately, the Hollywood Casino bonus has zero wagering requirements. All winnings players acquire from their free slots spins automatically convert to cash.
Hollywood Casino Loyalty Program: PENN Play
In April 2023, Penn Entertainment completely revamped its myChoice program. The new program, entitled PENN Play, is now fully integrated across all of Penn’s land-based and online properties, including Hollywood Casino Online.
PENN Play is a refreshingly simple program where players earn Tier Points to climb the five annual loyalty tiers, and PENN Cash, which can be redeemed on gaming and just about any purchase at land-based Penn Entertainment casinos.
All players automatically join PENN Play upon signing up with Hollywood Casino and earn Tier Points at the following rates:
- Slot Machines and Video Poker: 1 Tier Point per $12 coin-in
- Table Games: 1 Tier Point for every $25 wagered
Players appear to earn PENN Cash at an equivalent rate to Tier Points. If so, this equates to a 0.083% cashback rate on slots and video poker, and 0.04% on table games. That’s nothing to write home about, but players that reach higher tiers have even more opportunities to earn PENN Cash, through the program’s Real Time Rewards system.
The five Hollywood Casino loyalty tiers are as follows:
- Play: 0 – 999 Tier Points
- Advantage: 1,000 – 17,999 Tier Points
- Preferred: 18,000 – 49,999 Tier Points
- Elite: 50,000 – 199,999 Tier Points
- Owners Club: 200,000+ Tier Points
Hollywood Online Casino Games
The area where Hollywood Casino is lacking the most is game selection. Given PENN Entertainment’s prestigious reputation and the amount of money invested into the Hollywood Casino app, players should realistically have several hundred real-money online slots. Instead, players get just over 140, which isn’t bad but falls well short of the 500 to 1,000+ slots other online casinos have.
On a positive note, the slots Hollywood Casino does have are provided by top-flight manufacturers like IGT, NetEnt, and Light and Wonder. There are even a few Penn Game Studios exclusive slots, all of which are Hollywood Casino branded.
Hollywood Casino does slightly better when it comes to table games, offering players an OK mix of blackjack, roulette, live dealer, and carnival games. There’s also video poker, although the selection isn’t as good as it could be.
Hollywood Casino Slots
Hollywood Casino’s slot library consists of 142 games by various providers, including IGT, Gaming Realms, Lightning Box, NetEnt, Red Tiger, Light and Wonder, AGS, and more. It’s a relatively small lineup overall, but it’s diverse, with varied themes and play styles.
Some of the more popular Hollywood Casino slot titles include Starburst, Cleopatra, Jumanji, Divine Fortune Megaways, and 88 Fortunes. The Hollywood Casino lineup also provides a decent mix of progressive jackpot games and megaways.
Hollywood Casino Blackjack And Other Table Games
Hollywood Casino features 20 live dealer table games by Evolution and 16 digital table games by various providers.
The blackjack variety has improved since Hollywood Casino first debuted and now includes a healthy mix of virtual and live dealer blackjack games. A small sampling of the blackjack offerings includes:
- Live Dealer Hollywood Blackjack
- Live Dealer NJ Infinite Blackjack
- Digital blackjack games by IGT, Gaming Realms, and Penn Game Studios
Roulette players also have a few options:
- Roulette Classic by IGT
- First Person Lightning Roulette by Evolution
- First Person Roulette by Evolution
Other Hollywood Casino table games include Baccarat, Craps, and Four Card Poker.
Hollywood Casino Video Poker
Hollywood Casino offers single-line video poker from Game King, as well as three-, five-, and ten-play variations.
There are 45 variations to choose from spread across five IGT video poker games, each a nine-in-one machine. The video poker collection includes traditional casino mainstays like Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker, Deuces wild, and a collection of the popular Ultimate X variations.
Hollywood Casino’s video poker paytables aren’t full-pay, but they’re only one notch below.
Hollywood Casino Live Dealer Games
Like so many other US online casino brands, Hollywood Casino has chosen Evolution Gaming to provide its live dealer games.
Hollywood Casino does an admirable job here, offering up to 10 standard Blackjack tables, multiple Roulette options, Three Card Poker, Craps, Ultimate Texas Hold’em, Baccarat, Infinite Blackjack, Crazy Time, and Crazy Coin Flip.
Live dealer blackjack betting limits start as low as $1 per hand and max out at up to $5,000 per hand.
Hollywood Casino App Review
Hollywood Casino does not operate on a standalone gambling app. Instead, it’s only accessible through the ESPN Bet app.
Fortunately, the Hollywood Casino app is easy on the eyes. Game icons are large and descriptive, and the cooling dark blue-on-white aesthetic was a sensible choice.
As the game library grows, Hollywood Casino should probably add the ability to filter by the provider and by Hollywood exclusives, but for now, players can only browse the library through overarching categories like “slots,” “table games,” and “live dealer.”
Hollywood Casino also includes the developer’s name and min/max bet sizes next to each game icon. Additionally, players can tap any game to view its return-to-player percentage (RTP) which is a nice touch. Many online casinos hide or obscure their games’ RTP figures.
As for the games themselves, they generally load pretty quickly and run smoothly. There are some occasional buffering issues and geolocation failures, but nothing game-breaking.
Hollywood Casino Deposit Options
Hollywood Casino’s cashier ranks in the top tier among legal US online casinos, and the new app promises even faster payouts.
Here’s a look at the available depositing methods. Just be warned that your actual options might vary slightly, based on your location:
- Credit/Debit cards: Some issuing banks will reject online casino transactions, and credit cash transactions may be subject to cash advance charges.
- ACH/eCHeck via VIP Preferred: Deposit funds directly from a linked banking account. Players are provided a weekly deposit limit, but as they build their credit score and trust, the initial limits may be increased.
- Trustly Online Banking: Players can log in directly to a dedicated banking portal and link their checking account to Hollywood Casino for convenient and secure deposits.
- PayPal: Link a personal PayPal account to Hollywood Casino for instantaneous transactions. PayPal accounts must either have a wallet balance or be linked to a verified bank account to be used for deposits.
- Apple Pay: Hollywood Casino is one of just a few online casino operators that has embraced Apple Pay deposits. Note, that some issuers don’t allow online casino transactions, even if conducted through Apple Pay.
- Play+: This branded prepaid debit card can be funded via a bank account, debit card, and PayPal, and is a solid alternative for players who have had trouble depositing via other means. Players can apply at Hollywood Casino for a card and do not need a physical card to initiate transactions.
- Wire transfers: These can only be processed during banking hours, and funds may take a day or two to hit your account.
Hollywood Casino withdrawal options include:
- ACH/eCheck (VIP Preferred)
- Online banking
- PayPal
- Play+
- Check by mail
There is a $10 minimum withdrawal threshold for all methods except check by mail, which requires a minimum $250 cashout. Withdrawals are usually processed within one business day and should hit player accounts in no more than three days. Again, the exception is a check by mail, which may take up to 14 days to reach your home address.
Hollywood Casino Customer Support
Hollywood Casino offers a comprehensive FAQ section that covers most of the basics. For further help, players can navigate to the “Support” tab and then click or tap on “Contact Us”.
There are three main support contact methods:
- Request a callback: Available 24/7
- Live chat: Available 24/7
- Email: Answers are usually received within 24 hours, but often must faster
Overall, support is pretty average. Agents tend to do all right with basic queries but may not be able to help players with more complicated situations. Callbacks are probably the best way to get a straight answer, but since players can’t call directly, they’ll have to wait around the phone until a support agent becomes available.
Hollywood Casino FAQ
More About Hollywood Casino
The history of Hollywood Casino dates back to 1972 when Penn National Race Course opened as a pure racetrack. Hollywood Casino opened as an addition to the track in 2008 and now operates as a full-fledged casino complete with more than 2,000 slots, 60 table games, a sportsbook, a poker room, and an active horse racing schedule.
Parent Company PENN Entertainment runs 40 gaming and racing properties across the United States. In addition to in-person gambling, Penn National operates HollywoodRaces.com for horse racing betting and HollywoodCasino.com for online gambling.
PENN Entertainment acquired Barstool Sports in 2020 to operate Barstool Sportsbook, which served as the company’s flagship sports betting brand for three years. However, PENN National returned Barstool Sports its former owner, Dave Portnoy, in 2023 in favor of a partnership with ESPN to launch ESPN Bet, its new headline sportsbook brand. Meanwhile, PENN Entertainment will use the technology it developed while using the Barstool Casino brand to power Hollywood Casino.
Expert Opinion: Is Hollywood Casino Legit?
Hollywood Casino doesn’t yet have the market share of its chief competitors, but it is a serious and legitimate operation.
In each state where Hollywood Casino is live, PENN Entertainment followed the licensing application process to the letter. PENN Entertainment has acquired more than a dozen casino and sports betting licenses across many states and operates in accordance with gaming regulations in all of them.
The Hollywood Casino app is still in its nascent phase and lacks in game variety. However, Hollywood Casino has a strong foundation and may eventually establish itself as an industry contender.