Paradise 8 is an international online casino originally launched in 2005. The Curacao-licensed site has been operating under new management since at least November 2019.

The site initially debuted as one of the first four Rival Powered casinos a decade and a half ago. That inaugural group is now under the same ownership and management. It includes Cocoa, ThisIsVegas, and DaVinci's Gold.

In addition to Rival games, the web browser-based instant-play and optional download programs offer Saucify, Spinomenal, Tom Horn, and Betsoft games.

We find the new managers and hosts participate in the public fora, make themselves available for conversations, and offer to settle any disputes that may arise.

While it's usually fairly easy to assess the value of long-standing operations for our players based on reputation alone, that is difficult with these properties.

For the operators, there is the dual-edged sword of brand recognition and the reputation associated with that brand. Players have to decide whether new management with dedicated experience and good intentions is enough to treat it like a brand new site deserving of their trust.

Some transparency in former operations is available but details are vague. The current management and marketing group...

"was created in 2019 when the management team of another long-standing Rival operator (since 2006) joined to help form a Super Group casino operation."

All Rival Powered operations present a checkered past; various problems have arisen, clean up efforts occurred to make all players whole and repair reputation, and then service eventually declined only to ultimately be set on a path of recovery again.

There must be a reason they keep trying, and the answer is most likely in the games' popularity. 

Rival games were highly innovative when they first appeared and some of their ongoing creations are fairly brilliant. They are the favorites of many players, old and new.

With just under a year in operation, we'll look at how the operators have performed so far, what the product comprises, and what the value may be for new players to try the site or for legacy customers to return.

We find no complaints since the relaunch neither resolved nor unresolved. The most recent disputes were from several years prior to the new management team taking over. 

Going deeper into player feedback - grouses and grumbles rather than actual complaints - there's really nothing to speak of beyond a mention of slow but professional live chat response, a player not understanding where to claim bonuses, and one that was not offered free spins. 

Deposit and withdrawal methods, limits, and time frames indicate a well-managed operation, but one without unlimited funding. 

The bonus offers are reasonable and savvy players could easily win more than they can cash out in a day from many of them. Relatively low daily, weekly, and monthly cashout limits indicate they are operating responsibly within their potential exposure and liquidly funded within those parameters.

Software and Games

Like all modern operations, the lobby can be opened in a browser on any mobile or stationary device with an internet connection.

The desktop download client installer is about 888kb. Once you accept the terms and conditions of the software the main files begin downloading. 

With an account, you can play in demo mode or for real money on a browser or through the desktop software. The user interface is nearly identical whichever version you choose. This gives the lobby a seamless feel from device to device.

Navigation is slightly counterintuitive because it is proprietary but becomes second nature after slowing down enough to actually read the drop-down menus.

Once a game type is chosen, additional filters can be applied. Slots can be sorted by release date, popularity, or name.

Additional filters include feature mechanics such as bonus round, multipliers, free spins, expanding wilds, and drop icons. Multiple selections are accepted. For instance, choosing slots ordered by release date with expanding wilds and drop icons we find four games:

• Smoking Gun
• Lucky Labyrinth
• Jumping Jaguar
• Ten Suns

Choosing the first title and clicking on "Details" we learn it is a 5 reel, 50 payline slot, and can be launched in enhanced or lite mode. Let your internet speed and OS processing power guide you here. The lite version loaded much quicker for us on a desktop than the enhanced version.

The selection panel on the left can be closed by clicking "cancel". However, when a game is loading it is not clear how to simply close the game without logging out. Once the game is loaded a new "x" appears which will close only the game.

Depending on your screen resolution you may need to CTRL-scroll to shrink the lobby in order to see all of the game types.

Others may find that the pathways around the site become second nature very quickly. The options seem to be to use the menu or to scroll through categories like featured, new, hot, recently played, etc. Returning home from a category is self-explanatory.

The games

We found well over 200 slots titles but weren't able to sort and filter by the provider. Players outside of the USA will have more options. Here, we can choose among Rival, Saucify, and Betsoft games. Others will find Tom Horn and Spinomenal titles mixed in with the offering.

Rival Powered slots

When Rival first launched the games attracted an instant following. Many players felt that they could almost predict when a feature was going to happen. Many chased those feelings to lose, of course, but there is something special about the game mechanics.

What seems like a minor feature adds much the sense of excitement when playing the legacy Rival slots. 

Other developers: Most bonus spin features that also have a potential picking or other game within them treat that mechanic as a separate, stand-alone entity in the game maths. 

Rival: The win multipliers from free spins carry over into any other bonus game you trigger during free games. If bonus spins pay 3x wins, so do any picking games triggered during the spins.

Simple, yet effective in adding another layer of excitement when triggering a bonus spins feature.

Newer games such as Leonardo's Loot offer their own interesting bonus mechanics.

Wild symbols multiply wins x2, free spins with x10 wins, and a random jackpot make this golden game well worth checking out.

Betsoft

This company launched in 1999 in the early morning of online gambling's rise. They were one of the first developers to focus on a 3D presentation with animated characters hosting the games and acting out the narratives.

The games have their own feel to them and most seem to be low volatility in nature. Along with the humorous displays, most of the games seem crafted mathematically to provide longterm enjoyment with many small prizes.

That's not to say there aren't jackpots to be found in this studio's games, there are.

Our favorite titles are the ones that allow players complete freedom in choosing the number of paylines to increase volatility as well as titles such as Momma Mia that lets you buy sticky wilds and Good Girl Bad Girl that allows players to control the volatility; low, medium, or high.

Saucify slots

This company was formerly known as BetOnSoft, but the name was probably too similar to Betsoft, so they rebranded. Along with the relaunch came a bevy of new titles and bonus mechanics to add weight to the already impressive portfolio. In addition to video slots, they carry classic slots, blackjack, video poker, roulette, and baccarat. 

Older titles like Big Game and Wild Wizards are sometimes overlooked for more recent tiles such as Tales of Time Travel with it's expanding wild symbols, free spins, and big jackpots.

Spinomenal offers slots such as Book of Demigods, Story of Hercules, and 4 Horsemen while Tom Horn has a much larger catalog. 

Table Games

There are about a dozen random number generator animated card games and tables as well as a link to the live dealer lobby. RNG games include roulette, blackjack, craps, Pai Gow, Ride'em, red dog, and baccarat in various versions.

The live dealer studios are provided by Vivo Gaming. 

Vivo is a Tel Aviv headquartered game supplier established in 2010. Perhaps 100 online gaming sites use their services. Offices and studios are located all around the globe including outposts in Bulgaria, Malta London, Manila, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Costa Rica, and Miami.

Studios are located in Varna Bulgaria, Georgia, the Philippines, at the Sun Macau in Bulgaria, and in Uruguay.

Their suite of games includes:

• American Roulette
• Baccarat
• Blackjack
• Caribbean Stud
• Casino Hold’Em
• Craps
• Dragon Tiger
• European Roulette
• Live Bingo
• Sic Bo

While nowhere as big as providers like Evolution, the studios have done a thriving business since first launched.

• 25 Live dealer tables
• 26 Languages
• Native speaking dealers - Chinese, English, Portuguese, Spanish, and Turkish

Bonuses and Promotions

The welcome offers are standardized and available to almost all players. Wagering requirements are attractive and most offers have no max cashout clause.

As you develop a history with the operators, each player will eventually see a sort of personalized bonus dashboard. In general, those who deposit without a bonus occasionally and those who do not simply cash out as soon as they make wagering requirements should see the most generous ongoing offers.

Rival has developed a bonus matrix that may be "grockable" but is not necessarily exploitable.

Like most venues, many of the huge offers, 300%+, etc., will probably come with a maximum amount you can cash out. However, smaller percentage matches will most likely have relatively easy to beat playthrough requirements and a generous multiplier or no max cashout whatsoever.

In general, the higher the match percentage the higher the wagering requirements will be and the lower the potential maximum win.

This sort of bonus structuring is very common these days and we find it acceptable for several reasons. The most important one is that they can't go broke on generous offers, so they'll be around to pay you when you win tomorrow, and the next day, etc.

Many offers come with extra spins or an additional chip to play with if you aren't able to cash out from the initial offer.

Banking and Customer Service

Your location may determine which payment methods are available to you. We find instant Bitcoin deposits, Visa, Mastercard, and American Express as deposit options and Bitcoin as a withdrawal method in the US. These can and do change as the site is constantly striving to accommodate players.

CashLib and POLI may be available along with other methods depending on your location.

The minimum deposit and withdrawal limits are low but so are the maximums. Please check for the current levels offered in your locale.

BTC is stated as being paid in 1-5 business days while e-wallets and debit/credit card withdrawals take from 1 to 7 days.

Pitfalls

• Potential long pending time on some withdrawal methods (1-7 days)
• Low daily, weekly, and monthly cashout limits ($500/$1,000/$4,000)
• Fairly new management

The Final Word

Paradise8 has evolved from a Rival-only site to a multi-provider platform. While we would prefer more variety for US players, there are plenty of good games in every category. Punters in other locales may have a greater game selection.

We particularly like Vivo live dealer software. They are one of the only providers that allow players to visit the live gaming lobby in practice mode. This is very important for people who are not yet accustomed to playing live dealer games online. 

The bonuses we were offered were generous and not impossible to cashout from. The offers give players a good chance to withdraw some winnings and experience customer service, payment processing, etc. That's a win/win because happy players become loyal players.