Top Club Bingo

First Impression

Opening Top Club Bingo's homepage was an immediate turn-off to me. Their site is simply a mess when you look at it in Firefox. To me, it shows a site that isn't made well. The site is filled with flashing and scrolling, and it's a real assault on the eyes. Their slogan of “Uniting the World as One” sounds very nice, but it's really irrelevant to bingo and to the site in general. The next big downer is the fact that the software is download only. There's no Flash version, which probably means that Mac and Linux users are left out of using Top Club Bingo's software.
 

Bonuses and Promotions

Players receive $20.00 in bingo bucks to try out the site. The bingo bucks aren't real cash, but certainly allow players to enjoy a fair amount of play before committing their own cash to the game. Unlike some other sites, you're a full-fledged player even if you're only playing for bingo bucks. You're free to chat with other players, a big plus in my opinion.
 

Downloading the Software

It's somewhat disconcerting to download software that's clearly labeled as 'Amigo Bingo' when I thought I was playing Top Club Bingo, but obviously, the two use the same software. The download is relatively quick, but the installation takes longer than one would expect from software running something as simple as a bingo game. This is mainly because during installation, the software looks for updates. Personally, I expect a site to make sure that they are giving players the newest version of the software so they shouldn't need to wait for updates. On the other hand, the software is easy to use and very self-explanatory.
 

Registration

I found an additional annoyance in the registration process. The site allows players to download the software before registration. Most sites which allow this checks IP address and doesn't allow players to download the software if they're from a jurisdiction that is not allowed to play on the site. Top Club Bingo only gives the player a clue that they're not welcome when the registration process is almost complete. They simply don't list certain countries in their list of countries. I would find it annoying to download a program and almost complete registration only to discover that I am not able to play on the site. The rest of the registration process is easy and clear, though
 

Play

I've said a lot of negative things about Top Club Bingo, but where it really counts, they absolutely excel. The game play is great. It's easy to choose cards, configure your game view, auto-daub, manual daub, and even choose your daubers. Play is a bit slow, but that's typical with US bingo. Moreover, the chat is active, so it's easy to stay interested even in a game that goes for a while like a coverall game. There's even plenty to talk about between games. The chat crowd is friendly and fun to talk to. They really seem to have a community there, and it was easy to jump in and make friends!