We regularly point out how the online casino games available at licensed sites are independently audited by third parties to ensure fairness. This can get you to start wondering about how one gets around to auditing a casino game? What is there to audit, even? You might also wonder how you can trust the auditors in the first place, if not the game itself. These are all fair questions, considering we ultimately play online casino games using real money. With this in mind we got around and looked into this issue of the likes of eCOGRA and Gaming Labs International (GLI) audit our favourite titles - and the answer is actually more interesting than you imagine!
Ireland Online Casino Offers
Advertiser Disclosure: At Gambling Zone, we may earn a referral commission if you sign up through links on our site. This helps support our work and does not influence our independent reviews or ratings.
Why Independent Audits Matter
Online casino games - and most games available at land-based casinos - are essentially complex pieces of software that are based around randomness. It’s this randomness that makes these games so exciting, so it stands to reason that it is truly, well, random, and as such fair. After all, it’s fair for one to think that the software is actually weighed against the player, leading to rigged game results. Good thing there are regulators demanding for fairness, while both operators and developers depend on it if they are to be considered reputable providers of gambling and entertainment.
Still, the question remains on how to gauge the fairness of a game. What one needs here is an independent referee, which is where the third party laboratory comes into play. This entity’s job is to test whether the game is truly fair, and as such not rigged, whether it’s intentionally or otherwise, in favour of the casino operator. There are a number of testing labs out there, with eCOGRA, GLI, and BMM Testlabs being among the best known in the business.
How to Audit a Game
How to Audit a Game
Now that we know why games are audited, we should move on to how this process takes place. First off, once a developer creates an RNG-based game such as an online slot they need to submit it to the testing lab for certification. This is a multi-step process that involves the following:
1. Documentation Review
Before the game is actually tested the laboratory takes a close look at its documentation. This is provided by the developer and covers the game’s rules in detail, payout tables, the calculation involved behind the mathematical models and return to player (RTP), and the details as to how the RNG is implemented. Also included in the documentation are the source code and communication protocols, which are particularly important in online games. The aim here is for the laboratory to first understand how the game should behave before checking whether its real-life performance matches what the developer claims on paper.
2. RNG Evaluation
We’ve mentioned how online games are based around RNGs, the algorithms that generate random outcomes. This is the beating heart of any slot or roulette game, and its testing involves a two-part process. First, the experts analyse the source code behind the RNG to ensure its algorithms are cryptographically secure and include no hidden patterns or exploitable weakness. The seeding methods are tested to ensure they are unpredictable, and the algorithm’s implementation is checked to see whether it has the kinds of mistakes that can lead to predictable results.
Once the RNG is thoroughly checked its output is put through statistical tests. There are a number of options here, including DIEHARD and DIEHARDER, NIST, and the TestU01 batteries and their BigCrush suite. While different in the specific ways they work, these tests look for patterns, anomalies, and correlations inside millions, if not billions, of RNG samples. If the outputs deviate from true randomness in ways that matter for the game then the RNG fails.
3. Game Logic and Maths Verification
The RNG is not the only thing that guarantees a fair game - the logic behind it should run as described in the documentation. Thus the laboratory simulates the game’s mathematics to confirm that the advertised RNG is correct, the volatility and win distribution behave as intended, and there are no unintended combinations or payout errors. Then there are the so-called edge cases, where issues such as max bet, feature overlap, or bonus chaining, might cause crashes or bugs. This is where the testing phase is key, since a lot of times developers might unintentionally leave small coding errors that would skew probabilities or allow for rare payouts. Such issues would remain in the game if it wasn’t for the lab’s testing.
4. Integration and Communication Testing
Online casino games do not run by themselves. On the contrary they are constantly in communication with multiple systems, namely the game client, casino platform, payment systems, and sometimes a live regulatory monitoring channel. These communications need to be held over secure channels that cannot be manipulated during transit. The labs also check that player balances update correctly and consistently, logs match real gameplay, and jackpot servers behave properly. Finally rules that protect the player in case of disconnects should be in place.
5. Quality Assurance and Stress Testing
Games must be able to handle the pressure as well as fair. This is why labs perform tests that simulate thousands of simultaneous players, as well as run them for millions of rounds. In addition games are checked across devices, browsers, and operating systems, all while doing regulatory compliance checks such as displaying the RTP and rules using the permitted terminology. All of this ensures that the game won’t crash or glitch out no matter when or where one is playing.
6. Security Auditing.
A security review confirms that the game holds no malicious code, hidden developer functions that allow unauthorised manipulation, or active debug switches. Attackers should also be unable to exploit memory, client-side logic, or network loopholes.
7. Final Certification and Ongoing Monitoring
The game receives a final certification report once it clears all of these stages. The report is passed on to regulators, who examine it accordingly before clearing the game for real-money play. But that’s not the last time the game will see the lab, as most regulators require regular RNG re-audits and periodic game math checks. Live data is monitored and, in case players place complaints, spot checks are held. This way the game is ensured to remain fair for years after its release.
Independent Labs Keep the Casino World Spinning
The hard work of staff at independent testing labs ensure that the games we play are truly fair and, as such, fun. Their audits combine mathematics, cryptography, software engineering, game theory, and regulatory expertise in a single process. Think about this next time you’re at your favourite casino site, and feel safe in the knowledge that these specialists have made sure that your game behaves as it should. Have fun and, as always, play responsibly.
