Vulcun

Live long and you might (emphasis on might) prosper from this gaming site's deposit bonus.

Mar 24, 2015

Vulcun

This ad for Vulcun.com — a website where you compete against others for cash playing video games like League of Legends and Counter Strike — may lead you to believe that you can get $50 in your account, no strings attached.

But that’s just how they play you. As is often the case, free here doesn’t really mean free. How so? It carries a cost.

After a reader alerted TINA.org to the ad promising free account money, we plugged in the promo code at Vulcun.com ourselves to see what would happen. A drop-down box of text relayed the full story, i.e., the strings tied to the deal:

This promo code allows you to get 100% deposit bonus. We will match your deposit dollar for dollar upto (sic) $1000. This will be released into your account as you enter paid contests (10% of entry fees). …

So it turns out that in order to realize the “free” $50, you first have to match that amount with your own deposit and then gamble a bunch and hope that you stay afloat long enough to reap the full matching bonus — a bit more complicated than the initial ad lets on.

Click here for more of our coverage on so-called deposit bonuses.

Our Ad Alerts are not just about false and deceptive marketing issues, but may also be about ads that, although not necessarily deceptive, should be viewed with caution. Ad Alerts can also be about single issues and may not include a comprehensive list of all marketing issues relating to the brand discussed.