A new decree approved last year has banned well over a million people from participating in gambling in Georgia. The law, which follows the introduction of new online casino restrictions, bans under 25s, public employees, the socially vulnerable and those blacklisted by courts from gambling.

Minister of finance Lasha Khutsishvili said 1.45 million citizens are now banned from gambling, including people who are self-excluding. The new law came into effect this month after being approved by prime minister Irakli Garibashvili last year.

Last month, Garibashvili approved another batch of restrictions to tighten the country’s gambling laws. One of the measures will be to ring-fence online casino licences so they can be held only by land-based casinos based in Georgia.

That would make Adjara Group, Crystalbet and Iveria the only operators that can hold online casino licences. However, in addition, the government plans to offer a licence for exclusive rights to operate online casino for a fee of €1.6m.

Last year, the government presented plans to introduce separate gaming licences for specific verticals so that operators would no longer be able to expand into different verticals with no need for an additional permit. The annual permit fees for each of the business types (online casino, slots and betting) were to be set at €35,580.

All gambling advertising on TV, websites and public places has also been banned, and gambling taxes have been raised. Another batch of measures that are expected to be imposed includes a ban on casinos on ships.

The government says the measures are designed to bring the country in line with the EU expectations as it seeks to enter the bloq, although there is no EU ban on gambling advertising or prohibiting certain people from participating.

Powered by Bragg, the video slot is loaded with expanding symbols and free games to carry you to prizes over 5,000x

When it comes to slot themes, we thought we’d heard it all. But that was before we met Rogue, the main protagonist from Blue Guru’s newest game, Book of Thieves. Our anti-hero makes a living conning and pilfering, that is until he chooses the wrong mark. Stealing from a witch comes with all sorts of consequences, and we get to watch them all play out in this five reel,10 payline video slot.

Enjoy the Medieval tale spilling across the reels, with a mystical tome standing in as the scatter, and a sack of golden coins representing the wild. The remaining symbols are enchanting characters, including the cursed Rogue and the deceptive witch. Golden goblets, daggers, and gold and silver coins complete the set as you spin towards wins of up to 5,337 times the bet. You’ll be helped along with a very generous RTP of over 96%.

The game’s top wins are unearthed within its special features. Expanding reels can be triggered during any base game spin to boost your cash prize considerably. But the crowning glory of the Book of Thieves slot game is definitely the free games feature, which is triggered if you can land three or more scatter symbols. You’ll unlock 10 free spins with up to 3 expanding symbols active for the entire bonus game. The free games can be re-triggered within the feature, for blinding wins worth a lot more than anything found within the witch’s stolen purse.

Kristian Hassall, Commercial Manager at Blue Guru Games said: “Book of Thieves is a new take on a classic format. It’s an immersive world full of rogues, riches and powerful witches that players will love being part of. We continue to be innovative with our games and are really excited to see this one released by our partners and enjoyed by players”

Niklas Mravlje, Director of Product Marketing at Bragg: “We are very proud of the games and achievements the Blue Guru team delivered since the start of our partnership last year. We can count on the talented team to bring original, immersive storylines bolstered by exciting special features and fantastic win potential. Book of Thieves is no exception, delivering the gold standard in slot entertainment.”