Responsible Play Guide · Canada
Balancing game-style activities with everyday life.
This Responsible Play Guide applies to the informational website available at canadaonlyplay.com (“OnlyPlay”). It is intended for adults aged 18+ in Canada who wish to understand number-based and prize-style formats in a balanced way.
OnlyPlay does not host real-money games or handle transactions. However, we recognise that some visitors may interact with similar activities elsewhere. This guide sets out principles that may help keep such activities within safe and controlled limits.
Key reminder
Prize-style and lottery-inspired formats are based on chance. No strategy, pattern, or system can guarantee outcomes. Viewing them as entertainment – and only when affordable – is essential.
If participation in any game begins to feel necessary, urgent, or distressing, it may be a sign to pause and seek advice from a professional service or support organisation in your province.
1. Treat game-style activities as optional entertainment
Interactions with number draws, dice formats, or wheel-style games should remain optional and secondary to your everyday responsibilities. Essentials such as housing, food, healthcare, and savings should always come first.
- Use only funds that you could comfortably spend on other leisure activities.
- Avoid thinking of prize-style games as a way to solve financial challenges.
- Keep a clear boundary between entertainment and essential financial planning.
2. Set firm limits in advance
Limits are easier to maintain when they are established before any activity begins.
- Decide in advance how much time you will spend in a week on game-style activities.
- Set a clear maximum amount you are prepared to spend, if any, within a given period.
- Use available tools such as time reminders, spending caps, or voluntary breaks where offered by operators.
3. Recognise signs that a pause could help
Consider stepping back and speaking with a professional or trusted person if you notice any of the following:
- Spending more time or money on games than you originally planned.
- Feeling pressure to recover past spending or “chasing” previous outcomes.
- Finding it difficult to focus on work, study, or relationships because of game-style activities.
- Hiding the extent of your participation from family members or friends.
These signs do not mean you have done something wrong, but they may indicate that additional support or a longer break could be beneficial.
4. Where to seek help in Canada
Each Canadian province and territory offers its own resources for people who are concerned about gambling-related harms. These can include confidential phone lines, online chats, counselling services, and self-exclusion tools.
- Visit the website of your provincial lottery corporation or regulator.
- Look for a section titled “responsible gambling” or “play responsibly”.
- Review available help lines, chat options, and support programmes.
In addition, many community organisations and healthcare providers can offer guidance on managing financial stress, anxiety, or other difficulties connected with game-style activities.
If you ever feel at immediate risk of harm, contact local emergency services or crisis support lines available in your area.
5. Minors and access to game-style content
OnlyPlay is designed exclusively for adults aged 18+. Game-style activities that involve chance, even without real-money participation, are not appropriate learning tools for children. If minors are present in your household, consider:
- Using device-level and network-level parental controls where appropriate.
- Keeping discussions about chance and probability age-appropriate and non-promotional.
- Avoiding shared accounts or devices for activities related to prize-style formats.
Encouraging open, honest conversations about media, advertising, and chance-based games can help young people develop realistic expectations and critical thinking skills.
Important notice
This Responsible Play Guide is general in nature and may not reflect all resources available in your province or territory. For up-to-date, official information, please consult local regulators, lottery corporations, or healthcare providers. OnlyPlay cannot provide personalised advice or crisis support.