The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world in many ways. As the virus was emerging and causing death and disruption across the globe, a lot of changes were put in place in order to protect the health of people. Lockdowns were put in place to contain the spread and keep the health services from being overwhelmed.

Our lives had to change in tune with the restrictions. We were challenged on how we work, learn and socialise. Our hobbies were changed as we could no longer congregate in public are.

If you are a shopaholic, it was a distressing sight to see all the shops as they were being closed and the retail market appeared to be coming to an end. However, the online shopping world began to open up even more. The retail stores that already had a functional online presence could continue business in the new normal, those without an online presence had to do the work to catch up.

As people had to be isolated in their homes, the entertainment industry had to find a way to bring entertainment to them. As casinos were also closing, they had to put in place mobile and online casinos so that their players could continue playing, like at Max casinos for example. Graphics and sound on online and mobile casinos have improved drastically over the years in order to bring the same experience online as players would have in the land-based casinos.

Being able to bring entertainment remotely, helped to bring people together at a time they felt they were separated and alone. There was also added stress of having to home-school children or juggling everyday life and work life at home. The combination of these issues triggered a host of mental health issues such as addiction, depression, social anxiety and general stress. Therefore, being able to connect virtually to your friends, family, or other people was a good way to stay connected and distracted.

As the lockdown measures began easing, there were some aspects of life which we all came to the realisation had changed for life. We had entered a new normal where remote working and virtual meetings are now a part of our lives as we recognise that being able to split our time between the home and the office gives us more balance. We had also recognised that we can still access entertainment events online which enable us to have the same connections as we would in real life.