People join forums for various reasons ... you mentioned a few already. There is not a one size fits all answer. Different strokes for different folks ... so to speak.

Reading between the lines, it seems like you are asking "If I earn some points and convert that to online money will I actually ever get to hold that money?" The short answer is maybe.

I've got some money on Cake ... errr make that Juicy ... haven't actually loaded Juicy yet. Anyways, Does that money feel like real money? ... nope. Does it feel like play chips? ... nope. It feels like something in between ...it sucks ... but oh well... not gonna lose sleep over it.