 | pachinko |
Arik writes:
Is pachinko considered a form of pinball? If so, why is it illegal? I can't comprehend why a game of this nature is any different than a ticket jackpot machine commonly found in kids arcades and chucky cheese's throught the U.S.As far as I know, Arik, there are no U.S. state or federal laws specifically targeted at pachinko and it is not illegal in the U.S. Its regulation in the U.S. (when not played for money) falls under normal fair games and amusements, which most if not all states do have laws and regulations for. It's certainly pretty easy to acquire a pachinko machine for home use; they are carried by many amusement machine companies, as well as home casino suppliers. Most machines I've seen run in the US$100-300 range.
For those of you who do not know, pachinko is a Japanese game. It consists of a standing machine with a spring-loaded hand control. The player loads a large amount (usually in the hundreds) of small metal balls (about 1/4 inch wide) into a hopper in the machine. When the hand control is rotated, the balls fire out at a speed determined by how far the hand control is turned. If the player keeps the hand control rotated, the balls continue to fire at regular intervals.
They fire into a lattice of metal pegs, obstacles and goals. The aim of the game is to fire the balls into goals, which are usually small wheels or slots in the board. Based on the number and frequency of balls which hit these goals, the machine pays out more balls, based on rules which are totally unknown to the player. Usually the machine includes some sort of progressive modes, which encourage the player to play more balls and get the machine "hot" to pay off even more balls. The goal is to leave the machine with more balls than you started with.
In Japan, these balls are then exchangeable for prizes. The prizes usually seem totally out of whack with the amount the game costs -- you may pump $20 worth of balls into a machine and get a little weird teddy bear, for instance. However, near every pachinko parlor is a store that "purchases" these specific prizes for cash. It's that exchange which makes pachinko a gambling game in Japan, and while gambling is illegal there it is generally tolerated in this technically illegal form.
As to why it is not popular in the U.S. is open for debate. My theory is that the game isn't all that exciting compared to the legal forms of U.S. gambling such as video poker or blackjack, and it isn't as much of a game of skill as, say, skee-ball, if it were to be played for amusement or fair-type prizes. On the other hand, pachinko is more skill-based than basic three-reel slot machines, and those are wildly popular in the U.S. It's conceivable that pachinko machines could get regulated and legalized in a place like Vegas as a gambling device, but I don't see why any casino would go through the trouble -- they would require much more maintenance and support than the existing video gambling machines and don't offer anything unique to the casinos other than perhaps an attraction for Japanese tourists and pachinko enthusiasts.
For further reading, there are some good article on pachinko in Japan out there. Try here and here for starters. You can also search eBay for pachinko auctions.
A couple of interesting sidenotes:
not sure about the signs, but this may solve something that has long baffled my parents: when they went to tokyo a few years ago, my parents (who surely looked like american tourists) couldn't pass up playing pachinko. (in the 70s, my dad brought home a disassembled machine and rebuilt it for the family. VERY interesting mechanics back then..)
anyway, after playing for a bit, he won a 5000-ball jackpot. immediately an attendendant came over, said "OK, game over!", took his entire bucket of balls, and made him cash out. they were baffled. i'm still not sure _why_ americans aren't allowed, though!
Posted by: mike on January 26, 2004 03:31 PMDear Sir / Ma’am
Good Day!!
May we introduce to you our company CF Export International with main office and plant address located from Japan and have a branch here in the Philippines as broker.
Our Company engaged on selling remanufactured Pachislo Slots Machines, Pachinco, LCD's of Personal Computer, TV, Pachinko, Slots Machine, and other parts & accessories of the said product and has a list of clients from various country such as U.S.A., Germany, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, China, Hongkong, etc.
All machines and their parts and accessories are imported, good quality because those product are made from Japan. CF Export International is able to provide products of the highest quality at every reasonable price. We also sell or offer a complete set of machines or parts & accessories only, which depend on your requirements.
For inquiry about our product such as stocks and price list, you may e-mail us back so we can provide your requirement immediately.
Thank you for your time and may we have good business relation to your company soon.
Sincerely,
Joy Maderazo
CF EXPORT INTERNATIONAL
send information,
thank you,
i am interested in becoming a machine dealer
(retail) and would like more information on your
sku's prices and availability, quantity discounts
ect.. pachinco and pachislo.
thank you in advance for your correspondance.
hi there
i would like some details and prices off your pachislo machines i8 am in n.ireland.
thanks john davis
Pay Day Loans http://www.paydayez.com
Posted by: Pay Day Loan on October 30, 2005 11:48 AM