Pachinko fans?

[fastbilly1]

Any of yall fans of the vertical pinball slot machines?

I have always been fascinated by them. The "plink" noise of the metal ball on the copper pins is just awesome to me. Most boards I play like pinball, one at a time, slowly working my way through the board, but there is something about machine gunning them in and watching them fly.

I bring this up since I was restoring one last night, a Nishijin Type A. A friend brought it "unrepairable" off Craigslist for dirt cheap and with some cleaning and reattaching of components (this type in the early 70s had all the stuff on the back attached with staples), well I ended up playing it into the wee hours. The jackpot doesnt even work yet... I have pictures of what I am doing and will post them up if people are interested. Atleast a before and after.

And ofcourse, taking one apart makes me want my own. Luckily for me, I like the gravity fed ones (pre 75ish), which typically come in at under $200. No fancy screens for me, just like pinball I like the sounds of the mechanical ones alot more.

[Marspants]

You should def post up some pictures, I've never actually seen one of these irl before! I really want to try one

[gtmtnbiker]

As a kid, I remember seeing them in the Sears catalog and putting it on my christmas list. Of course, my parents never bought me one.

[Devezu]

Alright, I'm going to be the first to say, WTF is Pachinko. I've gone on Youtube, looked at Wikipedia, and I still have no idea how you play the darn thing. Explain?

[fastbilly1]

Think a pinball machine and a slot machine put together:

That is not the best video but on a quick search it will do.

You shoot balls with a plunger similar to pinball. The balls come from the bottom right and curl around to the top. Then they bounce off of the pins as they work their way down. Sometimes they will land in right spots and will trigger the jackpot so you to win more balls. As much as they look completely random, there is a lot of skill in how hard you shoot them (atleast in the old ones). Newer ones have screens and what not.

In Japan they are huge and you can trade your winnings in for vouchers/prizes that can be changed out for money nearby, getting around gambling laws.

Ill get some pictures up soon.

Edit:
here is a good video of someone playing one:

[CRTGAMER]

Alright, I'm going to be the first to say, WTF is Pachinko. I've gone on Youtube, looked at Wikipedia, and I still have no idea how you play the darn thing. Explain?

Japanese "Peggle" type gambling game without the aim. Think of a vertical pinball with just a plunger or electric shooter but without flippers to keep the ball or should I say many small steel balls in play. Random if one drops in a pocket. Instead of coins, a win is a lot of steel balls are awarded in the basket below. Can be traded in for prizes like Chuckie Cheese. Huge in Japan.

We had one when I was a kid, the older lever type. You could almost release the lever gently to control how far the steel ball shoots.

Keep shooting balls, hope to hit the pocket.


Japanese Pachinko Parlor

[Dakinggamer87]

I'm also a fan of Pachinko!!

[Breetai]

Any of yall fans of the vertical pinball slot machines?

Hell no. HUGE waste of time, they are annoyingly loud and too many morons blow their money in it instead of using it to support their families properly. They would all be closed down, if I had my way, except for the token ones in game centers that don't actually use real money.

[durkada]

Pachinko... I appreciate them, love them, but I stay away as a hobby. My father brought one home when I was a tyke, and I thought it was amazing. The plink sound is great, but actually making a shot and seeing the little electro-mechanical show is so rewarding. The old ones, at there best, are beautiful works of kinetic abstract art.

The modern ones are also interesting, but I've not yet seen one operational in person. Instead of an elaborate kinetic show, they now use lots of lights and an LCD in the front. Like advances in pinball, the use of video and a computer allow for a more involved game. But, I'm not convinced I would like the modern more than the old. Its still just a game of chance after-all.

[skyknight]

Pachinko is considered an "adult" activity, due to its "gambling" nature - you have no control of the steel balls, and its entirely up to the machine to shoot around the balls. IIRC, in Japan, Taiwan, and perhaps Hong Kong, minors under the legal age are supposed to be banned from entering any pachinko parlor.

Quite interesting, Konami, Sammy and other JP VG corp usually have branches that produce and operate pachinko machines.