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How to play Pachinko?
Pachinko is a Japanese gaming device used for amusement and prizes. Although pachinko machines were originally strictly mechanical, modern pachinko machines are a cross between a pinball machine and a video slot machine, thereby forming an online casino.
How it works
There are many types of pachinko machines and parlor regulations, but most of them conform to a similar style of play. Players can buy metal balls by inserting either cash, a pre-paid card, or their member's card directly into the machine they want to use. For 1000 yen, 250 balls can be bought (4 yen per ball). These balls are then shot into the machine from a ball tray with the purpose of attempting to win more balls. The pachinko machine has a digital slot machine on a large screen in the center of its layout, and the objective here is to get 3 numbers or symbols in a row for a jackpot.
Originally, pachinko machines had a spring-loaded lever for shooting the balls individually, but modern machines use a round "throttle" that merely controls how quickly an electrically fired plunger shoots the balls onto the playfield. The balls then drop through an array of pins. While most balls simply fall through to the bottom of the pachinko layout, occasionally some will fall into the center gate and start up the digital slot machine in the center screen. Every ball that goes into the start-up gate results in one spin of the slot machine, and the maximum amount of "credit" at any given time is 4 spins. This spin credit system is required because it is often the case that a ball will go into the center gate while a spin of the slot machine is still in progress. Each spin typically pays out a minimum of 3 balls, but the ultimate goal is to hit the jackpot and win a lot more. Contrary to popular belief, the program of the digital slot machine decides whether the player has a jackpot or not the moment a ball activates it, not when the numbers or symbols are actually spinning.
Payout mode
During the spinning of the slot machine, when the first 2 numbers or letters of the spin match up the digital program will almost always enter into "reach mode" where many animations and movies are then shown before the final outcome is known just to give the player a boost of added excitement. If the player does manage to get 3 numbers or symbols in a row to obtain a jackpot (average odds of this happening are around 1 in 330), the machine will enter into "payout mode."
Depending on what type of pachinko machine is being played, the payout mode usually lasts for 15 "rounds." During each round, amidst more animations and movies playing on the center screen, a large payout gate opens up at the bottom of the machine layout and the player must try to shoot balls into it. Each ball that successfully enters into this gate typically results in around 12 balls being paid out into a separate tray at the bottom of the machine, which can then be placed into a ball bucket for the player to do with as he or she wishes. The average total payout per jackpot is around 1250 balls, or 5000 yen worth.
Kakuhen and Jitan
After the payout mode has ended, the pachinko machine may do one of two things. Almost all of them employ the kakuhen system, which is where half of the possible jackpots on the digital slot machine (usually the odd number combinations like 111, 333, 555, etc.) result in the odds of hitting the next jackpot improving by 10 fold, for instance, from 1 in 330 to 1 in 33. Hence, under the kakuhen system, it is possible for a player to get 3, 10, or even more consecutive jackpots after the first "hard earned" one. Such a streak of jackpots is commonly referred to as being in "fever mode." If, however, the original jackpot or any subsequent jackpot is not a kakuhen combination, then the machine will enter into "jitan mode." Here, over the next 100 spins, under the original payout odds, a "blossom" opens up near the center gate to make it considerably easier for balls to fall into it. To compensate for the sudden increase in the number of spins over this period, the digital slot machine will produce the final outcomes of each spin much more quickly, typically within 1 second.
Once the jitan mode has ended at 100 spins and no more jackpots have been made, the pachinko machine will revert back to its original setting.
Machine design and payouts
Machines vary in decoration, colors, lights, music, modes, as well as gate size, gate collectors size, the speed at which gate collectors open and close, and gate placement. Some machines simply have more, activate more, or have larger or more accessible gates than others allowing more balls in. Also, most machines have customizable settings inside the machine (accessible by parlour workers only) to pay out more balls (changeable random number generator multiplier settings for each mode) or changeable mode lengths, allowing for a high level of customization. All these factors keep things interesting and lead to long time pachinko enthusiasts to the belief that certain machines are "good" and have been tweaked to have very high payout settings. Different parlours have different types of machines and different settings, so enthusiasts may switch parlours if they are unsatisfied with any particular one.
Pachinko machines also widely vary in the odds of hitting a jackpot, number of payout rounds, number of balls per payout, odds of getting a kakuhen, and number of rounds in jitan mode. The most common difference are the typical "old-school" machines that are hard to get jackpots on but pay out a lot, and the "ama-deji" or "yu-pachi" machines that are easier to win on but pay out relatively little (typically one-third the amount of the former). Old-school pachinko machines average about 1 in 330 odds of hitting a jackpot, 15 rounds per payout, 1250 balls per payout, 50-80% odds of a kakuhen, and 100 rounds in jitan mode. In comparison, the ama-deji/yu-pachi machines offer around 1 in 95 odds of hitting a jackpot, 5 rounds per payout, 450 balls per payout, no kakuhen, and 25-50 rounds in jitan mode. At present, the old-school pachinko machines are the choice of hard gamblers while the ama-deji-yu-pachi machines cater to those who just want to play pachinko for fun rather than profit, even though a person can still win a considerable amount of money on any good machine.
Koatari (Two-Round Jackpots)
Starting in 2007, the majority of Japanese pachinko machine manufactuers started to include what are referred to as koatari into their payout systems, which is a "small" jackpot that lasts for two rounds in addition to the normal jackpots (ooatari) that are offered. Even though koataris officially count as a two round jackpot, during payout mode the payout gate opens up each time for only 0.8 seconds even if no balls go into it. Moreover, the timing of when the payout gates opens during a koatari is unpredictable, which effectivelly makes it a jackpot where the player receives no payout whatsoever. Like normal jackpots in pachinko, koatari jackpots can result in a kakuhen depending on the payout scheme of the machine in question.
The main purpose of incorporating koataris into pachinko machines is so that pachinko manufactuers can offer payout schemes that appear to be largely favorable to customers. For instance, a standard machine that offers only 15 rounds of payout per jackpot may offer odds of 1 in 310 with a 55% of getting a kakuhen. In comparison, if that same machine was designed so that only 80% of jackpots lasted for 15 rounds in payout while the rest were comprised of koataris, the manufactuers could boost the kakuhen odds up to 70% without losing any long-term profit in the payout design. Hence, it is advisable that players carefully check the payout schemes of the pachinko machines they wish to play in order to decide whether or not they really appear to be profitable to play.
In response to the incorporation of koataris into pachinko play, Japanese pachinko players have not shown any significant signs of protest.
Strategies for winning Inside info
In Japan, many books and magazines offer advice on how to earn a living playing pachinko. The variety of help ranges from simple tips to systematically finding a way to outsmart the parlors, but it is recommended that all players develop their own personal methods for winning as nothing is guaranteed. One of the most surefire strategies is to have an inside source tell the player which pachinko machines have the highest settings. Some pachinko establishments offer such information as an incentive for joining their club membership, but it is always difficult to be able to use it to one's advantage as there is a high level of competition among fellow members to get their hands on good machines. On any given day, there is usually a long line of people waiting outside pachinko parlors hours before they are set to open. Also, given the fact that most parlors hold lotteries to see who the first hundred people to enter the parlor will be every morning, the odds of being able to get a good machine even with inside information are not so favorable.
Observing trends
On a similar note, by observing trends in how particular parlors distribute good paying machines throughout their entire layout on a given day of the week, the player can make a pretty good guess at where they are when the need arises. This becomes especially vital when the player picks his or her machine at the start of the day's gambling, for, as pachinko has become very popular since the start of the 21st century, it is often the case that all the good machines are taken just after the parlors open in the morning.
The waiting game
One of the most popular and well-practiced pachinko strategies is to stay at one single machine for the entire time the parlor is open even if it is not at a high setting. The logic behind this is that although the machine the player is at may be programmed to give the player a loss of 30% over the long-run, the player should keep playing at the machine to minimize his or her losses and, maybe, if if the player is lucky enough, gain a small margin of profit. As a means to demonstrate this point, it has been observed[who?] many times that in the rare instance a particular pachinko machine goes over 1000 spins without any jackpots, it usually then shortly enters into kakuhen mode if someone continues to play it (within the next few hundred spins), which can last for 5 or more jackpots. One common explanation for this phenomenon is that some parlor managers may, albeit illegally, manipulate their machines as people are using them to give them a decent amount of jackpots once they confirm that they have lost a great deal of money just so that no potential future patronage is lost. Of course, many amateur players do not have the time or financial backing to gamble in this fashion, but they may be apt to try their luck if they find a pachinko machine that has gone over 1000 spins without providing any jackpots.
Selective play
Another common strategy is to only play machines that have layouts which make it relatively easy to get balls into the center gate. Thus, even though your success still depends greatly on the machine's settings, by being able to spin the digital slot machine a greater number of times with the same given amount of balls, you are giving yourself a greater chance to hit a jackpot and/or kakuhen. Evaluating the spacing and angles of the nails that formulate the pachinko machine's layout are crucial to this strategy.
Winnings
Winnings take form of additional balls, which the player may either use to keep playing or exchange for tokens (typically slits of gold encased in plastic), vouchers, or a vast array of prizes. First, when players wish to exchange their winnings, they must call a parlor staff member by using the call button located at the top of the machine they used. The staff member will then carry the player's balls to an automated counter to verify how many they have. After recording the number of balls the player won and the number of the machine he or she used, the staff member will then give the player either a voucher or card with the number of balls input into it. It is this voucher or card that the player must hand in at the parlor's exchange center to get their tokens or other prizes.
Some prizes are as simple as pens or cigarette lighters; others can be electronics, bicycles, 50 cc scooters or other items. Under Japanese and Taiwanese law, cash cannot be paid out directly for pachinko balls, but there is usually a small exchange center located nearby (almost always separate from the game parlor itself) where players can conveniently exchange their winnings for cash. This is tolerated by the police because, on paper at least, the pachinko parlors that pay out goods and tokens are independent from the exchange centers that trade the tokens in for cash. Some pachinko parlors may even give out vouchers for groceries at a nearby supermarket.
In Taiwan, it is possible to exchange balls or the items you won for cash at parlors, but they only do this with frequent customers and deduct a small percentage out of the final payout and it is highly illegal. Another way pachinko players can win cash legally is by "selling" the prizes they win to a nearby associate store that acts like a pawn shop and buys the items at discount prices. For example, if you exchanged your metal ball winnings for a pack of cigarettes but you do not smoke, you can sell it to the associate store (pawn shop) at 10%-30% less its actual value. Then there is also the possibility of trading your winnings with another pachinko player and either trade or sell the balls for cash.
Variations in play
Due to the wide variety of pachinko machines and parlors, there are many different styles of play. Some pachinko parlors charge less for each ball (like 3 yen, 2 yen, or 1 yen), but, to compensate, they often tweak their machines to make it harder to hit a jackpot or to pay out less when one is reached. Also, some places may not offer a straight equal exchange from balls back into tokens or cash, instead taking out a slight percentage as part of a "bribe tax" to the police for looking the other way.
With regards to pachinko machines, many variations exist as well, particularly among the old-school machines. The most obvious is the range of jackpot odds among different brands. For the old-school machines, the odds can be from anywhere between 1 in 275 and 1 in 420. For the ama-deji/yu-pachi machines the odds of a jackpot range from 1 in 85 to 1 in 100.
As noted above, for the old-school pachinko machines, the chance of hitting a kakuhen on any given jackpot can be from 50% to 80%. It is often the case for machines with good odds of getting a kakuhen, typically above 60%, that the number of rounds the player gets in payout mode vary between 6 and 15, depending on which one the machine wants to give you on any particular jackpot. It has also become popular to design some brands of old-school machines so that they can go into kakuhen mode without any prior indication or jackpot on the digital slot machine. Instead, what happens is that the machine will give you a minimum of 2 straight jackpots after informing you of the kakuhen.
Player etiquette
In Japan, there are many unwritten rules of conduct for players within pachinko parlors and everyone is expected to conform to them or be asked to leave that particular establishment, and, sometimes, even be put under arrest. Firstly, parlor staff members are not supposed to ever tell a player where they can exchange their tokens for cash because of legality issues, so players are expected to find out this information on their own. Next, it is taboo to ever touch another player's balls. Additionally, players are allowed to "hold" a pachinko machine for a short period of time if they leave such personal possessions as a cell phone or a box of cigarettes in the ball tray or have loaded it with 500 yen worth of balls.
Popular pachinko machines
By far, the most popular brand of pachinko machines is the Great Sea Story Series, which is produced by Sanyo Bussan. It is renowned for its relatively easy play, simple yet engaging animations, and sexy main character Marin. As of late, the Evangelion, Hana no Keiji, and Hokuto no Ken series have become extremely popular. Other familiar pachinko series include Lupin the 3rd and Endless Love.
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