A slot machine, fruit machine, poker machine or pokies is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers.
Pachinko (パチンコ) is a mechanical game originating in Japan that is used as an arcade game, and much more frequently for gambling. Pachinko fills a niche in Japanese gambling comparable to that of the slot machine in the West as a form of low-stakes, low-strategy gambling.
An amusement arcade, also known as a video arcade, amusements, arcade, or penny arcade, is a venue where people play arcade games, including arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers, or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables. In some countries, some types of arcades are also legally permitted to provide gambling machines such as slot machines or pachinko machines. Games are usually housed in cabinets.
Quiz machine is a term used in the UK for commercial coin-operated video quiz games that offer cash prizes for winning performances. It is a type of slot machine in which the player must answer questions in addition to, or instead of, matching symbols. These machines are usually found sited in pubs, bars, and other places of entertainment. The term quiz machine is often used interchangeably with the trade term SWP although not all SWP games are quiz based.
Redemption games are typically arcade games of skill that reward the player proportionally to their score in the game. The reward most often comes in the form of tickets, with more tickets being awarded for higher scores. These tickets can then be redeemed at a central location for prizes. The most inexpensive prizes may require only a small number of tickets to acquire, while the most expensive ones may require several thousand. In general, the amount of money spent to win enough tickets for a given prize will exceed the value of the prize itself. Some redemption games, such as Flamin' Finger, involve elements of chance, which can be set by the operator.
A claw machine is a type of arcade game. Modern claw machines are upright cabinets with glass boxes that are lit from the inside and have a joystick-controlled claw at the top, which is coin-operated and positioned over a pile of prizes, dropped into the pile, and picked up to unload the prize or lack thereof into a chute. They typically contain stuffed toys or other cheap prizes, and sometimes contain more expensive items like electronic devices and fashion accessories. Claw machines are also known as skill cranes, claw cranes, and crane games, and are known as UFO catchers in Japan due to the claws' resemblance to UFOs.
itbox is a networked gambling games terminal which is found in thousands of pubs, leisure centres and amusement arcades in the United Kingdom. Classified as a "skill with prize" (SWP) machine, each itbox terminal typically includes 25 different games. Each game costs 50p or £1 to play and lasts between 10 seconds and several minutes. From most of these games it is possible to win modest cash prizes. Although strictly the name 'itbox' refers only to Leisure Link-made terminals, the name is often casually applied as a genericized trademark to other SWP terminals such as Paragon SWP, Gamesnet, ind:e and Fatbox.
Coinslot International is a UK trade magazine that caters for the 'pay-to-play' leisure sector, generally known as 'coin-op' before the widespread introduction of electronic means of payment. It is published weekly with a 'double' issue over the Christmas/New Year period.
Stacker is a game merchandiser manufactured by LAI Games, first produced in 2004. The goal of the game is to align rows of lights on top of each other. A player who stacks 11 rows can choose to take a minor prize. A minor prize is usually low in value, sometimes lower than the amount of money the player paid to play the game. A player who stacks the blocks to the top row wins the jackpot prize, called the "major prize." Major prizes vary from machine-to-machine but will often include high-value items such as game consoles, mobile phones, and gift cards.
A traveling carnival, usually simply called a carnival, travelling funfair or travelling show, is an amusement show that may be made up of amusement rides, food vendors, merchandise vendors, games of chance and skill, thrill acts, and animal acts. A traveling carnival is not set up at a permanent location, like an amusement park or funfair, but is moved from place to place. Its roots are similar to the 19th century circus with both being fitted-up in open fields near or in town and moving to a new location after a period of time. In fact, many carnivals have circuses while others have a clown aesthetic in their decor. Unlike traditional Carnival celebrations, the North American traveling carnival is not tied to a religious observance.
A carnival game is a game of chance or skill that can be seen at a traveling carnival, charity fund raiser, amusement arcade and amusement park, or on a state and county fair midway. They are also commonly played on holidays such as Mardi Gras, Saint Patrick's Day, and Oktoberfest.
A merchandiser is a type of arcade gaming device, which features a machine that contains a display of merchandise, which can be won by playing the game. In the trade, such games are described as "skill with prize" (SWP) games, and are a hybrid of games of skill and games of chance, with the preponderance of skill or chance differing between devices and often able to be set by the operator.
Amusement with prize or amusement with prizes (AWP) are slot machines that provide some level of player interaction. They do not, however, depend on the skill of the player; machines that depend on player skill are called skill with prize (SWP) machines. Both of these terms are trade terms, and such machines are referred to by alternative names by the public.
Slot machine terminology, characteristics and regulations vary around the world.
A sweepstakes parlor is an establishment that gives away chances to win prizes with the purchase of a product or service, typically internet access or telephone cards. They began to appear in the Southern United States some time around 2005, and quickly proliferated. Purchased entries are redeemed using computers at the establishment, which contain specialized software that presents whether a participant has won a prize. Results are often presented using mechanisms that resemble casino games, such as slots, and the facility itself may contain casino motifs in their overall decor.
Non-redemption is the term used by family fun centers and arcades to indicate that a particular game or attraction does not give out tickets for prizes, as opposed to a redemption game.
Out-of-home entertainment is a term coined by the amusement industry to collectively refer to experiences at regional attractions like theme parks and waterparks with their thrill rides and slides, and smaller community-based entertainment venues such as family entertainment and cultural venues.
Sweet Licks, known as Okashi Daisakusen in Japan and Choco-Kid in Europe, is a 1981 coin-operated redemption mole-buster arcade game developed and published by Namco. Players use a foam-covered mallet to whack the eight "Pyokotan" cake monsters that emerge from the colored holes placed on the machine. Points are awarded for hitting them, and the speed of the game increases until the time limit runs out. Hitting 40 Pyokotan will increase the timer by 15 seconds.
An arcade video game is an arcade game where the player's inputs from the game's controllers are processed through electronic or computerized components and displayed to a video device, typically a monitor, all contained within an enclosed arcade cabinet. Arcade video games are often installed alongside other arcade games such as pinball and redemption games at amusement arcades. Up until the late 1990s, arcade video games were the largest and most technologically advanced sector of the video game industry.
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games or merchandisers.
