Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: What is a pachinko machine?
Pachinko(パチンコ) is a type of mechanical game originating in Japan and is used as both a form of recreational arcade game and much more frequently as a gambling device, filling a Japanese gambling niche comparable to that of the slot machine in Western gaming.
To play pachinko, players get a number of metal balls by inserting cash or cards directly into the machine they want to use. These balls are then shot into the machine usually via pulling a lever once for each launch from a ball tray. The balls then fall vertically through an array of pins, levers, cups, traps and various obstacles until they reach the bottom of the machine screen.
A number of Evangelion-themed "pachinko" and "pachisuro" machines are offered at pachinko parlors:
The player has a chance to get more balls to play with if one of the launched balls hits a certain place during the fall through the Pachinko machine. Having more balls is considered a benefit, because it allows the player to remain in the game longer and ultimately have a larger winning chance.[9] Newer machines have a digital slot machine on a large screen in the center of the system. The objective of this part is to get 3 numbers or symbols in a row for a jackpot.[10]
Japanese slot machines, known as pachisuro or pachislo (portmanteaus of the words "pachinko" and "slot machine"), are a descendant of the traditional Japanese pachinko game. Slot machines are a fairly new phenomenon and they can be found in mostly in pachinko parlors and the adult sections of amusement arcades, known as game centers.
After the payout mode has ended, the pachinko machine may do one of two things. Most Pachinko machines employ the kakuhen (確変, short for 確率変動 meaning probability change) system, where some percentage of the possible jackpots on the digital slot machine result in the odds of hitting the next jackpot multiplying by a large amount, followed by another spin regardless of the outcome. The probability of a kakuhen occurring is determined by a random number generator. Hence, under this system, it is possible for a player to get a string of consecutive jackpots after the first "hard earned" one, commonly referred to as "fever mode". Another type of kakuhen system is the special time or ST kakuhen. With these machines, every jackpot earned results in a kakuhen, but in order to earn a payout beyond the first jackpot, the player must hit a certain set of odds within a given amount of spins.
Japanese slot machines, known as or pachislot (portmanteaus of the words "pachinko" and "slot machine"), are a descendant of the traditional Japanese pachinko game. Slot machines are a fairly new phenomenon and they can be found mostly in pachinko parlors and the adult sections of amusement arcades, known as game centers.
Another reason for incorporating koataris is that they make it possible for a machine to go into kakuhen mode without the player's knowledge. This is referred to as senpuku (潜伏 'hidden') kakuhen because it does not occur in any of the jackpot modes. A player sitting at a used pachinko machine offering a 1 in x chance of hitting a jackpot in normal mode can hit it within x spins easily because the previous player did not realize that the machine was in senpuku. This induces players to keep playing their machines, even though they may still be in normal mode. Japanese pachinko players have not shown significant signs of protest in response to the incorporation of koatari; on the contrary, battle-type pachinko machines have become a major part of most parlors.
Pachinko machines vary in several aspects, including decoration, music, modes and gates. The majority of modern machines have an LCD screen centered over the main start pocket. The game is played with keeping the stream of balls to the left of the screen, but many models will have their optimized ball stream to be in the center of the play field or to switch from left side to right side depending on the game mode. Vintage machines vary in pocket location and strategy with the majority having a specific center piece that usually contains win pockets.
To enhance gameplay, modern machines have integrated several aspects not possible in vintage machines. One commonly used addition is the ability to change between different play modes, including rare and hidden modes that can differ significantly from normal play. Two examples can be seen in the Evangelion series of pachinko machines, which include mission mode and berserker mode, which range from having little effect on winning to being an almost guaranteed win.[12][13]
Pachio-kun is included in both the spin-off video game "American Dream" (as a player character) and in "I Love Softball" (as a cameo). Both of these games are compatible with the Famicom. In "American Dream", slot machines and random card games were prominent in that game instead of pachinko machines. A vaguely American setting (resembling New York City) was used in the game as opposed to the traditional Japanese setting. The story line of most of his video games dictate that the player must rescue his friends that have been trapped inside pachinko machines. This anime character was semi-popular in Japan despite the fact that pachinko parlors are traditionally for adults only.
The player takes control of the members of a robot family who explore the abandoned temples of the ancient Pachinkeet civilization, their architecture inspired by pachinko machines, destroying pachinko balls along the way to pass each stage. In their way is the space pirate Vile Vill and his crew, who are also exploring the temples and hoping to loot them of their riches.
In addition to being able to offer higher kakuhen percentages, koatari made it possible for manufacturers to design battle-type machines. Unlike old-fashioned pachinko machines that offer a full payout or a kakuhen for any type of jackpot earned, these machines require players to hit a kakuhen jackpot with a certain probability in order to get a full payout. This is orchestrated by the player entering into "battle", where the player, in accordance with the item that machine is based on, must "defeat" a certain enemy or foe in order to earn another kakuhen. If the player loses, it means that a normal koatari has been hit and the machine enters into jitan mode.
When a jackpot does not result in a kakuhen combination, the pachinko machine will enter into jitan (時短, short for 時間短縮 meaning time-reduction) mode, with a much larger number of spins than kakuhen. Under the original payout odds, the center gate widens to make it considerably easier for balls to fall into it; this system is also present in kakuhen. To compensate for the increase in the number of spins, the digital slot machine produces the final outcomes of each spin faster. ST pachinko machines do not offer this mode; after it ends, the machine spins as in kakuhen. Once no more jackpots have been made, the pachinko machine reverts to its original setting.
Pachinko machines were first built during the 1920s as a children's toy called the "Corinth game"(コリントゲーム,korinto gēmu), based on and named after the American "Corinthian bagatelle".[4] Another likely inspiration was the Billard japonais, 'Japanese billiards', invented in Western Europe during the 18th century. It emerged as an adult pastime in Nagoya around 1930 and spread from there. All of Japan's pachinko parlors were closed down during World War II but re-emerged in the late 1940s. Pachinko has remained popular since; the first commercial parlor was opened in Nagoya in 1948.[5] As a country influenced by Japan during its occupation, Taiwan has many pachinko establishments.[6] Nowadays an estimated 80 percent of pachinko parlors in Japan are owned by ethnic Koreans.[6]
Pachinko is a popular gambling game in Japan, that traces its roots back to the early 20th century. The Masamura trading company from Nagoya constructed a museum in tribute to the company's founder Masamura Takeuchi on the third floor of the old Masamura Building in Nishi-ku. He is often acknowledged to be the creator of modern pachinko, by turning this children's game into an adult hobby. In the years after World War II, when supplies were short, he was able to build together some of the first pachinko machines made out of old tea chests and greenhouse glass. The legendary Masamura Gauge All 15 is remembered as the precursor to modern day Pachinko machines.
Slo-Pachinko Gladiator Evolution is an original soundtrack album released by Gackt on March 9, 2009. It consists of re-recorded songs and one, Kagero, from Chachamaru's album Air, promoting his own pachinko slot machine "Gladiator Evolution". The album is only available as a prize of the pachinko parlors where the game is playable, and is not sold at record shops.
Starting in 2007, the majority of Japanese pachinko machines started to include koatari (小当たり, small jackpot) into their payout systems. Koatari is shorter than the normal jackpot and during payout mode the payout gate opens for a short time only, even if no balls go into it. The timing of the opening of the gates is unpredictable, effectively making it a jackpot where the player receives no payout. Koatari jackpots can result in a kakuhen as per normal operation, depending on the payout scheme of the machine in question. The main purpose of koatari is so that pachinko manufacturers can offer payout schemes that appear to be largely favorable to customers, without losing any long-term profit.
A number of pachinko and pachislot machines based on the franchise have been produced, mainly by Sega Sammy Holdings since the launch of the CR Hokuto No Ken pachinko machine in 2002. Pachislot Hokuto No Ken, launched in 2004, sold 620,000 units by March 2005, becoming the best-selling pachislot machine. Pachinko CR Hokuto No Ken 3 became Sega Sammy's best-selling pachinko machine when it launched in 2009. By March 2017, Sega Sammy had sold 3.18million Hokuto no Ken pachinko, pachislot and arcade machines, including 2.71million Hokuto no Ken pachinko and pachislot machines, 30,000 Hokuto no Ken arcade game machines, and 440,000 Souten no Ken pachinko and pachislot machines.[35] Between April 2017 and March 2018, Sega Sammy sold a further 149,498 Hokuto no Ken pachinko and pachislot units,[36] and a further 30,223 units between April 2018 and June 2018,[37] bringing total sales up to 3,359,067 units. At an average unit price of $5,000,[38] Sega Sammy has grossed approximately $16,795 million from sales of Hokuto no Ken pachinko, pachislot and arcade machines.
Kitazawa gave the video a pachinko machine motif, and aimed to create an entirely different image from the band's previous artistic videos. Kitazawa was inspired by pachinko machines, strongly associated with a "dirty mood" as they are gambling devices, however when seen outside of context are innocent game cabinets. Kitazawa felt that how the identity of what a pachinko machine is changes depending on the conceptions of people, and that this expressed the messages of the song well. Kitazawa was inspired by the chorus lyric "identity ga nai" to create a video primarily in grey sale, and focused much of the video on light and shadow. The Kino Flo fluorescent tubes used on the band performance scenes of the video were made to resemble fish bones, relating to the meaning of the band's name in Japanese.
As of March 2018, "Evangelion" pachinko manufacturer Fields Corporation revealed that the "Evangelion" franchise has sold a total of 2.317million pachinko and pachislot machines, including 1.752million pachinko machines and 540,000 pachislot machines. At an average unit price of $5,000, the "Evangelion" franchise has grossed approximately from sales of pachinko and pachislot machines.
Bean machine Pachinko allocation Plinko – a game, similar to pachinko, featured on the American game show The Price Is Right Visual Pinball – a software game engine for creating computer game simulations of pachinko and pinball machines The Wall, an American game show, features a four-story-high pegboard wall similar to Plinko
Until the 1980s, pachinko machines were mechanical devices,[7] using bells to indicate different states of the machine. Electricity was used only to flash lights and to indicate problems, such as a machine emptied of its balls.[8] Balls were launched using a flipper; their speed was controlled by pulling the flipper down to different levels. Manufacturers in this period included Nishijin and Sankyo; most of these machines available on online auction sites today date to the 1970s.[7] After that time, pachinko machines incorporated more electronic features, thus requiring electricity for operation.
There have been pachinko machines based on "Seven Samurai" in Japan. "Seven Samurai" pachinko machines have sold 94,000 units in Japan , grossing approximately .
Pachinko parlors are widespread in Japan, and they usually also feature a number of slot machines (called pachislo or pachislots); hence, these venues operate and look similar to casinos. Modern pachinko machines are highly customizable.