Although there are various theories, it is said that pachinko was introduced as a children's toy in the 1920s, and developed rapidly as an amusement for adults in the 1930s.
Today, pachinko is an enormous leisure industry with a player population of about 9 million people, and approx. 10,000 salons around Japan (*FY2017).
This mass entertainment unique to Japan can be enjoyed easily by anyone 18 years or older.
The pachinko game looks like a vertical version of a pinball machine. The game is played by firing off metal balls called "pachinko balls".
You can play pachinko by renting pachinko balls at the salon.
When the pachinko ball enters a specific spot, the LCD screen spins. If the numbers line up, you've hit the jackpot.
Once you hit the jackpot, you can win lots of pachinko balls that can be exchanged with a variety of prizes.
Many recently pachinko machines collaborate with popular anime and singers. Enjoy the pachinko machine's show of sequenced characters, sounds, and lights.
There are also models with original performances that can be enjoyed only at the pachinko machine. These may be battles between characters that you can't see in the original story, or promotional videos made especially for pachinko machines.
Refer to How to Play Pachinko for details.
In addition to pachinko, Japanese pachinko parlors have "Pachislot" machines, similar to casino slot machines.
You can play pachinko by renting medals at the salon.
To play pachislot, insert a medal, and spin and stop the rotating reels to line up the multiple images on the reel.
You can win more medals by lining up bonus images, such as the number "7". These medals can be exchanged for various prizes in the same manner as pachinko.
Pachislot differs from pachinko because you can have fun trying to line up the images by yourself.
There are various rates for renting the pachinko balls and pachislot medals. Freely select which game to play.
Pachinko and pachislot are both easy mass amusement games that enjoyed by men and women of all ages.
Find your favorite pachinko and pachislot game and have fun!
