Claw machine
A claw vending machine or toy crane machine is a type of arcade game in the form of a vending machine. They are popular in video arcades (including dedicated claw vending machine arcades), supermarkets, restaurants, movie theaters, and other venues.
Machine structure
A claw vending machine consists of prizes, usually plush toys such as teddy bears or alternatives such as jewelry or candy, inside a cage made of glass or plexiglas with a claw or crane attached to the ceiling of the cage. The player puts coins into the machine, which then allows the player to manipulate a joystick that controls the claw for 15 to 30 seconds (in some cases, a claw vending machine might offer a minute of time). The player is able to move the claw back, forth and sideways, but not up or down.
At the end of that time (or earlier if the player presses a trigger button on the joystick), the claw drops down and makes a gripping attempt. Some machines allow the user to move the claw after it has been partially dropped. After making the gripping attempt, the claw then moves over an opening in the corner of the cage and releases its contents. If the player is successful, then the prize the claw is holding is dropped into the opening and dispensed through a chute into a hatch for pickup.
An alternative version of the machine popular in arcades is the "two button" version: one marked with a forward arrow, one with a right arrow. The crane starts near the front, left side of the machine and the user presses first the forward button to move the crane towards the back of the cabinet. Once the button is released the crane stops moving and the button cannot be used again, thus requiring the user to judge depth accurately in one attempt. After this, the right button becomes active in a similar way and as soon as it is released, the crane drops to a certain depth and then raises, closing its claw on the way and returning to the drop hatch in the front left corner. These versions are generally considered to be more difficult. However, the button type machines typically do not feature the timers which are commonly found on joystick type machines.
Machine configuration and chances of winning
The success rate of the game is dependent on several factors, including player skill, depth perception, type of machine, and prizes available (size, density, and distribution). A prize may be lost due to player inexperience or player error in manipulating the claw. A popular belief exists that these machines have an apparatus for determining odds, in the manner that the claw would have a strong grasp on objects only after a certain number of failures. This can be true, but it depends on the machine type. All modern claw machines incorporate some means for the owner to adjust at least the strength of the claw's grip and how closely the claw's fingers pull together, usually with screws on the mechanism or potentiometers on the PCB. Even on older cranes, the grip strength can be adjusted by adding circuit components or additional hardware. [1] Some machines incorporate additional optional features such as "two-level claw power" , which, when enabled, causes the claw to at first grip at full strength, but then weaken its grip to the "normal" level after a brief delay, causing the crane to pick up the prize, but then possibly drop it. [2]
Late-model, high-end claw machines are fully computerized and are remotely programmable by the owner (via a hand-held device). Settings and features commonly available include (Cromptons X-Factor Crane, Owner's and Service Manual):
- Claw strength and aperture
- Motion speed, in any direction (that is, the claw can be made to drop slowly but come up quickly, or move right faster than it moves forward)
- Payout percentage: Cranes equipped with this setting have onboard programming which cause the claw's grip parameters to be continually adjusted to achieve a pre-set payout percentage, usually specified with respect to the value of the prizes inside.
- Fail limit: If the machine dispenses too many prizes in a given time period, it stops accepting coins and is "out of order".
- Free replay granted a certain percentage of plays
- Instant replay: the user can opt to touch a certain button and have the claw automatically move to where it was last dropped, in order to "try again" for a prize that was missed on the previous try.
These cranes are also able to display the number and value of prizes won in a given time period, enabling the owner to keep track of how profitable the machine is.
Clearly, these parameters can be used to set a crane to never deliver any prizes, but in that case the machine would rarely be played and become unprofitable for the owner. On the other hand, if the crane were set to always grip very strongly, then it would become so easy to win prizes from it that the owner would not profit much, if at all, from operating the machine. It is also worth noting that, even on a machine with a very weak claw grip or low payout percentage, players have discovered various techniques for dragging or tipping prizes into the chute without necessarily grasping them in the claw.
History in the United States
 |
These machines became popular in the United States in the late 1980s, with a significant presence at Pizza Hut restaurants. Later on, they would spread to other venues. By the early 1990s, the NFL began to advertise their teams with stuffed footballs of each team placed in some of the machines. Soon after, the MLB, NBA, and NHL also joined, although the NBA no longer uses these machines as a means of advertisement.
By the middle 1990s, the machines' popularity had made such establishments as Safeway, Fry's Supermarkets, K-Mart, and Wal-Mart a staple of their locations. Some hotels also acquired them to satisfy their younger guests, as did sports venues that would stuff them with collectibles related to their home teams.
In the 1995 Disney/Pixar computer-animated film "Toy Story", Buzz Lightyear and Sheriff Woody climb into a claw vending machine filled with claw-worshipping aliens.
In 2007, the claw machine became playable over the internet. Before January 23, 2008, visitors to SuperClaw were able to play real-life crane machines, using multiple video feeds and web browser controls to position the claw over a selection of plush prizes.
Claw vending machines in East Asia
In East Asia, notably Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, claw vending machines are extremely popular. There are entire video arcades dedicated to hosting these machines.
Japanese claw vending machines are sometimes called UFO catchers, where "UFO" stands for Unidentified Flying Object. UFO catcher is a specific model of claw vending machine produced by Sega whose name has come to be used as a genericized trademark.
In China, machines have been known to stock domestic and foreign cigarettes.
In East Asia, live animals are occasionally the prize in the claw game. In Chinese supermarkets, a live crab or lobster can be won, presumably to be eaten by the winner. In Japan, pet turtles can be won. Of course, these prizes are in addition to the standard teddy bears and toys that are offered by claw games in other parts of the world.
In South Korea, prizes are extremely varied and have included a Black & Decker power drill, women's underwear, a beard trimmer, a voucher for an inflatable raft, knee pads, fishing hooks, a radio-controlled toy helicopter, and package of US $2 bills.
References
- ^ "Universal Crane Replacement Logic Board manual" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-07-02.
- ^ "SUNRISE UPGRADE KIT for LAI "SkillTester"". Retrieved 2008-07-02.