EVER tried playing those claw machines with hopes of scoring yourself or maybe a counterpart, a cute little plush toy? Even though after hovering the claw over your targeted object, you may find yourself not quite getting a hold of the toy.
It is about time someone explains what really happens to your allowance when you take on this arcade arch nemesis.
People tend to assume that the reason it is so hard to win anything in the claw machine is because the pincers are loosened or perhaps that the stuffed animals are packed so tightly together.
But the bigger reason is surprisingly clever - and not in the way most people might suspect. So are claw machines really rigged?
VERDICT:
PARTIALLY TRUE
Claw machines are configured to have a strong grip only part of the time. A Washington-based writer looked into how claw machines worked and found that operators have the ability to change the strength of the claw to decrease the chances of winning and this makes the game down to purely luck rather than skill.
These machines can also tease the player by lifting up the prize and then dropping it when it’s painfully close to the chute, making them think that they have almost won.
The psychological effect of "near wins" can drive players to keep on trying again.
The methods for adjusting claw strength also vary between different claw machines. Depending on the direction the claw moves in, there are three different claw strength settings examined in a 2015 article on Vox.
The "profit rate" that the machine's owner selects will also impact how frequently the claw will grasp prizes, making it easier for players to win. Apparently the location of where you play matters, too.
There is a significantly higher chance of winning in Japanese arcades compared with those in Singapore, according to a Singapore-based content creator, who documents his frequent trips to the arcade on his YouTube channel.
References:
1. https://www.vox.com/2015/4/3/8339999/claw-machines-rigged
2. https://www.today.com/money/claw-machine-secrets-revealed-are-they-rigged-t100351
4. https://www.vice.com/en/article/88n9eg/arcade-experts-explain-how-claw-machine-works
