The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US • Hacker News Board

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#31

Post by seanmcdirmid » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 1:15 PM UTC

smukherjee19 wrote: post #27

suction wrote: post #8

I've visited plenty of arcades in Japan, and they were all horrible. Sure, the games were interesting, but they are sad and sometimes creepy places. Smoking is allowed in there, and with Japan's well known tobacco abuse problem, words fail to describe the stench in there. My Japanese girlfriend told me that "nobody normal would ever go in there" and was actually disappointed in me wanting to enter in that sort of pla…

From my experience, there are two "types" of arcades in Japan: one called "game centers" (ゲーセン, pronounced gay-sen), and another "pachinko" or "slot", also called パチスロ(pachisuro). The former is actually really nice. FYI, if the place you went to is a SEGA or a Taito Station, then it's very likely a game center. It does have some machines that use "medals", which I assume is some sort of gambling thing, but it's just…

Aren’t the pachinko places almost completely run by North Koreans? I’ve heard this is one of Kim Jong Un’s biggest sources of income, but that could have been exaggerated or made up.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#32

Post by tkgally » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 1:18 PM UTC

tkgally wrote: post #14

suction wrote: post #8

I've visited plenty of arcades in Japan, and they were all horrible. Sure, the games were interesting, but they are sad and sometimes creepy places. Smoking is allowed in there, and with Japan's well known tobacco abuse problem, words fail to describe the stench in there. My Japanese girlfriend told me that "nobody normal would ever go in there" and was actually disappointed in me wanting to enter in that sort of pla…

I agree about the horribleness of Japanese game arcades, but that actually can be an attraction if you’re in the right (or wrong?) frame of mind. I’ve dropped into “game centers” quite a few times over the years—usually just to use the restroom, though occasionally to look around. While arcades in the suburbs can be just annoying with the noise and teenagers, those in the scuzzier areas of big cities—Shimbashi and Ka…

In case anyone’s interested, below are some Google views of Japanese game centers that don’t look very enticing, at least to me. The first three are in Osaka; the fourth is in Shimbashi, Tokyo.

https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6454389,135.5009173,3a,75y...

https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6455462,135.4997983,3a,75y...

https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6981048,135.533943,3a,75y,...

https://www.google.co.jp/maps/place/Diana+Amusement+Space/@3...

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#33

Post by toyg » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 1:36 PM UTC

drzaiusapelord wrote: post #15

suction wrote: post #8

I've visited plenty of arcades in Japan, and they were all horrible. Sure, the games were interesting, but they are sad and sometimes creepy places. Smoking is allowed in there, and with Japan's well known tobacco abuse problem, words fail to describe the stench in there. My Japanese girlfriend told me that "nobody normal would ever go in there" and was actually disappointed in me wanting to enter in that sort of pla…

The arcades I went to in Akihabara was pretty family friendly, but I did go to a smaller one on the 3rd floor of an anonymous looking business building in a different neighborhood and it was a bit seedy, but it was just nerdy guys playing classic games and classic consoles and not dangerous seeming at all. I wonder if your gf's perceptions are colored by how conformist and competitive Japanese culture is. Of course t…

There is also a very real problem with shut-in otaku/hikikomori culture. A lot of otakus are real losers by the standard of any western society, their level of social isolation is massive and there is no redemption for them. Otaku and gaming subcultures often overlap, inevitably there is some association.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#34

Post by toyg » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 1:38 PM UTC

boomboomsubban wrote: post #28

texasbigdata wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wouldn't they technically be casinos and thus regulated? My experience with pachinko in Japan felt very much like the old strip in Las Vegas emotion and vibe wise.

Yeah, I was picturing them as openly being casinos. You'd think at least Las Vegas would have some, a sort of international slots section. Hijacking culture is already their specialty after all.

The time is ripe for an anime/Japanese-focused casino in Vegas.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#35

Post by gareiner » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 2:34 PM UTC

seanmcdirmid wrote: post #31

smukherjee19 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From my experience, there are two "types" of arcades in Japan: one called "game centers" (ゲーセン, pronounced gay-sen), and another "pachinko" or "slot", also called パチスロ(pachisuro). The former is actually really nice. FYI, if the place you went to is a SEGA or a Taito Station, then it's very likely a game center. It does have some machines that use "medals", which I assume is some sort of gambling thing, but it's just…

Aren’t the pachinko places almost completely run by North Koreans? I’ve heard this is one of Kim Jong Un’s biggest sources of income, but that could have been exaggerated or made up.

I doubt this one, it is really popular in Japan and might as well the go-to place for people who want to have fun while spending money or degens.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#36

Post by uxp100 » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 2:45 PM UTC

boomboomsubban wrote: post #28

texasbigdata wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wouldn't they technically be casinos and thus regulated? My experience with pachinko in Japan felt very much like the old strip in Las Vegas emotion and vibe wise.

Yeah, I was picturing them as openly being casinos. You'd think at least Las Vegas would have some, a sort of international slots section. Hijacking culture is already their specialty after all.

There are some posters on here who work in gaming, maybe one of them will illuminate us, but I wonder if the odds are too hard to strictly control (which is needed to satisfy both regulators and casino owners).

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#37

Post by yummypaint » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 3:23 PM UTC

smukherjee19 wrote: post #27

suction wrote: post #8

I've visited plenty of arcades in Japan, and they were all horrible. Sure, the games were interesting, but they are sad and sometimes creepy places. Smoking is allowed in there, and with Japan's well known tobacco abuse problem, words fail to describe the stench in there. My Japanese girlfriend told me that "nobody normal would ever go in there" and was actually disappointed in me wanting to enter in that sort of pla…

From my experience, there are two "types" of arcades in Japan: one called "game centers" (ゲーセン, pronounced gay-sen), and another "pachinko" or "slot", also called パチスロ(pachisuro). The former is actually really nice. FYI, if the place you went to is a SEGA or a Taito Station, then it's very likely a game center. It does have some machines that use "medals", which I assume is some sort of gambling thing, but it's just…

I couldn't believe how loud pachinko parlors were. I tried to set foot in a few and could feel my hearing being damaged by the second. The closest noise i've heard elsewhere is the ball mills used for grinding coal in power plants.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#38

Post by jinto36 » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 3:37 PM UTC

suction wrote: post #8

I've visited plenty of arcades in Japan, and they were all horrible. Sure, the games were interesting, but they are sad and sometimes creepy places. Smoking is allowed in there, and with Japan's well known tobacco abuse problem, words fail to describe the stench in there. My Japanese girlfriend told me that "nobody normal would ever go in there" and was actually disappointed in me wanting to enter in that sort of pla…

It depends on the location. There are (maybe now, were) plenty of smaller arcades in standalone buildings that were under-ventilated, dimly lit, and always ridiculously loud. But many others are in shopping malls (like Aeon) and have some of the same games (and many more UFO catchers) without the smoking etc. Everytime I'm back in Japan I notice more restrictions on smoking, it's obviously still highly prevalent, but most larger/newer arcades have some floors or areas where smoking is restricted.

Just a tip, if you ever want to check out pachinko places, bring earplugs. To find out why, just walk in front of the automatic door, and you'll discover very quickly how much was invested in a multi-pane sound-insulating door. It's an experience.

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#39

Post by MathYouF » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 3:39 PM UTC

tkgally wrote: post #32

tkgally wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree about the horribleness of Japanese game arcades, but that actually can be an attraction if you’re in the right (or wrong?) frame of mind. I’ve dropped into “game centers” quite a few times over the years—usually just to use the restroom, though occasionally to look around. While arcades in the suburbs can be just annoying with the noise and teenagers, those in the scuzzier areas of big cities—Shimbashi and Ka…

In case anyone’s interested, below are some Google views of Japanese game centers that don’t look very enticing, at least to me. The first three are in Osaka; the fourth is in Shimbashi, Tokyo. https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6454389,135.5009173,3a,75y... https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6455462,135.4997983,3a,75y... https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6981048,135.533943,3a,75y,... https://www.google.co.jp/maps/plac…

Here's one I frequented semi-regularly when I lived in Tokyo. It is also maybe one of the most iconic game centers, being in Akihabara right outside the metro station with a large "SEGA" sign. Super not sketchy, mostly normal and mostly young people, no smokers, several women, even people there as couples.

SEGA Akihabara Building 3 +81 3-5297-3601 https://maps.app.goo.gl/S9PTNg7Yn29Wfcee9

I really think the OP was actually describing what in English we would call casinos (pachinkos) rather than arcades (game centers).

Re: The Gritty, Underground Network Bringing Japan’s Arcades to the US

#40

Post by jinto36 » Mon, Jan 17, 2022, 3:55 PM UTC

Cthulhu_ wrote: post #19

texasbigdata wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wouldn't they technically be casinos and thus regulated? My experience with pachinko in Japan felt very much like the old strip in Las Vegas emotion and vibe wise.

Pachinko is a slot machine and is gambling, but they use a loophole to not be considered such - it pays out tickets that you can use to get toys and stuff like an arcade, but they will buy the toys back from you for money.

Last time I was over there in 2019, one of the friends who came with me wanted to actually try Pachinko; I had never sat down at a machine in my aggregate ~1.5 years of living/visiting Japan, though I had walked through Pachinko places a few times. The one we sat down in was in Osaka I think. When you're done the machine you're at prints a ticket, the exchange desk in the same room (or building) gave us actually a small piece of gold- had the weight embossed on it- and there was an exchange business in the shop/building next door. We opted to keep the gold slivers because it was an interesting souvenir. Usually the prize desks in the pachinko area will have other small items you can exchange for as well. The external buyback business is suppossed to be independent to get around the gambling law of course.