Japan Lights: Game Arcades

Game Arcades

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“Almost!” says another person while hitting the machine with irritation, only to put more coins in it just a second later. Welcome to Game Arcades! They are very popular in Japan and not hard to find. Usually there are tall buildings, with at least 5 floors, but it’s possible to find smaller ones inside department stores. Take a look at this fun place, full of people wishing that maybe next time they will be lucky.

First impression

Sound and light in arcades are quite overwhelming. Everything is flashing and incredibly loud. Each floor is full of machines and many of them are playing something. Add to this standard shop music which in Japan is really loud on its own and the fact that some games are musical games. The decibel level in there is much much higher than standard. It’s also very clattered- machines are everywhere and there’s only a narrow patch between them.

Game Arcade in Odaiba's department store- this place was quite small- only two floors. Video is muted for your own safety.

Here's a sample of just how loud it's inside. Be warned the sound is not pleasant!

Claw Crane

Usually the games just next to the entrance are standard “try to catch the prize navigating mechanical hand”. The price for one try is 100 yen, 500 yen for 6. There are two buttons which have to be used in the right order (no worries, they have numbers). The prize have a plastic ring that should be caught by metal pawn. It only looks easy- as I said, “almost” is repeated over and over near these machines.

Typical Claw Crane

Here's the "control center"

Most interesting in this part is the variety of prizes: phone straps, key chains, stuffed toys, posters, figurines from anime. There are even sweets, plates and towels!

Just look at all these toys...

Figurines form anime series

Baymax from Big Hero 6 can be yours!

No, Snoopy, don't do this!

Purikura

What’s purikura? The name is a short version of Print Club (in Japanese プリントクラブ- "purinto kurabu"). Basically purikura is a photo booth. Very very advanced photo booth with backgrounds, decorations and changing face so it would be “prettier”. In big Arcades there’s usually a whole floor or these advanced photo booths. In smaller ones, they are located at the back.

Few things to know about purikura:

Some places let you rent a cosplay costume for your photos.
There’s always a big mirror somewhere near in case someone wants to fix make-up.
Men are usually not allowed to purikura places unless they are accompanied by woman. Why? Hard to find official explanation, but Japan is known for it’s “chikan” (the closest translation would probably be “pervert”) problem and a place where young girls dress up was attracting them.
Almost every machine alters face at least slightly- making eyes bigger, lipstic more visible, hair more shiny, etc.
Of course there’s music playing during photoshot and you can choose the one you prefer.
Each photo booth has specific style- it reflects on the photos options such as colours, stickers, effects. Sample photos are always displayed on the walls.
Some machines take full body photos while others only make photos of face.
The camera placement is suitable for Japanese women. This means that if you’re “average European height” like me, you’ll have to bend- fortunately there’s a moment for adjusting your pose.
Don’t wear green if you want to take a photo- the background in the booth that will be changed to the chosen one is a green material, so it can blend with your clothes, causing them to be replaced on photo. It happened to me when I was wearing sea-blue blouse- on the photo it looks like I’m emerging from the building :)
There are suggestions of poses shown on the monitor while the photos are being taken.
After taking photos it's time to decorate them- there's another "room" inside the booth for this. You can add text, stickers, change eye colour, and even add fake eye lashes.

Purikura

Other games

Everything you can imagine: vehicle simulators, movie themed games, dancing games, fruit machines... There was even something looking like RPG!

I have no idea how it works, but clearly it's not popular

Comfortable chairs- first step to success!

Star Wars 74-Z speeder bike simulator

Everything for the client!

Game Arcades are not made for entertainment, they are made to make money by providing entertainment. So of course they try very hard to give their clients anything they may need to keep having fun.

You’re out of 100 yen coins and you still hasn’t won your dreamed stuffed animal, but you’re so close to it? Don’t worry, here’s the money exchanger- simply put a banknote in and receive some shiny coins!

There’s a lot of prizes and they keep changing. That’s why next to the Arcade’s building there are always advertisements of the machines that will be soon (in a week or two) be available- so that nobody would miss their chance.

Advertisement of new machine

And here it is!

Another trick is the placement of things inside the machines. Of course many people don’t believe in simply catching the prize. That’s why they are always carefully arranged- to look like they are easy to obtain.