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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, 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 a short period of time, usually 15 or 30 seconds (it is rare for a claw vending machine to offer a full minute of time). The player is able to move the claw back and 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 whatever it holds, if it holds anything. If the player is successful, then the prize the claw is holding is dropped into the opening and dispensed through a chute to a hatched box for pickup by the player.
Success rate
In general, while getting the claw to pick up a prize is relatively easy, having the claw hold the prize long enough to bring it to the opening is harder. Operators of the machine can tweak the claw or other settings, or change the prizes, to make it less or more difficult. The claws are usually engineered to have a low probability of a successful grab for casual players, though skilled players have a considerably higher probability of success.
History in the United States
These machines became popular in the United States in the late 1980s, with large presence at Pizza Hut restaurants. Later on, they would spread to other venues besides restaurants. By the early 1990s, the NFL began to advertise their teams with stuffed footballs of each team placed on 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.
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.
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. Given the possibly long life span of turtles (more than 30 years), the prize of a 30-second arcade game has the potential of impacting the player's life for many years. 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.
External links
"Claw vending machine"