How Do You Think About UFO Catcher?

[decodx]

But are these types of games really gambling, or actually skill-based?

What I mean is, imagine playing this game day after day, I bet you'd be pretty good at it after a while. That means the game is skill-based, right? Of course, luck still plays a big role, but isn't that true of all skill-based games?

[goaldigger]

This might be a form of gambling but for the Children, this is their way of having fun.
In my country, you can see a lot of arcades in the malls and this has been the activity not just for the kids but also fort the teenager who wants to have fun. This has become a family bonding every weekend in my country. I played that UFO catcher and that’s really a hard game to catch the prize, we should not be focus on the gambling side and just have fun playing the games.

[DoublerHunter]

But are these types of games really gambling, or actually skill-based?
~snip~

^Everything that has a prize pool could be gambling, it belongs to gambling but not literally gambling.
It is fun for the children but if those children frequently buy coins and chase for the doll that they will get, it turns out into an addictive game.
That could be triggered their ability to gamble, at an early stage we should teach them to put a limit on themselves and not to continue if they don't have enough funds. Because they are children, the prize is also good for them and it is very tempted to chase the prize.

[coin-investor]

This kind of game can indirectly teach children about gambling because they buy coins with a certain amount of money to play in certain games. If they can't win, they lose the coins and have to use another coin if they want to play.

In some countries, such games are prohibited because games can be equal to gambling, leading to addiction in children.

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I played this kind of game before but was not able to catch any dolls in my first 5 attempts but my niece can easily catch one, I don't look at it like that, its more of a challenge to me because it involves skills right timing and positioning, it's not based luck once you learn the skill and knows what dolls are in the right position you could get him out, children are good at this because of their eagerness to get a doll, but for us adult it's a big obstacle.

[lionheart78]

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I think UFO catcher is just a game that enables us to enhance our imagination, calculation,, and coordination.  I have tried this game and it really needs the skill to win on this one.  I can barely consider it gambling because it can be easily beaten if a person is skilled enough to operate the machine and catch a doll in every drop of coins they inserted. We can say it is under the wagering category but not all wagering can be considered as gambling.

[Mahanton]

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I think UFO catcher is just a game that enables us to enhance our imagination, calculation,, and coordination.  I have tried this game and it really needs the skill to win on this one.  I can barely consider it gambling because it can be easily beaten if a person is skilled enough to operate the machine and catch a doll in every drop of coins they inserted. We can say it is under the wagering category but not all wagering can be considered as gambling.

Doesnt really need that enhancement or calculation or coordination because you arent using up those things because you are just trying to point out that claw on using a knob then you would really be pressing that
button for that claw to pull the stuff.Yes, angle might matter but it would be totally in random since you cant really able to place it out on the right position for you to pull off something.
Its not a gambling but if you are really that ending up on spending that much just because you are dedicated to get some reward then you are molding that kind of behavior of a
gambler.

[Wexnident]

This kind of game can indirectly teach children about gambling because they buy coins with a certain amount of money to play in certain games. If they can't win, they lose the coins and have to use another coin if they want to play.

If you go strictly by the definition of gambling, then no not really since these types of machines use other types of tokens to be able to play and you're technically not getting money back but rather items. Not to mention claw machines aren't strictly luck-based games.

I wouldn't really consider this as them learning of addiction or considering this as gambling, rather this kind of thing actually gives off an entertainment vibe instead due to the prizes that you'd be able to receive or redeem. It's pretty far from it to be honest. If I were to be completely blunt though, it's just business. If this was considered gambling, a LOT of businesses would be considered as one imo.

[darkangel11]

Very popular in Japan among other machines like gacha capsule, slot as Japanese consider them the norm even though they have a gambling element. If you think those UFO catchers only require skill, don't! There is pressure randomness on that grabber to make the game even more unpredictable if the reward in the UFO catchers was at a high value. TBH, I rather gamble where odds are more transparent like sports betting than try my luck with the UFO Catcher.

I saw videos on youtube of a guy who tries to perfect his skill with these machines and he definitely had some better runs than most other people. Maybe a 30% success rate? I don't really remember. Anyway, he was able to clean the machines and give toys away to children who were watching the whole operation. I don't think it's worth it though. These toys are usually cheap, Chinese-made ones and you'd have to be successful on your first try to make it worth the risk.

[coolcoinz]

I've played it and I saw people lose a lot of money on these because you can be 100% on point and the toy would still slip from the claw. I saw things slip out when it was already up.
Some machines are rigged so that they go up faster and more violently to shake the claw a bit more and drop everything that isn't holding strong.
There are also machines where you can get a phone or other gadgets like watches.

They used to be very popular at seaside resorts, but now I rarely see them.

[fortunecrypto]

But are these types of games really gambling, or actually skill-based?

It's gambling if you don know the trick or you don't have a technique and its skill-based if you know how what and how to claw
check out this video and see how good this guy is getting out those dolls in the cage
Claw Machine Hack They Don't Want You To Know!

What I mean is, imagine playing this game day after day, I bet you'd be pretty good at it after a while. That means the game is skill-based, right? Of course, luck still plays a big role, but isn't that true of all skill-based games?

Yeah, practice makes perfect but it's better to start with a good technique and look at what dolls are ripe for picking based on their position, I don't consider this gambling if you study how these things work.

[dothebeats]

I agree that this somewhat teaches kids to gamble, as they are taking their chances on the claw machine thing to get some stuffed toy or whatever is in the box. It is up to the parents how will they control their kids to not get the idea that they can win more with this kind of thing as they grow old. Kids that grow into adults that are a trouble to the society are often exposed to an environment that is not nurturing and is promoting bad activities. If the parents can somehow show these kids that it's okay to take your chance on something but do not rely everything on such activities to get where you want to be, I think it will be fine and safe. It's on how you train your kids to think IMO and also how you introduce things to them.

[OgNasty]

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I only recently learned how these machines worked.  I always thought there was some skill involved as a kid, like this was the one game I could get over on.  However, now that I've learned it is just as much a game of chance as everything else, I'm a bit let down.  Spoiler Alert: The pressure that the claws use to grab things changes every attempt and only every so often is strong enough to pick up one of the prizes.

[ethereumhunter]

I never play this game with my kids because I do not allow them to play any games in the mall except to buy what we want and then go home as soon as possible. So I do not know about that game but as a parent, I think I see some kids in my environment ask their parents to go to the mall and just want to play many games at their place. I thought that could lead them to learn about the passion of playing that game. Maybe it is not gambling but it surely teaches kids about addiction that they do not know at their ages.

But soon after they grow up, they will explore other things that can give another addiction and somehow, they will know about gambling, although that is not the same as what we play at the casino. But still, that is gambling in the end.

[ralle14]

In some countries, such games are prohibited because games can be equal to gambling, leading to addiction in children.

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

Played it several times before and I remember playing other games that are similar to gambling but instead of winning money you could get one of those high-value prizes or tokens which can be usually bought from the entrance of the arcade. I agree it could lead to addiction but then again there are so many games that are accessible online and offer a similar experience so I think it still comes down to the parent's awareness and how they'll guide their children bit by bit in order to prevent that path to gambling addiction in the future.

[UserU]

I only recently learned how these machines worked.  I always thought there was some skill involved as a kid, like this was the one game I could get over on.  However, now that I've learned it is just as much a game of chance as everything else, I'm a bit let down.  Spoiler Alert: The pressure that the claws use to grab things changes every attempt and only every so often is strong enough to pick up one of the prizes.

Well, that's how those operators earn a living when kids don't even know about the mechanisms behind the whole machine but the person who developed this concept is really a genius.

Just like those carnival games, you're better off buying the real thing.

[aioc]

They're making money out of the kids but if the kids learned tricks on how to claw this doll, its the operator that will suffer, I have seen some kids good at clawing those dolls and if you Google it or check out Youtube videos, there are tricks and methods to do this, it's gambling for those first trying it or do not know the tricks but for those who's playing these for a long time and discovered tricks on how to claw it its skill and cannot be considered gambling, there are kids who are curious on how to do this properly and will search or create their own tricks, so the risk is on the operator.

[Silberman]

A few weeks ago, I took my nephew shopping at one of the big supermarkets in my city. While waiting for the cashier to count my groceries, my nephew whined about playing a game in one of the corners of the supermarket.

My wife was confused because my nephew kept pointing to one of those games. And after exchanging some money for coins, my nephew went straight to the doll claw machine, the UFO Catcher. In one go, my nephew could catch one doll and we were confused and asked each other, how did she catch the doll?

This kind of game can indirectly teach children about gambling because they buy coins with a certain amount of money to play in certain games. If they can't win, they lose the coins and have to use another coin if they want to play.

In some countries, such games are prohibited because games can be equal to gambling, leading to addiction in children.

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

You know I never thought of those games as a form of gambling but you are right, they were very popular in arcades back in the day and you can still find them everywhere, however in the case of the video games you could play at the arcade you got exactly what you paid for and if you were good at the game you could play for a long time with your money, however when it came to those machines you could spend all your money and get nothing, so I think I will agree with the governments which have banned them, since kids should not be gambling with their money on those machines.

[Haunebu]

Had no idea what a UFO Catcher was until you mentioned claw machine which is why the title needs to be modified op. Coming to the machine itself, I've played with them when I was small and had a ton of fun even though it's frustrating sometimes.

It's gambling alright, but you won't lose a ton of money gambling with these machines when compared to traditional casino games like slots, roulette, blackjack, baccarat etc.

Another advantage of these machines is the fact that you need to use small denomination coins to play which many people don't have access to these days.

[adzino]

A few weeks ago, I took my nephew shopping at one of the big supermarkets in my city. While waiting for the cashier to count my groceries, my nephew whined about playing a game in one of the corners of the supermarket.

My wife was confused because my nephew kept pointing to one of those games. And after exchanging some money for coins, my nephew went straight to the doll claw machine, the UFO Catcher. In one go, my nephew could catch one doll and we were confused and asked each other, how did she catch the doll?

An illustration of a doll claw machine or UFO Catcher is below.
-snip-
This kind of game can indirectly teach children about gambling because they buy coins with a certain amount of money to play in certain games. If they can't win, they lose the coins and have to use another coin if they want to play.

In some countries, such games are prohibited because games can be equal to gambling, leading to addiction in children.

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I am confused why you and your wife were confused... Confused about what? Confused because the kids wanted to kid stuffs?

And I wouldn't call those claw machines a form of gambling. I wouldn't worry of them becoming a gambling addict because they played one round of those claw machines. I bet none of the kids would be interested to play again after they managed to win something once. If you call this gambling, then all games at the arcade can be considered as gambling. After all you win tokens playing games which you can later redeem for prizes.

[bittraffic]

A few weeks ago, I took my nephew shopping at one of the big supermarkets in my city. While waiting for the cashier to count my groceries, my nephew whined about playing a game in one of the corners of the supermarket.

My wife was confused because my nephew kept pointing to one of those games. And after exchanging some money for coins, my nephew went straight to the doll claw machine, the UFO Catcher. In one go, my nephew could catch one doll and we were confused and asked each other, how did she catch the doll?

An illustration of a doll claw machine or UFO Catcher is below.
-snip-
This kind of game can indirectly teach children about gambling because they buy coins with a certain amount of money to play in certain games. If they can't win, they lose the coins and have to use another coin if they want to play.

In some countries, such games are prohibited because games can be equal to gambling, leading to addiction in children.

What's your thought? Have you ever played this kind of game?

I am confused why you and your wife were confused... Confused about what? Confused because the kids wanted to kid stuffs?

And I wouldn't call those claw machines a form of gambling. I wouldn't worry of them becoming a gambling addict because they played one round of those claw machines. I bet none of the kids would be interested to play again after they managed to win something once. If you call this gambling, then all games at the arcade can be considered as gambling. After all you win tokens playing games which you can later redeem for prizes.

Just what I thought so. But I'm not so sure about them not playing again of course when there is a reward after winning, they'd come back or maybe try some other games. I use to play these sorts of games.

I wouldn't still consider this a gambling activity because we have tried this sort of entertainment besides the shopping malls. This is like a recreation area for kids while their parents are busy choosing groceries.