I never liked the claw games. Too stressful for me. I’m sure it’s the kind of game that you can practice and get good at but I just never had enough money at once to get to that point. I think the stuffed animals from TV shows that were cancelled 5 years ago were also a hint that this specific machine was not very giving.
How to win at claw games: Don’t play the ones that have overly springy claws!
I’m serious. I avoid them like the plague. Not all claws are created equal, and the ones that are not overly rigged are easy to beat. Very easy. *points to considerable claw game collection*
The only ones I find difficult are the ones with boxes inside. Otherwise, I have found I can beat most claw games.
Once, a video game magazine had tips for playing claw machines. Start by scouting the machines. By watching a machine with something you want, you can see how touchy the claw is, and get an idea of success rate. If the prize is close to the drop bin, so much the better. Try not to play the ones where the stuffed toys are packed, that’s kinda chintzy right there. You may have to win a couple of other things to get to the one you want. But really, have fun, it ain’t worth blowing your stack over if you can’t grab something.
My favorite claw game was at a Dick’s Last Resort in Boston, MA. The claw was connected over an aquarium with live lobsters, and it worked for $2 a try. Get your lobster and they cook it for free. As NatLamp would have said, “That’s not funny, that’s sick!” (and laughed, just the same…)
In Japan, they have claw game lobster tanks.
not that i specifically advocate watching kids’ cartoons, but there’s an episode of sponge bob square pants which involves a claw game machine. totally hilarious
I once heard tell of a guy who camped out at a claw machine and observed the people taking shots at it. He found that the claw only gripped hard enough to actually pick up anything once every so-many attempts. He apparently got a huge haul by just jumping into the rotation at the right time.
I’m not sure if it’s true, but I have used claw machines where the claw has two different grabbing procedures.
Your best bet for claw machines is to go for items that have a loop you can stick the claw through. Things like tags are typically pretty easy to get ahold of. Just trying to get the claw around the animal itself leaves too much of a possibility that it will fall through.