How to play pachinko
Rent balls, aim left, watch the screen, switch to 右打ち when told, then cash in your balls for prizes. A plain-English walkthrough of a modern Japanese pachinko machine.
Guides
How to play
Button by button, screen by screen. Start with the game you're curious about, and keep the glossary open on your phone.
The basics
How to play pachislot
Pachislot is Japan's skill-stop slot machine: bet three medals, pull the lever, stop the reels yourself. How medal and smart (スマスロ) machines work, step by step.
Pachinko vs pachislot
Balls or reels? Handle or buttons? A side-by-side guide to Japan's two parlour games, how to tell the cabinets apart, and which one suits a first visit.
Your first visit, step by step
Everything to do before, during and after your first pachinko or pachislot session: what to bring, choosing a seat, taking breaks, counting up, prizes and leaving.
Machine types, systems and screens
Pachinko machine types
What 'middle', 'light middle' and 'amadeji' mean on a pachinko machine, how jackpot odds like 1/319 and 1/99 shape the experience, and what Lucky Trigger (LT) is.
8 min read
Kakuhen, ST & jitan
What 確変 kakuhen, ST, 時短 jitan, 電サポ electric support and 遊タイム yu-time mean on a pachinko screen, with real examples from maker spec sheets.
9 min read
A-type, AT & ART
A-type (bonus) pachislot like Juggler vs AT 'assist time' machines and ART: what the screens are telling you, and which is easier to follow on a first try.
8 min read
Smart slot & smart pachinko
Smart pachislot (スマスロ, L-prefix) and smart pachinko (スマパチ, e-prefix) explained: no medals, no ball trays, a card unit at your seat, and the 'short break' button.
7 min read
Pachislot settings
What a pachislot 'setting' (設定) is, how settings 1–6 change bonus odds and payout rates on a real machine, and why Japanese law stops parlours advertising them.
7 min read
Ceilings & yu-time
What a pachislot ceiling (天井, tenjō) and pachinko yu-time (遊タイム) are, where the rules came from, how they show up on the data counter, and why chasing them is risky.
6 min read
Reading the data counter
The screen above every pachinko and pachislot machine, decoded: スタート, 大当, 確変, BB/RB, history bars and slump graphs, and why past data can't predict a spin.
8 min read
Member cards & saved balls
How pachinko member cards work in Japan: registering with ID, saving balls and medals (貯玉), replay (再プレイ), the 2024 replay-fee guidelines, and what visitors should know.
7 min read
Beginner-friendly machines
Which pachinko and pachislot machines Japanese guides suggest to first-timers: Sea Story, the Juggler series, amadeji specs and 1-yen corners. Simplicity, not winning.
7 min read
Pachinko Japanese phrases
A pachinko phrase sheet for visitors: what to say to staff, the counter and the prize desk, plus the Japanese screen words (大当り, 確変, 右打ち, 設定) explained in English.
7 min read
1-yen vs 4-yen pachinko
What 1-yen and 4-yen pachinko mean, how the rates change what your money buys, the legal cap behind them and why beginners are usually pointed to the cheaper corners.
5 min read
Need a word? The glossary has the Japanese, the kana and plain-English meanings.