Heres my Pachislo FAQ Thread V1.0, suggestions, ideas, e.t.c. are welcome
- Note this is a newbie type guide, so I haven't covered in depth stuff, this is a rough guide 
Heres a picture of one of my machines (turned off) to give you a rough idea of what one looks like :
http://www.nigelguy....emu/Zetz1bc.jpg
Q1) How do you play Pachislo?
Well, you basically play it like a normal slot machine (that is, not a UK machine with feature trails e.t.c, you play it like a USA Slot Machine).
Theres no Holds (as such), no Nudges, no Number trail.
You insert your tokens, pull a 'start game' handle downwards (normally at the left of the machine), and this starts the reels spinning. Rather than the reels stopping themselves however, you then stop the reels by pushing buttons mounted just below them. Normally you stop them in whatever order you feel like, unless the machine signals you to stop in a certain order. In theory you should be aiming to hit whichever symbol equals a Big Bonus entry on each reel (it's normally 3 x 7s) but don't be surprised if you get too in a row and the 3rd one nowhere near
(see Q2 below!) You will win small prizes (up to 15 tokens) for stopping different symbols on a winline, say 3 Bells. On my machine above, Zetz, there are actually 7 winlines, but most machines will have 5, 3 horizontal, and then 2 diagonally. If you get 3 of a particular symbol (in the case of Zetz it would be 3 x Red or Blue 7s), you will enter a Bonus (see below, Q1b)
Q1a) If you don't have any nudges or features, where is the entertainment?!
Instead of a feature board or a number trail, what you get instead are 'Chance Events'. These are where you are playing the game, and you get a 'Signal'. It might be an extra reel comes into play, and if it stops on a particular symbol, you win a Bonus, or a prize. It might be a video plays on an LCD screen, and the outcome of that (say winning a fight, stopping a symbol on a roulette wheel, e.t.c.) determines if you win a Bonus, or a prize. You don't normally have any intervention in such events, although on some machines you may be able to choose from a multiple choice options - for example, taking a left or a right path. I am pretty sure though that unless the machine feels it is ready to award something, then it decides what to pay BEFORE you'd made your choice, and what you've chosen becomes irrelevant.
I'd better just reiterate some of that. They DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT play like a UK machine, so if you are expecting a smaller version of a UK machine you will be disappointed. They are however very entertaining (IMHO) in their own right. Thats why I have 3 of them in my bedroom
Q1b) What is this stuff about ' Bonus '?
Pachislo machines tend to pay out smaller wins (normally between 2 tokens and 15 tokens), and eventually either a Regular or Big Bonus.
These 'Bonuses' are basically streaks, whereby you will win a large amount of small wins in succession, normally with some insanely loud music, lightshow, and if you have an LCD or LED display, some form of video action as well.
Generally you will either get a Regular Bonus, or a Big Bonus. It's a basic generalisation but it's safe to say a Regular bonus will normally pay out about 1/3 of a Big Bonus.
So a 'Bonus', is really the equivalent of a Jackpot, but because in Japan the maximum prize is basically 15 tokens at a time, to allow for a large payout they link many of these 15 or so token wins together. My highest Bonus payout on one of my machines stands at about 570 tokens, to give you a rough idea.
Q2) Aren't these Japanese machines Skill based?
Not really. They are Skill in the sense that a UK SWP (Skill With Prizes machine, such as an ItBox game) is skill. Quite often, it simply isn't the case. Have you played something like Bullseye on an ItBox? Noticed that on the prize board, you aim for something like £5 and the dart clearly slips into the Black, thereby awarding nothing, and giving you a more difficult and quite ambigous question? That shows how the definition of 'Skill' can be warped.
Well thats about how skill a Pachislo machine is. The 'skill' part is basically only used to get around Japanese gaming law, as it is in the UK sense. Thats why SWP machines in the UK can be set to 30% payout. On a Pachislo, the reels are allowed to 'slip' up to 4 positions from the symbol you stop them on. Not a great deal of skill involved if a symbol can vanish from the reel display at will, unless the machine decides to award it!
While this may sound like it would lead to a really boring game, that isn't the case normally - there will be plenty of small wins and actions from the LED / LCD / extra reels to keep you entertained before you hit a Bonus. It isn't any different to a UK machine really - if it doesn't want to award a Jackpot, you'll never get enough nudges for one, as an example.
Q3) What currency do they take?
Well, they don't take currency at all (or are not designed to, but as they only perform very basic coin checking, they often will accept things like 10p pieces, either with no, or basic modifications...)
They actually accept Tokens, which the Japanese normally refer to as 'Medals'. In a Pachislo Parlour (bascally a Japanese Amusement arcade), what you basically do is go to the Change Desk, and buy an amount of Medals for a particular exchange rate (as a rough guide, lets say 1000 Yen for 1000 Medals). You then play these through the machines, and change up your winnings (if any!) at the end. The trade in rate may be, for example, 750 Yen of value for your 1000 Medals.
Q3a) What do you mean '750 Yen "of value" '?
Well, you are not supposed to win cash prizes from Pachislo. Having said that, the Yakuza are involved in gambling over there and there are some places you can win money from. HOWEVER, the basic idea is you will win 'prizes', worth whatever value of Medals you won. These can range from say Pens, with your favourite TV character on them, up to electrical goods.
Q4) How much do Pachislo machines weigh, and how big are they?!
They generally weigh in the region of 35>40kg, and an average size would be about W 1.5ft x D 1.5ft x H 3ft (45cm wide, 45cm deep, and 90cm tall).
