Pachinko (パチンコ) is a Japanese gaming device that resembles a vertical pinball machine. For those that don’t reside in Japan, it might be difficult to understand how the game is played.

AKB48 member Oshima Yuko and Kasai Tomomi together with SKE48 member Matsui Rena is featured in this short clip which explains the mechanism behind this interesting game that is so popular in Japan.

Which CM do you prefer, the one with the ojisan overlooking the river bank or the crying obasan?

I particularly loved the second CM whereby the old man was talking so passionately about Rei Ayanami and how she is fighting to protect Earth.

I think I rather play the game on my PS2 than visit the pachiko parlour. And come to think of it, its high time Capcom announce a new Onimusha game.

Source: JapanProbe

My favorite scene was the second CM when they three of them tried to rush for the empty seat. LOL

Here’s a funny TV commericial for a pachiko parlour where losta people wearing Ninja Hattori-Kun masks suddenly appear out of nowhere on the streets and boarding trains carriages.

The academy is located near Shinjuku Station, and according to the president,

“Our students either want to change their career, or they are already working in pachinko and need to learn more.”

Classes include such subjects as programming of the machines, selecting background animations, marketing and management. Live machines in rows make the classroom look like a real parlor.

The industry employs 300,000 people at its 14,000 parlors and in 2006, generated 25 trillion yen in turnover. This figure eclipses those of the lotteries, boat racing, horse racing, and other types of gambling combined.

Last year, Forbes included two pachinko company presidents, Kunio Busujima of Sankyo and Han Chang-Woo of Maruhan, in their list of “Japan’s 40 Richest.”

Source: JapanToday

Looks like Pachinko is really big business in Japan. Have you tried your hand at Pachinko, or would you like to try it out if you ever visit Japan?

However, this is the first time I’ve heard a vice principal skipping school during lesson hours so that he could go out and play pachinko.

Anyway, the problem was that the vice principal was in charge of teaching Science. Therefore classes had to be suspended whenever he “sneaked” out. LOL

Source: Mainichi JP

I guess that now the vice principal is gonna face suspension, he can get to play all the pachinko he wants.

I’m always wondering what is the obsession with pachinko and the slot machine. They are such boring forms of gambling. You just sit there and stare at the machine … zzzz