An antique gambling device is a gambling device that is at least 25 years old, is substantially in original condition, and is not used for gambling or located in a gambling place. It is illegal to possess gambling devices otherwise, in New Mexico unless you are a distributor, manufacturer or operator licensed by the board.
A coin pusher does exactly what the name suggests – it is an arcade game that pushes coins (duh). Put in tokens or coins and try to stockpile them as much as you can in order to push them off the edge to win tickets, prizes, more coins, or, in more recent years, cards. You have probably seen them as they are still quite popular machines at local arcades.
While there are many new coin pushers these days with fancy lights and new objectives, the classic arcade coin dozers are what started it all. The fundamental addictive gameplay has not changed.
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- May 20, 2016 Kind of thinking if the next generation of gaming 'devices' might be headed in the direction of more physical responsive games (e.g. Coin Pushers, Casino Vaults, Sigma Derby, Pachinko, Titan360) as the 'slot' floor becomes more repetitive with on-line (e.g. Jackpotpartycasino, Hollywoodcasino, etc) equivalent games available to play anywhere, anytime, for real money or not?
Let’s dive into the history of coin pushers. I’ll also touch on tips on how to win tickets on modern coin pushers, gambling issues for these arcade machines, and if they are legal where you live.
The First Arcade Coin Pusher Machine
The history of the coin pusher begins around 1963. I say “around” because there is some debate on the definition of a coin pusher and the exact date when the first one was released.
A European company called Cromptons is credited with making the first coin pusher. Cromptons started making coin-operated amusement products in 1947.
The company released a machine called Wheel-a-Win in 1962. This game had a sweeping arm that pushed coins into holes that were spread around the surface of the inside of the cabinet.
This seems to be the first coin pusher, as it pushes coins that the player inserts, but a later arcade machine would more closely resemble coin pushers as they operate today.
Crompton’s Penny Falls Coin Pusher
This machine was called Penny Falls. It was released in 1964.
Penny Falls is a simple concept that most subsequent coin pushers would copy. Coins were inserted and dropped on a surface with more coins. These coins would be pushed forward and eventually dropped off an edge where the player could collect them.
After Wheel-a-Win and Penny Falls, Cromptons dove headfirst into this new coin pusher idea. They would go on to release many more coin pushers that all operated very similarly but with different themes. The hexagonal variant became the most popular because it didn’t take up as much space on the floor.
Coin pushers became a major success in arcades around the world. These old school, classic coin pushers can still be found in arcades in the UK today. Japan also very quickly jumped on the coin pusher fad and these games are still a staple in arcades there.
Cromptons’ Influence on Amusement and Arcade Machines
Coin pushers are in almost every arcade around the world. I think that is because of how addictive and simple the gameplay is.
When the Cromptons company made the first coin pusher they did not patent it. Cromptons did not think that it was going to last more than a year or two. The coin pusher craze definitely persisted and today we can see copies of the coin pusher concept from that first one that was made in the 1960s.
How to Win Coin Pushers (Card Collection)
A large majority of modern arcade coin pushers have cards that you need to collect. These cards are periodically dropped onto the coin stacks. The goal is the same. You try to add more coins in order to push coins, tokens, and the cards off the edge to collect them.
The coin pusher cards can be redeemed at the arcade for a massive amount of tickets if a full set is collected.
The trick with these coin pusher card sets is the same psychological trick that McDonald’s Monopoly had when that was a thing. There is one card that you need to collect that is far rarer than the rest of the cards. So you will usually collect tons of duplicates of all the common cards and only see the rare card once in a long while of playing.
This tricks our minds into thinking that we are so close to completing the card set so we keep putting in more coins and money to try and win that last illusive card.
I think card collection coin pushers are so popular today in arcades for this reason. The “I just need to collect one more card” mindset adds on to the addictive, gambling-prone nature of coin pushers; when arcade-goers see a big stack of coins or cards so close to the edge of the machine that they just have to put in “one more token”.
The way to beat these card collecting coin pushers is to know which one of the cards in the set is the rare one.
The strategy is to only play the coin pusher game when you see one of these rare cards close to the edge. After collecting the rare card it becomes pretty easy to complete the set without spending too much more money.
I am reluctant to share arcade game-breaking information, but because of how coin pushers are meant to prey on those that are prone to gambling, I don’t feel as bad. Just do not abuse this information. Arcade games are meant to have fun in the end, anyway.
Check out these articles below for more detailed tips to win coin pushers:
Are Real Money Coin Pushers Legal?
There have been some issues with the legality of coin pushers in regards to gambling. Most countries do not allow cash to be used as a reward from the machine. This would make the games very similar to other gambling games, like slot machines.
Any form of coin pusher is illegal in some states within the US. Check state laws on the issue to make sure that coin pushers are legal in your state.
Nowadays, the cash is almost always replaced with tokens or tickets as a reward.
Are Coin Pushers Legal in Michigan? (Could be Applied to Other States)
I am from Michigan so I tried to do research on the subject. There is not a lot of information available. I found an excerpt from Michigan law that I assume is similar to other states.
It is a penal code that states if a person is involved with owning or operating a gambling machine that they can be fined. But here is a section about the exception of crane games which I assume would be similar to coin pushers:
“Subsection (1) does not apply to a crane game. As used in this section, ‘crane game’ means an amusement machine activated by the insertion of a coin by which the player uses 1 or more buttons, joysticks, or similar means of control, or a combination of those means of control, to position a mechanical or electromechanical claw, or other retrieval device, over a prize, toy, novelty, or an edible item having a wholesale value of not more than $3.75, and thereby attempts to retrieve the prize, toy, novelty, or edible item. Every prize, toy, or edible item must be retrievable by the claw. A slot machine is not considered a crane game.”
Slot machines and other arcade games, like coin pushers, have a similar “pay for the chance of a reward” system. But slot machines have an age requirement to legally play. So what are the differences between slot machines and coin pushers?
Having real coins or quarters inside the game is definitely more of a legal issue than other types of rewards, like tickets.
I also believe that having an element of skill in a game helps with legality. Modern coin pushers have a lever where you can direct where the coin goes. This can be argued that it is not by complete chance whether you win or not. Although there are definitely spin wheel games at the arcade where you time when to press the button that seems like it is all luck.
Coin Pusher History Video
Watch this video for the summary of arcade coin pusher information.
Coin pushers are extremely addictive arcade machines. That does not mean that we can’t still enjoy playing them if we have self control and know our limits. It is strange because that is almost the same advice for people who like to gamble at the casino. But aren’t arcades just casinos for kids?!? (Playing devil’s advocate)
Read more on the specific tips and tricks of how to win coin pushers such as SpongeBob and Despicable Me Jelly Lab.
Further reading:11 Best Tips to Save Money at the Arcade
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6 members have voted
I personally dont see it as gambling.. I dont expect a big payoff from a coin-pusher and its, at most, quarters to play just like any other little arcade game you see in a store.- if this qualifies for gambling then how come prize-grabing games that you pay a buck to try to pickup a toy or something not considered, in theory, gambling? would that not be similar?
There are old-fashioned basic coin-pushers and then there are much newer ones that really get fancy.. they seem to be big in Asia- and its almost like playing a video game at the same time on alot of them.
I saw one in a local gas station and enjoyed playing it.. I think I used about 5 bucks in quarters and got about 3 bucks back- I didnt mind, it was just kind of a fun thing to kill time with.
Another thing, is that alot of places such as laundromats and gas stations make a modest profit off the simple machines.. if they were really gambling machines though, wouldnt you see them inside a reguler casino somewhere..maybe in the lobby where kids could play with it?
Another thing, is that alot of places such as laundromats and gas stations make a modest profit off the simple machines.. if they were really gambling machines though, wouldnt you see them inside a reguler casino somewhere..maybe in the lobby where kids could play with it?
They got big here in MN in the mid to late '90s. Then they were ruled to be gaming machines, and they all had to be removed (Only indian gaming and card clubs here...).
I like playing them in gas stations when I drive across WI to visit friends in Appleton. BUT, I've noticed that those games are unfair. The WI version does not award all pushed coins to the player. At the bottom of the machine is a little cup that does not fill the entire aperature of the coin collection area. The player only receives the coins that slide down into the cup (about 80% of pushed coins based on experience).
Also, if they're gaming machines that award currency, then I think the usual rules would apply in a given jurisdiction: They'd be illegal for kids to play. That said, there was a version with tokens and tickets in the arcade that we took my brother to for part of his bachelor party.
**small edit** I can't help but comment...that arcade had what was basically a big 6 wheel, and several games with progressive jackpots. It's like the kids are gamblers-in-training. Shame on New Mexico for letting it go that far.
Eh, I would probably call it gambling. The people who play are giving their coins for the chance at more money, with minimal or no skill involved. if this qualifies for gambling then howcome prize-grabbing games that you pay a buck to try to pickup a toy or something, would that not be similar?
That's an interesting question... maybe it's because those games award goods instead of money? That seems like a funny distinction, though, since that plush toy you just won has a monetary value.
I've also seen some 'pseudo-gambling' machines at video arcade places like Dave and Buster's; I actually played a game at D&B's that was very similar to roulette. There was a wheel divided up into colors, and you 'bet' credits on where this big yellow ball would land. Pick the right color and you won tickets.
I kept wondering how that didn't qualify as gambling, and again, the only thing I could think of was that the machine gave out tickets which could be exchanged for items, not direct money. Heck, the D&B's I was at even had the coin-pusher machines, but with Dave and Buster's coins that could be exchanged for prizes or something.
There is some difference between actual gambling and all of the stuff we're talking about though... I don't see people getting addicted to those toy prize arm machine things or hotlines set up for people with coin-pusher problems. I have no idea what that distinction is, though.
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I have a page on that game on my Odds site. Here in Vegas we call it Flip It.
It is perhaps the only game where the name of the game is very similar to what you say after you give up and stop playing it.
Oh, wait, I forgot about 'craps'.
Coin Pusher Gambling Machine
If it returns coins, even if it's only a portion of the actual coins pushed, it's gambling.If it returns tokens that are only good to play more games or to purchase something at the prize counter, then it's not gambling.
