Roll Down, Spin to Win, Hit the Jackpot, etc...

There are a lot of these types of games where you are using a racquetball to roll and get into different slots. They are usually found in arcades for tickets, but you can find them in some midways for stuffed animals as well. The technique is the same for all of them. You need to find a way to put some speed behind the ball. At a higher speed the ball will make contact with the upper glass and stay in position. If the ball goes down slow then you lose control, it's going to bounce everywhere and it's a game of luck. That's not what we want. We always want these games to be games of skill.

Here's a video of my technique and then I'll explain a few of the games.



If I'm in an arcade I'm always looking for these games. They usually have jackpots and are not won that often. There are a lot of occasions when I win the jackpot and have to explain to the attendants what to do because they have never seen it before...

The game on the left is called Spin to Win. There is a center wheel that starts in a random position. The different slots you are aiming for move that wheel. So there's one that makes if randomly spin (we don't want to use that if we don't have to), one that moves the wheel 1 slot to the left or right, one that moves the wheel 3 slots left or right, the middle no spin slot and a bankrupt slot that moves the wheel to one of two bankrupt positions and takes away and tickets you may have accumulated. The way you win the jackpot on this game is by moving the wheel so that you are positioned on the jackpot after you use your 3rd ball 2 or 3 games in a row depending on the machine.

Example: You initially land on jackpot. You roll 3 balls that all go into the center "no spin" slot. That's 1 game. Put another quarter in and do it again. That's 2 games. Yay Jackpot!! Or you may have to do it one more time.

Each attempt is probably going to be different because the starting position is random.

The center Rainbow game in the picture has a very simple strategy. Win the jackpot by hitting each slot once during one game. If you hit the same slot twice the game ends. The more slots you get the more tickets you get.

Hints: If the game is level the two outside slots should be easy. Just put the ball on the side and let it go. If it's level the ball should stay on the wall. 2 down! I use both hands for this game. These games almost always have 7 slots. Numbering them from left to right I will use my right thumb (and the left side wall) for slots 1 through 4 and I will use my left thumb (and the right side wall) for slots 4 through 7. I can use either hand for the middle slot. The more pressure you apply on the ball against the wall the farther towards the middle slot it will go.

The game on the right we'll call Hit the Jackpot although I think that's just a sign used to get your attention that there is a jackpot and not the actual name of the game. Anyways, using the technique it's easy. The slots are worth different values. With 6 balls you have to accumulate a score of under 10 or over 32 two games in a row.

Example: Game 1 you hit 6 6's for a score of 36!! Nice perfect game! That's one game. Game 2 you roll 34. You got 5 6's and messed up on one ball that luckily went into the 4 slot! That's game 2. Yay jackpot! Now the game is making a loud annoying noise and the attendants will probably be staring at you like you broke their machine... Most of the games don't pay out the jackpots and you will need to explain what you did to them so that they can write you a voucher for win.

So good luck and win lots of stuff! Please feel free to ask questions or come back and tell me about your wins!