Shinjuku arcade breaks Guinness World Record for having the most crane games

If you want it, this arcade’s probably got it.

Crane games – Japan loves them, needs them, and sometimes breaks them. And on January 7, 2021, the Sega Shinjuku Kabukicho arcade in donwtown Tokyo officially received a certificate saying they broke the Guinness World Record for having the most crane games,  also lovingly referred to as UFO catchers in Japan, in a single establishment.

The Sega Shinjuku Kabukicho arcade originally opened in July of 2017, and at the time it had both crane games and video games. But in late December 2020 it reopened as a crane games-only specialty arcade (hence the world record).

▼ The outside of the arcade

Prior to the reopening, the world record was held by another arcade in Tokyo, Taito Station Fuchu Kururu Branch, where they have a whopping 454 crane games!

▼ It goes on and on and on and on…

So how many crane games does the Kabukicho arcade have, you ask? 477, to be exact. That includes snack crane games, mini crane games, giant plushie crane games, anime figurine crane games, household good crane games, and more.

▼ Here’s a photo of the ceremony, which was livestreamed for the public.

Despite this achievement, however, we can’t say that Japanese netizens were as stoked. Here’s what some of them said:

“This system drains more money from you than a pachinko parlor.”
“At first I thought, ‘Are there really that many?’ but then I realized they also counted the mini machines.”
“I bet the staff set up the games so it takes you a lot of tries to win a prize.”

After the recent Nintendo Switch-related UFO catcher scam, we can’t say we blame them. That doesn’t prevent the games from being fun, though! You just need to know when to stop, which might be particularly difficult with all of Sega Shinjuku Kabukicho’s options.

Sources: Otaku.com via Gamer
Top image: Straight Press
Insert images: PR Times, Straight Press
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