World's luckiest video: guy wins a Wii from a crummy mall arcade game
by Kevin Kelly 
{ Apr 3rd 2007 at 12:01AM }
Note: the embedded video above is definitely NSFW, or NSFH(ome) if you have little kids running around, because it contains some pretty strong language.
It shows something we all thought could never be done -- one really lucky sucker winning the big prize from a Stacker game. The same kind you see in malls, movie theater lobbies, and Wal-Mart vestibules around the country. We've spent our fair share of quarters in them, trying to score much lesser prizes, like copies of Outlaw Golf.
Now someone just please try and explain to us why Wiis are sold out across the country, yet sitting in Stacker machines where people can win them for a buck? Perhaps it's all part of a secret new marketing campaign from Nintendo. Now to start looking for more Stacker games ...
[Via Nintendo Wii Fanboy]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Kevin @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:08AM
Do they any other words? Kids these days.... idiots.
"Mad props?" "Hell naw man" lethal injection anyone?
john @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:08AM
Dialogue not safe for intelligent people.
bob @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:09AM
i fuckin love you dude.
Macross SDF-1 @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:11AM
Wow, what a bunch of handicapped kids. This is what's wrong with the world, retarded kids spreading their retard infection everywhere. God, it's like they can't say 2 words without using "fuck". Someone seriously needs to get beat with an English baseball bat.
RCagent @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:15AM
In all seriousness now, I think you all are just jealous that these guys got a Wii for 2 bucks. =\
BPM @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:18AM
I've seen a Stacker at Arizona Mills a while back that had the pink GBA SP MkII...
I almost won it, too... I made it all the way to the highest level... and was off by one block... >_>
Hey, I don't care if it was pink. A super-cheap Game Boy is a super-cheap Game Boy.
Helljumper @ Apr 3rd 2007 2:05AM
I think that mall is the Discover Mills mall in Atlanta... Looks like it :D
Time to take a trip, maybe?
dsub @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:18AM
I won a PSP from the Stacker game at my local CiCi's Pizza. It took my like $5 but I won it.
I always play because these machines always seem to have the craziest prizes.
dukemeiser @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:19AM
"Someone seriously needs to get beat with an English baseball bat."
You mean a Cricket bat?
Smoke_Dawg_187 @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:23AM
To those who are bitching about the language of today's youth. Check this link out from Joystiq. Listen to the dialoge of our movies, case in point. http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/28/the-big-lebowsk-wii-mii-theater-in-action/
ill trooper @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:24AM
Wow, you guys should loosen up your corsets a bit! You're on Joystiq, a blog for video games... It's not National Review.com. Too bad they didn't have camera phones back when you got excited about 'so totally' crushing those liberal pricks from Oberlin in that "Looking Forward: The 1990s, Reaganomics & The Impact on The Coming Century" debate.
Those guys are stoked! I hope the video is real. That's awesome. It's like a 'next-gen' update on the N64 Christmas morn' video. YESSSSSS!
"I fucking love you, dude!"
El tonto @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:24AM
IS that Discover Mills Mall?
rob @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:26AM
these are the kind of kids that make me embarrassed to call myself asian. fucking asians.
Silver @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:34AM
Looks like Nintendo needs to come out with a vocabulary-builder game for Wii. Seriously - is this the state of our youth? Pathetic. This is where my tax money is going? Shut down the schools and give me a refund since they obviously aren't working.
Yeah, this is a gaming site, but geez.
samfish @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:31AM
Man, I never see prizes that cool in machines.
It sucks, too, because I swear to God I inherited my grandma's power to win stacker and claw games with ease after she died.
All I ever win is stuffed animals and the occasional watch or piece of jewelry.
If he's smart, he'll sell it on eBay and use the profits to buy a new Wii and a couple games, too.
Seroth @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:40AM
Take into consideration that they just witnessed something amazing. It probably left the speechless but with only a few words at hand, one of those being the F word.
If I had been there, I'd probably be going "Holy sh**" the whole time, 'cause of how awesome that was. I don't even swear much normally.
AirIntake @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:43AM
Oh whatever. I talked like that (or whatever the equivalent was) back when I was their age. They'll have to learn to hold back like everyone else when they get real jobs.
sleepygamer @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:45AM
My mum won a DS last year on a stacker. Cost her about £3. I wanted her to get the video camera on it, but she wanted a DS... oh well.
dknight211 @ Apr 3rd 2007 12:52AM
The Stacker games operate on sheer luck. They operate on the fact that by the fourth level, human reflexes are simply not fast enough to respond (i.e, the time required when your eyes see the light, your brain processes it, and sends the action to your hand). Those who win the grand prize do so by sheer luck of pressing the button exactly within that very narrow window.
Steve @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:03AM
"Oh whatever. I talked like that (or whatever the equivalent was) back when I was their age. They'll have to learn to hold back like everyone else when they get real jobs."
Very true. It's easy to judge and easy to forget less proud moments of one's own past. When prompted to actually think on it, I must admit I had a bit of an excessive profanity phase as a freshman in college and I turned out to be an acceptably well spoken individual.
That being said, what concerns me is their excessive use of profanity in loud voices, in public, and in the obvious presence of younger children. I at least had the sense to guard my tounge in the areas and among the audiences where it was most inappropriate.
rocko @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:06AM
what's a stacker machine, because I don't believe we have any near where I live (philly area)
anonymous @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:12AM
I call shenanigans. These kids just happened to be sitting around videotaping themselves playing a stupid videogame of some sort (what the hell WAS that?!) in a mall? And that just happens to be when they when a console? Riiight.
Also, as for those complaining about the language of today's youths... How about George Bush calling a reporter an asshole on a live mike? How about him flipping off a video camera before a speech? How about Cheney telling a guy to go *F* himself?
Really, give me a god damn break and quit your god damn preaching.
anonymous @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:13AM
I'd rather listen to a bunch of dumb kids swearing in public than some granola cruncher trying to harass me into signing some stupid clip board. Or worse, some religious nut trying to preach to me while I'm attempting to enjoy my afternoon.
If you don't like it, plug your ears. It's a fucking free country.
David Ayala @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:18AM
Past December i won in a chilean tech page a Xbox 360 core , just for register in a contest :D
Good luck guys existe everywhere
GhaleonQ @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:13AM
I hate you, Joystiq, for finally coaxing me to watch this. Ugh.
BPM @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:23AM
"what's a stacker machine, because I don't believe we have any near where I live (philly area)"
Stacker is a prize game (you play it for prizes instead of tickets like at arcades) where the goal is to make a stack of red blocks. The blocks will move from left to right, and you press the button to make it stop. It gets faster as you go up levels.
If you reach a certain level, you can stop playing to get a cheapy prize (like candy or whatever), or you can continue on for bigger prizes (like in this video, a Wii). It's hard enough to get a cheap prize, and it's near impossible to get a big prize.
But, it's probably one of the more "fair" prize games out there.
FM @ Apr 4th 2007 12:17AM
Funny,I saw a Wii in one of those machines today at my local arcade. I rather play slots,thanks.
Julian @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:47PM
Haha, one of the guys said "gg".
Kaemon @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:49AM
I almost won one of those machines once, I could have gotten a small prize but I wanted to go a bit higher, messed up at the end, ughh, just a little bit away... haha, if I had more money I probably could have done it, ah well, they're pretty fun, more so then most of those stupid prize games.
Chris @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:51AM
I hate it when people use the term "it's a free country" with something like this, as if someone's trying to take away rights. It's not that they don't have the right to have a vocabulary that consists of nothing but cuss words (and good point, I used to do that when I was in middle school too...). It's about not caring that there are kids and such around. I don't care how you talk around your friends, and regardless of whether or not someone doesn't like cussing because they're religious or just more conservative, it's rude.
And I second the shennanigans call!
Kritz @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:59AM
Haha. I got an iPod out of one of those things.
@ 21;
You know, when I go into town with my friends + video camera (I do Film at school), I normally tape just about anything. Just because something's on the Internet, doesn't mean it's fake.
Sony killed my mother @ Apr 3rd 2007 2:00AM
The last row is timed so you will not be able to get it by skill, and only by luck alone. Now I am wondering, would it be possible to develop a robot that could cheat the system... By looking at the lights and pressing the button when required a robot could technically win prizes on every hit.
JoseRZ @ Apr 3rd 2007 2:11AM
The operators must be kicking themselves for not setting the machine higher. According to wiki the play to win odds can be as high as 1 in 800. Then again he could just be that lucky one.
thefunkyone @ Apr 3rd 2007 2:51AM
What is with Americans and the phrase "ooohhhh my gawd".... I counted at least 5 "ooohhh my gawd"'s in that vid....
America its time you chose a new catchphrase for yourselves since that one seems a bit overused and old now :D
Bluebreaker @ Apr 3rd 2007 3:46AM
Why is this bothering everyone? I'm happy that they got a game system for free and that will have fun.
I think the overall response on this board is a little flamey.
SatansClause @ Apr 3rd 2007 4:53AM
What's wrong with the lot of you? In between on topic posts I read pretentious dribble from jerks pretending to be intelligent.
"The state of our youth"? American catchphrases? The boys are excited and you guys are judging them like if they were in church.
Thefunkyone, drop the holier than America game. We get it. Everyone outside the U.S. like to base stereotypes from what they watched on MTv and FOX NEWS.
Macross SDF-1, I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic. If not, then "retarded kids spreading their retard infection everywhere" sounds like your biography.
Everyone else, save for a good few, grow up.
Poisoned Al @ Apr 3rd 2007 5:02AM
As an ex-employee of an arcade, I know a few things about these machines. They are all rigged. Before I hear a chorus of "well no shit," let me fill you in on a bit of law.
To be legal, these machines HAVE to let you have a chance at winning. I can't remember the odds off the top of my head, but these machines and other penny pinchers like fruit machines and claw games must let you win from time to time. The other times of course you don't have a hope in hell at winning. Behind all the machinery and flashing lights, all these things ever do is roll a dice to see if you win or not. But it gets better. Because it HAS to let someone win after a while, if a number of players have have lost after a while, the machine will fake a win. So if you hang around a machine long enough, you can predict it's win rate and step in when it's due to pay out after some other sucker has emptied his wallet into it.
mocax @ Apr 3rd 2007 5:24AM
So a bunch of asian kids in an american mall plays a made-in-australia machine and win a japanese console and had to be beaten with a english bat.
Talk about globalization.
Kritz @ Apr 3rd 2007 5:32AM
@ 37
World community at it's finest, Mocax. World community at it's finest.
LH:Spectre @ Apr 3rd 2007 5:49AM
...
I will hunt down Stacker games containing either DS Lites or Wiis...
..And a PSP wouldn't hurt either. I could sell it.
Chameleon @ Apr 3rd 2007 6:09AM
@37
ok, that was just downright funny.
Papa @ Apr 3rd 2007 6:42AM
People complain that America is turning back into a Puritan state then some of you people start bitching about this guy'a reaction after winning a console for less than a movie ticket? I'd like to see anyone on here just calmly walk away after winning the Wii in this game. Bull fucking shit.
Jeffler @ Apr 3rd 2007 6:57AM
I won a phone from one of these before. Wanted the digital camera but it wouldn't let me choose what I won!
Jimmy @ Apr 3rd 2007 7:17AM
"Someone seriously needs to get beat with an English baseball bat."
Yes, most Americans. Racist Texan redneck to Mexican - "Speak English son, you're in America". Yes, indeed...
Just kidding.
But seriously, the letter "h/H" is in the word herb and herbal for a reason.
Feeniks @ Apr 3rd 2007 7:33AM
Am I the only one perturbed by the fact they let the Wii drop like that?
copa @ Apr 3rd 2007 7:46AM
Who leaked the footage from Harold and Kumar 2?
NamcoGuy @ Apr 3rd 2007 8:19AM
Hello, I work for Namco at an arcade in a mall.
We have a Stacker there. 1st off...some arcades have 360 core or wii. My Store alone has had 3 360s won as well as a psp... 2nd off...the game is rigged. the game has 10 difficulty settings. lvl 10(which is where most are set) requires 400-450 dollars made before it will give out.
Jack of No Trades @ Apr 3rd 2007 8:15AM
Too bad it wasn't a PS3.
Galley @ Apr 3rd 2007 8:50AM
WTF is a Stacker game?
ShankShank @ Apr 3rd 2007 9:01AM
Anyone who has wasted over $100 dollars into these goddamn machines (like me) can understand perfectly the chorus of "fuck"s, "oh my gaaaawwwwd"s, etc.
These machines are like crack to me. I usually waste 50% of my paycheck on these instead of just saving up for an Xbox because I am a moron. I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS get to the very top row, and I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS see that last goddamn block jump over one space from where I actually hit the stop button. Fuck me. I need help. I can't stop.
This video will just make me keep playing those motherfucking things.