Nakano Broadway's latest UFO Catcher (crane game) gives players the chance to win... live fugu and Axolotl salamanders. Because what better way to say "I love you" to a date than with the gift of a poison blowfish?
(P.S. Don't worry: there was also a detailed explanation of how the store is keeping the creatures alive and healthy, so they don't seem to be suffering any more than you would be if giant otaku were paying 100 yen a pop to grab you with a giant robot claw.)
(P.P.S. They're almost impossible to win. Believe me, I tried. Super-weak robot claw + water-filled enclosure = epic axolotl fail.)
I'd actually like to know how these animals are being treated humanely.
If you fail at picking one up doesn't the container drop hard enough to cause trauma to the fish/amphibian inside?
Posted by: Siye | May 03, 2012 at 03:00 AM
That's actually a "green spotted puffer", an extremely common freshwater fish you can find in pretty much any pet store in the world. The fugu is the "tiger blowfish" which is completely different.
Posted by: Rukes | May 03, 2012 at 07:00 AM
Siye: You can't actually pick up the containers; they're too heavy. The best you can do is hope to scoot them over to the green astroturf in the center. If you can do that, they unlock the machine and take it out for you. So no big drops for these guys.
Rukes: thanks for the info! It's called a "midori-fugu" ("green fugu") in Japanese, though. "Fugu" is pretty much used for any puffer here.
Posted by: MattAlt | May 04, 2012 at 08:44 AM
I once saw little turtles in a crane game in Seoul. It was january. many of the turtles were stuck in the half inch later of ice that was the surface of the water. wiggling their little legs. very sad.
Posted by: C. | May 09, 2012 at 12:39 AM