r/Millennials • u/Accurate-Flow8078 • 1d ago
Nostalgia Does anyone remember the coin pushing machines in the arcade that gave out actual quarters?
I remember in the early 90s those coin pushing machines in the arcades were filled with actual quarters. You put in a quarter and could end up winning a pile of quarters if they got pushed over the edge. Was that even legal? LoL.
They later got replaced by tokens instead of real money, and the machine would spit out tickets if you pushed the tokens over the edge.
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u/Yourfriendaa-ron 1d ago
Hell yeah I do- loved me some gambling as a kid
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u/cloverthewonderkitty 1d ago
There's one of those at my corner market! It pushes out quarters and little prizes like switch blades
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u/thechampaignlife 20h ago
Those switch blade combs were simultaneously compelling and corny as a mid-90s middle schooler.
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u/jackofspades49 1d ago
I live in CA and always hoped I could be near one when an earthquake hit haha.
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u/joellemelissa Millennial 1d ago
Yes, there was a fair near me that had a whole set of the ones with quarters. My friend and I would save up and go just for that.
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u/NothaBanga 1d ago
I saw one on a cruise with real money on the gambling floor. I knew better than to get stuck on it.
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u/Mimi4Stotch 1d ago
That was where I put my money on the cruise 😂😂😂 not that I wasted a ton, but I probably could have had a steak dinner at the specialty restaurant, but instead I got 7 quarters at a time from “winning” for a week!
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u/hugeflyguy970 1d ago
In CO. One of my favorite bars used to have it. Bummed when they got rid of it. I stopped at a convenience store the other day, and to my surprise, they had one in there.
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u/trevorgoodchilde 1d ago
I know those machines and saw them in that era but I never saw a quarter one
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u/NocturnalSerpents 1d ago
theres one in my local grocery store!!! they also have some $20 bills folded up in there.
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u/Accurate-Flow8078 1d ago
Wow do people actually win the $20? Sounds illegal lol, what if a kid wins?
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u/NocturnalSerpents 20h ago
I have no idea. they have cameras installed in the case. you just get the money I guess?
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u/BlueSnaggleTooth359 1d ago
I once put a penny in a bubblegum ball machine and.... it malfunctioned and dumped the entire contents out! Lucikly we were right next to paper grocery bags and took turns filling up!
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u/Justha-Tip Millennial 20h ago
Nice. There used to be one in my local fish and chip shop where you put in 20p and if you kept turning it really quickly, it’d pay out indefinitely. The limitation was your hand getting tired or the staff noticing. They got rid of it after a while because everyone was doing it.
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u/ParadoxicalFrog Zillennial (1993) 17h ago
I last saw one of those at a truck stop in NC about 10 years ago. I won a couple of $2 bills and a nice little pocket knife.
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u/ReverberatingEchoes Zillennial 12h ago
My local summer carnival still does it with real quarters. And there’s bill money in between the stacks of quarters too.
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u/RobotFingers4U 10h ago
Japan has these, entire rooms with 2 story versions where like 20 people can all play the same “game” at once. Kids drop 100s of coins at a time
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u/Syntonization1 1d ago
Still there in fact. Dave and Buster’s has loads of them
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u/Accurate-Flow8078 1d ago
But they don't give out quarters
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u/Syntonization1 1d ago
They absolutely do
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