☢️🇯🇵 An abandoned #pachinko gaming arcade, in the Exclusion Zone of Fukushima, Japan. The arcade has been abandoned since the nuclear incident in 2011.
“Pachinko” is a mechanical recreational game originating in, and still popular in, Japan. These resemble vertical pinball machines, which use small steel balls. The player exchanges money for a pot of these balls, and these are the play currency; balls can be exchanged for prizes at the kiosk.
@ObsidianUrbex I always find it fascinating to see things like this because you know if it was the United States every single fixture in that place would've been ripped and stripped before the carpets were even dry.
Not only to get the machines, but also the balls are worth real-world money, you have to jump through a couple of hoops but they're basically like poker chips you can cash out.
You can't get money from the pachinko parlor directly, that would be illegal. BUT, you can take the "prizes" you win and sell them at a nearby store (often owned by the pachinko parlor owner) for real cash. That's NOT illegal, and lets them run them like pseudo-casinos without *technically* breaking any rules.
@thevhswizard
I mean, this is located in the Exclusion Zone which made it a bit more tricky to loot. Even now there is a heavy police presence, and you are not allowed to stop in this area.
Probably the biggest one is indeed the cultural thing that looting and theft isn't common in Japan. In England this would have been totally looted, exclusion zone or not 😥
@un_bourguignon
Very true! I do struggle with a lot of noise especially repetitive and certain frequencies (misophonia). It can be super overwhelming.
I think this is why I explode lost places, I like the silence and it's very relaxing 🙊
Obsidian Urbex Photography
The VHS Wizard 🦝📼🧙
Un Bourguignon