Redemption game
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Redemption games are typically arcade games of skill that reward the player proportionally to their score in the game. The reward most often comes in the form of tickets, with more tickets being awarded for higher scores. These tickets can then be redeemed (hence the name) at a central location for prizes. The most inexpensive prizes (candy, small plastic or rubber toys) may only require a small number of tickets to acquire, while the most expensive ones (skateboards, low end electronics) may require several thousand. In general, the amount of money spent to win enough tickets for a given prize will far exceed the price of the prize itself.
A popular variation on the ticket-based redemption game is the Merchandiser. Merchandisers display a prize or prizes to be won by the player using skill. Skill Cranes are the most popular example of a merchandiser. The player guides a claw in the attempt to pick up a prize and drop it into a hole. Other types of merchandisers can offer prizes ranging from cheap and inexpensive to high end merchandise such as video game consoles and iPods.
Redemption games can be seen as the modern successor to carnival games, as the same general principles apply.
[edit] Legacy
As revenue from traditional arcade games started to decline in the latter half of the 1990s due to the fragmentation of the entertainment sector, arcade operators began to rely on the income from redemption and merchandiser games to remain profitable. These games were often much less expensive to purchase, and had a better return on investment than video games. The revenue of video games would diminish as the titles were released to the home market. Redemption games did not have that problem. Redemption and merchandiser games could generate good revenue for many years, compared to months for most video games. There are exceptions to this, such as the video game Dance Dance Revolution. With manufacturer software and hardware updates, this game has remained popular for many years. Redemption games have allowed many arcades to remain profitable in an ever changing entertainment market.[citation needed]
