When I was in my younger days, I spent a lot of time at the arcade playing classic quarter slurpers like Gauntlet and Mortal Kombat. As I got older, I now enjoy taking my kids to places like Dave and Busters to spend way too much money to earn tickets for really crappy prizes. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. But my absolute favorite among those ticket games was always the Coin Pusher (sorry Skeeball, you’re #2). There was just something so addictive about dropping coins down a chute to cause a cascade of falling metal.
Back in the fall of 2022, I recall seeing a Kickstarter campaign for a machine called the Coin Pusher 365 from a new company called Acradro. My first thought was “I don’t need that…” However, that thought was quickly replaced with, “hrm, maybe I do” :D. Fast forward to this summer and the Coin Pusher 365 has landed on my doorstep. While this isn’t like the typical tabletop games we cover here on BGQ, I consider it tabletop game adjacent, so we are going forward anyway. If you’ve got a game room at home with a ROM machine, Pinball machine, dome hockey, or the like, this definitely may be right up your alley.
How It Works:
If you’ve never played a coin pusher game, well you are definitely missing out. It’s one of the simple joys in life. The main crux of the game is that there is a shelf with a pile of coins on it, and behind that, a wall that slides back and forth. As you drop tokens down the slots they fall into the machine. The goal is to time things right so that they fall in the right spots in front of the pushing wall. Manage that, and it will push the coins forward, eventually dropping some off the front ledge, earning you tickets.
The Coin Pusher 365 works just like that, yet in a consumer-grade machine. It’s about 17″x14″x27″ inches big, so it’s a decent size and you’ll most likely want some kind of table or stand for it. It comes with 500 quarter-size tokens, and 25 plastic bonus point chips. The front glass is made of plexiglass and unlocks with a key. On the bottom are two drawers, where coins will fall if they get sucked into the side openings. You’ll need the key to open those up as well. The front has a bit prize opening to collect tokens or other prizes.
Is it fun?
I was eager to check this one out and it did not disappoint. While it wasn’t as fancy as machines you might play at the arcade, I can say that it definitely delivers on the experience. It’s missing notable features such as tilt detection, skill stop, or any kind of fancy LED screen. But outside of that, it’s the coin pusher experience through and through.
When it first arrived here at BGQ HQ, I introduced my kids to it (age 5), as they had never really played this type of game before. I’m happy to report that it kept them occupied for hours as they yelled excitedly whenever a load of coins would fall down the front of the machine. But hey, this is definitely not just a toy for kids. Fellow BGQ reviewer Brian showed up for game night and was almost as excited as my kids were. After grabbing a cold one from the fridge (“Gotta play with a beer in hand” he said.) he played until he won a few choke tchotchkes prizes from the machine (a good 20 minutes).
And that’s one of the coolest parts of the Coin Pusher 365 (other than the play experience). The prize opening is big enough for you to stick your own fun prizes in there. I’ve put in mini puzzles, balls, cars, hot wheels cars, and other little prizes for my kids to win. When I’m looking to keep them out of my hair for a while, I’ll put some new prizes in there and give them a bucket of tokens. Maybe when the next review copy comes in for Brian, I’ll stick his copy in there and make him win it.
The biggest drawbacks of the machine are probably the cost cutting measures. The front panel is plexiglass instead of actual glass. So, I do worry that it will scratch over time. The lack of a skill stop also takes a tad bit of the fun out of the experience. The lights only have a few settings, all of which are rotating through colors. And the exterior art is a bit… garish. But that’s all minor complaints in an otherwise great consumer grade machine.
Should You Get It?
That’s the big question. Obviously, this isn’t going to be for everyone. It takes up a decent chunk of space in your house and isn’t something you’ll be taking out and putting away. The most likely candidate for a Coin Pusher 365 is someone with a dedicated game room. If you’ve already got a pinball machine (or more than one like fellow BGQer Andrew), air hockey table, and other parlor games, it makes a great addition.
The other thing to note is that it’s not cheap. It prices out at $695 (although with free shipping), so it’s definitely pricier than your average board game. However, for dedicated home entertainment machines or tables (pool table, pinball, shuffleboard, etc…) it’s actually quite reasonable and about what you’d expect to pay.
Overall, we’ve put a ton of hours into the unit with no quality issue to speak of. It’s entertained just about everyone who’s played it and I’ve enjoyed finding little prizes to throw in there. If you are looking for a permanent addition to your gaming room, it’s definitely a blast to play.
