Why english terms in pachinko?

[nickbuol]

OK. I know what a fever is and what a reach is, but why did the good ol' folks in Japan pick those words for getting a "two of a kind" (reach) and a "jackpot"? I know that these aren't "gambling" machines in Japan, so maybe they couldn't use something Japanese that means "jackpot," but why english anyway?

Not a complaint, just a curiosity question...

I mean, if these things were made and used here in the USofA, it would be 100% english words and phrases.

[Sid]

well what you will find in a lot of countries, to make something look better cooler etc you use foreign words.
to make it seem better then what you have locally so to speak...

its done here all the time..

[computer bob]

well what you will find in a lot of countries, to make something look better cooler etc you use foreign words.
to make it seem better then what you have locally so to speak...

its done here all the time..

Hmmmm... sounds like Greek to me ...

[Sid]

[nickbuol]

well what you will find in a lot of countries, to make something look better cooler etc you use foreign words.
to make it seem better then what you have locally so to speak...

its done here all the time..

OK. I can go with that, but why then did they select "reach" and "fever"? Maybe it is their understanding of what these words mean??? Then again, a lot of english words are "lost in translation" in other countries. I mean, go to www.engrish.com and you will see a LOT of english words that if the people actually knew what the words meant, wouldn't use them.

[arbycoffee]

OK. I can go with that, but why then did they select "reach" and "fever"? Maybe it is their understanding of what these words mean??? Then again, a lot of english words are "lost in translation" in other countries. I mean, go to www.engrish.com and you will see a LOT of english words that if the people actually knew what the words meant, wouldn't use them.

The reach is "reaching for a possiblity of a win"


Fever is the "fever you have handling all the balls you win, even on back to back ones"

I M H O

[nickbuol]

Maybe fever has something to do with the temperature of an underpowered power supply after the machine goes into the "payout round"... It's got a fever!

Meh... Or not...

[arbycoffee]

[daverob]

According to this thread a reach is a term derived from the Japanese word 'riichi' used in the game Mahjong when the player is one tile away from a win.

Seeing as it's used in pachinko/pachislo when two reels match and the player is one symbol away from a win, it seems reasonable to assume that there is a link.

[birdbrain]

sure, there you go interjecting logic into it

[nickbuol]

OK. I can see the connection... But why not leave it as "riichi" instead of changing it to "reach"... Or does that just loop back to the whole "its cool to use english" thing?

So what about "fever"? Any history there?

[rubberratt]

Riichi is pronounced reech in Japanese

[arbycoffee]

my brain is starting to hurt, that not be good at my age I need cookie

[rubberratt]

Here you go Greg - You deserve it

http://www.hollywoodnugget.com/store...olate_chip.jpg

[compirate]

OK. I can see the connection... But why not leave it as "riichi" instead of changing it to "reach"... Or does that just loop back to the whole "its cool to use english" thing?

So what about "fever"? Any history there?

There are also a lot of early machines that were based on Majong.

The fever part, I don't know but it was invented by Sankyo.

From the 2000 annual report:
'The "Fever" machine, developed by Sankyo in 1980, caused a huge sensation throughout the pachinko industry, and today this machine has become the industry standard.'

[arbycoffee]

I wonder if it is like the nose bleed ?

[nickbuol]

The mystery continues...

It probably was something missed in translation. You know, a bunch of Sanyko guys, sitting around, talking about a "catch phrase" for pachinko... One guy was telling stories about when he was in the U.S. and he heard some crazy American say the phrase "He's on fire" when doing really well at something. By the time it made it around the table, and then up through the executive chain, it was like playing the telephone game and all that was left was something about a person being hot... And the fever was born...

[arbycoffee]

thanks for the cookie,rubberratt, I needed that

[rubberratt]

My pleasure Arby

[hanabi]

I want Cookies!!