I have seen those machines before here in my city and I have only tried them once or twice when I was youger. My family in general has always assumed those machines to be some kind of soft scam or something like it.
I don't think those crane games and machines are completely related to gambling, actually, because of the luring prizes somethimes are put puporsely in them I would dare to say it would be better to wager money on sport bets or in probably fair games. Crane games are purposely too attractive to ignore (cash, high tech video consoles, expensive games and watches, etc).
It would seem to me the mechanism behind the crane is conceived on purpose so it will open a bit right before lifting the prize most of the times, to it would become very unlikely for anyone to actually pick up something good.
It is about comon sense, I think. If the owners of those machines are willing to risk literal packs of cash, still they need to guarantee the machine to be profitable, so it is likely thay are rigged somehow for someone to have almost no chances to win.
Not even keeping in mind the owners of those machines could also shield themselves behind the fact the player is the onw who decides who to manouver the claw, so there is less likely for the tricky mechanism to be spotted.
I would rather to stick to dices and a bit of plinko, it sounds fairer.
You would really be able to realize for yourself that those things are indeed that soft-scam. Never ever in my life and experience on getting a stuff toy or hitting up those gadgets or money
out of a claw machine and those shit claws are designed to be that too soft or having no force whenever it clips. You could try all you want but it would really be ending up on a none good result
but if course there would really be those people who do able to get some stuff if they were lucky, but in overall i dont see for it to be a gambling but rather to be an entertainment
of a certain user who would really be tending up to deal up with it. Staked money isnt really just that too big for you to consider that you are gambling out. You've been trying out your
shot on getting some prize out of that single coin you do put on but of course it would really be just that depending or basing up on someones approach and sentiments into their minds
if they would really be treating it up as some sort of gambling.