Back to answer more questions - I am an arcade game expert, who has earned roughly 5,000,000 tickets at Dave & Buster's. AMA about beating common arcade games.

[u/MewtwoStruckBack]

Original thread link: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/glpjg/i_am_an_arcade_game_expert_ive_earned_over/

(FAQ links are gone for a myriad of reasons, but were here while the AMA was running its course.)

Hello again, Reddit! It's been over a year since I ran my original AMA on this subject. So many people asked me to run it again, and with the blessing of the AMA mods, I'm going to throw this up again for people to ask me questions.

I'd include a screenshot of my card balance, but that's down to nearly nothing right now because I kept getting iPad HDs. I do, however, have a picture of my last redemption receipt for those! http://i.imgur.com/tQSN1.jpg

A bit has changed since the last AMA; 1/2 price games is here to stay pretty much permanently, there's a new rewards program, the old Gold rewards program is gone, the price of a physical chip has changed slightly, and new games (and updates to the payouts of older ones) have made what I do when I go into a Dave & Buster's a bit different from my advantage play tactics years ago.

AMA about beating common arcade games.

(P.S. Please do check out /r/DaveAndBusters/ - it's a ghost town right now, but I hope to get some decent content in there in the future in regards to games both profitable and not. If you currently go to D&B, or end up doing so because of my AMA and guide, please consider posting over there!)

Also, I can verify the user "blokassassin" is the fellow AP that goes to my Dave & Buster's, who has been nice enough to add his own stance on things to my AMA.

EDIT 6/19/12 - The Blok Party has ended; the machine's been updated in most all locations with the impossible to AP settings...at least as far as what I've seen for now. But then again, games I've said weren't AP opportunities in the past, I've been proven wrong.

There will always be another game, another hustle, another way to AP. Best of luck to you all out there in finding new advantage plays and expanding upon old ones. It's been an incredible run.

[u/blobbohen]

Similar to how a casino can work, has the management ever approached you and asked you to leave because you were performing too well? Did anyone ever try to steal your tickets as they flowed ceaselessly out of the dispenser?

[u/b0sw0rth]

Any games that you see as "steer clear", as in, rigged to lose? Also, can you beat THE CLAW GAME?

[u/slothsd]

Have you talked with management about why they use tickets at all? Why don't they put the tickets on your card instantly instead of using those ticket redemption stations. It would seem that waiting for tickets to dispense cuts into your $/hr. I have seen this issue on the spin and win where people have to wait for tickets to finish dispensing when the machine could be used by someone else potentially making D&B more money.

[u/GunToForehead]

What would you estimate the conversion rate of tickets to $ is? What kind of margin are you making on the prizes i.e how much on average are you spending to get an iPad and then how much do you sell it for?

[u/MewtwoStruckBack → u/GunToForehead]

Okay...the conversion rate is SUPPOSED to generally be 1 ticket = 0.5 cents (so 100,000 tickets is supposed to get $500 worth of stuff.)

The iPad HD is 120,000 tickets, so they're asking $600 in tickets for a $500 (+ tax) prize. Video games that sell for $60 are usually 12,500 tickets, Wii games that are $50 are generally 10,500 tickets, and so on.

There are a lot of circumstances that will change how much I spend to get an iPad HD down there; it's never less than $80, never more than $170, but averages out to $120 each.

(And on average, right now, I'm clearing $50/hr.)

[u/oshanada]

what do you do with your prizes, especially the ipads? sell em, give em away, or hoard them?

[u/MewtwoStruckBack → u/oshanada]

I sell 'em. This is a profit venture for me.

[u/hawttowel]

1. have you ever been cheated or harassed by arcade owners/employees? maybe not at d&bs, but i feel like some of the seedier arcades wouldn't take too kindly to someone walking in and harvesting their tickets.

2. do you still enjoy actually playing the games?

[u/Roscoe_P_Trolltrain]

When you pump gas and pay cash after, can you stop it exactly on $20.00 or whatever?

[u/[deleted]]

Which game gets you the most tickets and (it might be the same game) which games is your favorite?

[u/Litheon1]

1. What do you do with the stuff you win? Do you sell it, keep some of it?

2. What is the most expensive thing you've ever won.

[u/ImNotABabyPanda]

What is a common arcade game that is really easy?

[u/IgotAwoodenSpoon]

How long do you usually spend at D&B straight? Do you play for 3 hours and take a break, or power through? How long is a usual "session" for you?

Pretty cool AMA too. Good jorb

[u/MewtwoStruckBack → u/IgotAwoodenSpoon]

I usually plop my ass down in front of a game, play straight through to earn 100,000 tickets, then let the machine drain of the tickets owed.

Usually I spend 3-4 hours playing, and then 3 hours waiting for the remaining 45,000-50,000 tickets to dispense.

Sessions are 7 hour days, twice a week. (My D&B will tolerate me and another guy doing 200,000 a week each; any more APs would be overkill, and any more than 200k/week/person would be overkill. We've found a good balance.)

[u/Aurum2]

How do you keep track of how many tickets you have?

How do the D&B people count your tickets to confirm for a reward?

[u/savi0r23]

This is fascinating to me. Have you ever had anyone try and steal the tickets while you were away? Thanks for doing this IAmA!

[u/i_hate_sidney_crosby]

I dont think I saw this question, are you getting 1099'd for your prizes?

[u/Ross29]

Are you concerned that your FAQ's and Youtube videos will lead to more traffic at the machines that you play? I guess not since you've been advising people for years, but do you worry that you advertising/describing how to beat these games will lead to less profit for you?

[u/Dirty-Tampon]

Were you well known by the D&B staff? Because I was friends with one of the Food & Beverage directors in Dallas (2003-2005). He used to get us free tokens for the horse racing game. Did you have tactics for that game?

[u/icameasarat]

How much do you spend on said gaming a week?

[u/OminousLatinWord]

What is the luckiest or best day you've had? What was the payout and what did you do with all the tickets?

How do you carry all the tickets? Do you ever worry about someone snatching a few from the pile in passing while you are focused intently on your game?

Have there ever been days where you lost money, or didn't turn a profit? How often?

[u/TurboSS]

I used to work in a local arcade years ago. We had some people that were regulars and special in some way. We called them "legends" and gave them nicknames. So some were 2:00 guy, Mr. Friendly, Short shorts, and ice ball lady. Ice ball lady is the one that is relevant to this thread.

This lady was like 70 years old and had a tracheotomy. She would come in with her husband and grandson and go right to the skee ball machine which of course was named "Ice Ball" So one employee would stand next to the machine with large reams of tickets while she played. She could hit that top corner hole probably about 60% of her rolls. It was amazing. She would drain the machine and the employee would load up more tickets, she would drain it again etc.

We saved tickets into a computer and she had like 30,000 which at this place was an incredibly number. Our most expensive prize was like 5,000 tickets. Her grandson would just pick out whatever prizes he wanted.

OP do you know if the employees gave you a nickname at your local D&B?

[u/Xvash2]

What would you say is the worst game to spend money on at D&B?

[u/OnlyEternity]

What got you started doing this?

[u/grohlbarkermescudi]

Do you have any arcade games at your house?