exploring the arcade in 黒い賭博師 悪魔の左手 aka Kuroi Tobakushi: Akuma no Hidarite aka Black Gambler: Devil's Left Hand (1966)

I finally found a high quality transfer of this gem!

1966 - 黒い賭博師 悪魔の左手 / Kuroi Tobakushi: Akuma no Hidarite (The Black Gambler - Devil's Left Hand)

This is a sequel to 黒い賭博師 / Kuroi tobakushi (The Black Gambler which I posted about earlier.

(Be sure to check the other arcade explorations, especially if you're as interested in old Japanese games as I am.)

I recommend this blog post Top 5 Nikkatsu Spy Films (feat: Kobayashi Akira) (archive) for a bit more context on the film.

right at the start we see people playing a friendly game of Bonanza!

1964 Bonanza by Gottlieb

1964 Bonanza by Gottlieb

1964 Bonanza by Gottlieb

I only have subtitles available on a very poor quality copy, but these two pics should give you a quick summary as to the stakes:

On a game like this 900 points would be a stellar game.  There is a lightbulb to light "1" in the 4th digit if you make it to 1000.  If you beat someone by 100 points, you would lose 1 million yen.

¥10,000 in 1966 is the equivalent of ¥40,000 in 2021, or approximately $350 USD or $442 CAD.  And that is the stakes PER POINT!!!!!  That's a huge gamble.

(Maybe the subtitles are wrong?  Someone who understands Japanese please watch the movie and verify)

I love the look on the guy with the shaved head (4th from left)

At the end of ball 5, player one has an impressive score of 1,995 but player 2 only has 380.  A lead of 1,615 points, or over half a million US dollars.

You'll notice the props team chose to use marker on paper to indicate the 4th digits instead of the illuminated "1".  

So player 2 steps up to close the gap...

But what's this?? He uses his lucky left hand to plunge ball!!  Oh the drama!

and before you know it...

The reaction is of course hilarious:

he lost by 3000 points.  You do the math.

This is a great opportunity to look at that machine in the center frame:

1958 All-Star Bowler

The movie has the regular "All-Star Bowler", which allows you to win credits for free games.  Here are two pics of the "All-Star Deluxe Bowler", the 'novelty' version where free games can't be won:

1958 All-Star Deluxe Bowler

1958 All-Star Deluxe Bowler

Near the right-hand side of the screen we can see a rifle shooting game.

late 1950s Desert Hunter by Dale Engineering

These shots are taken out of sequence, but show the only glimpses of the two unknown machines in the background:

more details:

The one on the right has a similar shape to the popular Sega Drivemobile, but the backglass and colours don't match at all.   Drivemobile came out in 1968 (or so) and this movie was 1966.  The Sega machine has a more sunken backglass than what we see in the movie.

1968 Drivemobile by Sega

The machine has a similar front as a Mini Drive machine, and the reddish tint of the steering wheel lines up better.  The Kasco backbox here is much larger, but the machine we see in the movie follows the basic Mini Drive geometry, with the plain front, flat glass, then the rectangular backglass perpendicular to the top surface.

ミニドライブ M型 (Mini Drive M type)
ミニドライブ MA型 (Mini Drive MA type)
from 1969: this later version has a different style steering wheel than the earlier model in the film.

To the left of the driving game is a baseball machine.  On the backglass we see a head-on and centered baseball diamond, and about 9 white cards/numbers neatly arranged along the top of the backglass.  No flippers are visible, implying that this is probably a pitch-and-bat style game where the control buttons would be on the front bar.

2024-10-29: I think the baseball game cabinet bears some similarity to Bally's Heavy Hitter from 1947, perhaps with a larger backglass.  Hopefully I can find a better photo of this game some day.

The camera changes angles and gives us a shot of more machines:

From left to right on that wall we have:

1952 jukebox - 1436 Fireball 120 by Rock-Ola

note the distinctive colour pattern of the buttons, and the very unique shape of the dome
1952 1436 Fireball 120 by Rock-Ola

different angle of the jukebox
1952 1436 Fireball 120 by Rock-Ola

1952 1436 Fireball 120 by Rock-Ola

1954 Big Top Rifle Gallery by Genco (note: the cabinet seen in the movie has had it's stripes painted out to cover the full cabinet front)

1954 Big Top Rifle Gallery by Genco

1954 Big Top Rifle Gallery by Genco

1963 Gigi by Gottlieb:

1963 Gigi by Gottlieb

1963 Gigi by Gottlieb

1963 Square Head by Gottlieb:

1963 Square Head by Gottlieb

Then we have another Gigi (see above)

1963 Skill Pool by Williams

1963 Skill Pool by Williams

no new machines here, I just think it's funny

So after our protagonist wins a huge amount in a pinball match, he gets into a fight (which gets halted by the presence of a detective,) because he just wants his money and doesn't want to gamble further, and then gets chased out of the G.G. Amusement Center.  No idea if this place was real, or just signage made for the movie.