Google Play pilot program will let Japanese gamers play real claw machines to win real prizes

All without stepping outside the door

It's not exactly the most popular game genre on the Play Store, but online crane apps have slowly developed a following over the last couple of years. The premise is simple: instead of having to head to a Japanese arcade to try out a claw machine, you can control a real-world device right from the comfort of your living room. These titles have launched over the last few years on Android in the US, and with a new Play Store program, they might be coming home to Japan.

Online crane games are a niche type of app, but there's plenty to choose from on the US Play Store right now. Using controls on your phone, you drop an actual, physical claw machine onto real prizes that, if you win, are shipped directly to your address. You watch your gameplay through a video feed on your phone, pushing the crane up and back as you work to grab an item.

With this project, Google wants to offer online crane games a way to launch in Japan, running an early pilot program that allows developers to submit their apps for participation. Each game will be certified by a Play Industry Partner — in this case, the Japan Online Crane Game Industrialist Association (or JOCA). The program runs from July 11th, 2022 through July 11th, 2023, during which Google will routinely follow up with user feedback, confirm that participating games are following the restrictions and rules, and review how JOCA is managing the apps.

The sign-up process goes deep into what these online crane games will and won't be allowed to do, including offering NFTs or cryptocurrencies as prizes, among other limitations. Presumably, many of these restrictions come directly from JOCA working hand-in-hand with Google to set up regulations. If you're the developer of a pre-existing crane app, you're also getting a three-month grace period prior to the program's launch on July 11th.

Personally, I can't imagine trying to play one of these without your buddy looking on from the side, making sure you nudge that claw juuuuust right to pick up the perfect toy. But if this is your sort of speed — and you live in Japan — you won't have to wait too much longer to give it a shot.