Recovery in the fan base through gaming machines that appeal to a broad audience

「In the pachinko market, the introduction of machines equipped with the new form of gameplay “Lucky Trigger 3.0 Plus” has been progressing since July 2025, but this has not led to improved utilization across the market as a whole. Parlors have remained cautious about introducing new machines, resulting in challenging market conditions. From November 2026 onward, machines equipped with the new form of gameplay “normal-play flags” are scheduled to be introduced, along with 4 new category labels indicating pachinko machine performance and ease of play. These developments are expected to diversify gameplay and make it easier for fans to choose machines suited to them, thereby revitalizing the pachinko market.」

「The fan base has shown positive signs, including signs that its decline may have bottomed out and an influx of younger customers, but it has not yet begun to increase in earnest. We recognize that expanding the fan base and creating an environment that is easy to enjoy are important challenges for the market’s sustainable growth.」

「In the pachinko market, the adoption of machines equipped with the new form of gameplay “Lucky Trigger 3.0 Plus” has driven the spread of smart pachinko machines, while machines showing strong utilization have begun to emerge. Bright signs of market revitalization are beginning to appear.」

「Our share of pachinko machine unit sales exceeded 30%, and we achieved the top sales share for the second consecutive year.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, the pachislot market has maintained strong operating levels as hit smart pachislot machines have continued to emerge, and conditions have remained favorable as smart pachislot machines account for an increasing share of titles sold and installed machines. In the pachinko market, meanwhile, several smart pachinko machines have become hits, but the shift toward smart machines has not yet gathered full momentum, and no new titles are available to drive operating levels, whether conventional or smart. As a result, conditions remain somewhat sluggish compared with the pachislot market.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, adoption of smart gaming machines has progressed. Smart pachislot has entered a phase of widespread adoption, as many new titles have been launched and hit models have emerged, making a significant contribution to improved utilization. For smart pachinko, however, differentiating its game mechanics from current machines remains a challenge. Although some models have succeeded through trial and error, full-scale adoption is expected to take more time.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, the pachislot market has shown a marked recovery in utilization since the arrival of 6.5-generation machines and smart pachislot machines. By contrast, no new titles have emerged to drive utilization in the pachinko market, which has struggled to grow. Against this backdrop, parlors have strong purchase appetite for pachislot machines, particularly smart pachislot machines, and the pachislot sales market is performing well. Meanwhile, the pachinko sales market, where smart pachinko machines have yet to gain full momentum, has remained somewhat sluggish.」

「Smart pachinko machines also began to appear in April 2023, and the full-scale adoption of smart gaming machines has finally begun. Their adoption is expected to reduce parlors' operating costs, diversify opening locations and machine layouts, increase the fan base, encourage new parlor openings and increase the number of installed machines, providing an opportunity to revitalize the pachinko and pachislot industry, where challenging conditions continue.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, the spread of Type 6.5 pachislot machines, which began appearing in June 2022, has progressed, and operating levels in pachislot, which had remained sluggish, have improved. Smart pachislot machines, introduced sequentially from November, have also achieved operating levels that meet parlor expectations, and improvement in pachislot market conditions is steadily progressing. In pachinko, meanwhile, demand has shifted toward pachislot in the short term against the backdrop of the improving pachislot market, but stable operating levels and demand for new-machine purchases have continued.」

「Following the transition to machines compliant with the new regulations, the pachislot market, which had remained sluggish, saw 6.5 machines with expanded game mechanics begin to gain widespread adoption. Their utilization has met parlors' expectations and is making a significant contribution to the recovery of the pachislot market. In addition, the arrival of smart pachislot in November is expected to drive further improvement in market conditions.」

「Meanwhile, the next-generation gaming machines, “smart pachinko” and “smart pachislot,” are scheduled to feature improved gameplay compared with current machines. They will also contribute to infection-control measures because players will not need to touch balls or medals while playing. In addition to improved gameplay, lower operating costs at parlors and greater diversity in locations and machine layouts are expected to increase the fan base, encourage new parlor openings and increase the number of installed machines, providing an opportunity to revitalize the pachinko and pachislot industry, where challenging conditions continue.」

「During the nine-month consolidated period, our group launched 7 pachinko titles, excluding reused machines and other products, and 2 pachislot titles. In pachinko, “Fever Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn,” released in August, performed strongly enough to drive the pachinko market and became a hit that generated additional orders. Despite difficulties procuring components, we worked fully to secure components for the increased production, enabling us to build unit sales above plan. In addition, the 15th installment in the series, “Neon Genesis Evangelion: Roar of the Future,” released in December, became a hit with sales exceeding 40,000 units, and utilization remained strong after installation. As a result, our group's sales remained firm.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, replacement with new-regulation machines is progressing ahead of the removal deadline for old-regulation machines at the end of January 2022. Although the global semiconductor shortage has caused some new machine launches to be postponed and sales volumes to be restricted, pachinko manufacturers have expanded their lineup of supplied titles and fans have become established users of new-regulation machines, so replacements are proceeding generally smoothly.」

「Against this backdrop, our Group launched 9 pachinko titles and 2 pachislot titles. Although the number of titles sold declined from ordinary years because we limited releases after assessing market trends during the COVID-19 pandemic, we stimulated demand by introducing a wide variety of products, including machines featuring “Yutime,” drum machines and dot machines without LCD displays.」

「In pachinko, manufacturers' product lineups have become more robust, and total market unit sales in October-December 2020 recovered to levels above the previous year.」

「In the pachinko and pachislot industry, parlors have been working to create a safe and secure gaming environment by thoroughly implementing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Operating conditions have been recovering from their low point in May, when the state of emergency was lifted, and parlors' willingness to purchase new machines is consequently showing signs of improvement. Against this backdrop, the introduction of so-called new-interpretation-standard machines with unprecedented gameplay has gathered pace in pachinko following changes to the technical standards interpretation guidelines. Expectations among fans and parlors for these machines are rising, while the planned replacement of old-regulation machines is progressing in line with the removal deadlines set by industry organizations. Accordingly, monthly unit sales are expected to recover to levels comparable to the previous year toward year-end.」

「Against this backdrop, industry-wide events were held, organized by associations of amusement machine manufacturers and others: the “Minna no Pachinko Fest” in February 2019 and “Pachislot Summit 2019 in Akihabara” in September 2019. The industry is working as one to promote new-regulation machines and attract new and lapsed fans by creating opportunities for many fans to experience these machines.」

「The industry as a whole, led mainly by gaming machine manufacturers and pachinko parlors, is also pursuing various initiatives to address addiction issues, while working to create a gaming environment where existing fans, as well as new and dormant fans, can enjoy themselves easily and with peace of mind.」

「Alongside efforts to address gambling addiction, there is increasing scope for ingenuity in developing a diverse range of products that new and lapsed fans can enjoy with ease.」

「Meanwhile, new-regulation machines are expected to be dominated by types that are easier to play than their predecessors, and they also include features that could lead to new forms of gameplay, such as pachinko machines with selectable settings. Pachinko and pachislot machine manufacturers are therefore actively filing model applications, and machines that have already passed the conformity tests are beginning to emerge.」

「As a Group, we will move quickly to develop gaming machines with lower spending requirements and lead the market toward their widespread adoption.」

「We will continue developing gaming machines that appeal to a broad range of customers and contribute to the recovery of the fan base.」