How to Play at GiGO | Crane Game Prices at a Japanese Game Center, Coin Change Machines and Foreign Currency Exchange Machines, Hours for Under-18s, and Stores in Shinjuku, Akihabara, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, Osaka's Dotonbori and Kyoto

Overview

GiGO (pronounced "gee-go") is a chain of game centers (arcades) in Japan. It is run by GENDA GiGO Entertainment Inc. The stores have crane games (claw machines, where you grab a prize and win it; also called UFO Catcher), photo sticker booths (machines that take your photo and print it on stickers), music games, video games and more. The kinds of games each store has differ from store to store.

• According to the company's official website, the GiGO group has 417 stores in Japan and 13 stores outside Japan (as of September 30, 2026).
• According to the company's history page, the company's original name was "SEGA Entertainment", and it ran SEGA game centers. In 2022, it changed to its current name, and in the same year it opened its first store under the name GiGO.
• This article uses GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, near the west exit of Shinjuku Station, as an example.
• By law, people under 18 cannot enter game centers from 22:00. In some areas, there are also restrictions for times before 22:00. This is explained in "Conditions" in this article.

Step by step

How to Play a Crane Game

This image is an illustration drawn by AI. It is based on the composition of a photo, taken by the operator at GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, of an aisle lined with crane game machines.

1. Choose a machine that has the prize you want to win.
2. Put money into the machine, or pay with e-money or another method at the machine's reader. The GiGO app's guide gives examples of games that cost ¥100 per play and games that cost ¥200 per play. Check the price on the machine before you play.
3. Use the machine's buttons or lever to move the arm that grabs the prize. How you move it differs from machine to machine.
4. When you win a prize, it comes out of the prize outlet at the bottom of the machine. At the store we photographed, "PRIZE OUT" was written on the outlet.

• At the store we photographed, some machines had a tag that said 「各種1個まで」 (up to 1 of each kind). It means that you can win up to 1 prize of each kind from that machine.

Help from Staff (Special Assist)

GiGO's official app (GiGO app) has a feature called "Special Assist". According to the official app guide, it works as follows.

1. Hold your smartphone over the "GiGO Link" sticker on a game machine to connect the app and the machine. After connecting, you can pay either in cash or inside the app.
2. Each time you play a prize game, a gauge in the app fills up.
3. When the total you have paid without winning a prize reaches a certain amount, a "Special Assist voucher" appears in the app.
4. When you show the voucher screen to a nearby staff member, the staff member will help you. About how they help, the official guide only says "support until you are just one step away from winning the prize".

• Special Assist can be used only at stores that have GiGO Link. On the store page for GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, the way to use the app is listed as "use with GiGO Link".
• According to the FAQ in the app guide, the app and the machine stay connected for 5 minutes after you connect them. If you add money while they are connected, the time is reset to 5 minutes from that point.
• The official app guide does not say whether people who do not live in Japan can use the app.

Paying

Coin Change Machines and E-Money Charging Machines

This image is an illustration drawn by AI. It is based on the composition of a photo, taken by the operator at GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, of a coin change machine and a charging machine.

• The store we photographed had a coin change machine that changes bills and 500-yen coins into 100-yen coins. The coin change machine said 「両替 EXCHANGE」 (change, EXCHANGE), and it had a slot for 1,000-yen, 5,000-yen and 10,000-yen bills and a slot for 500-yen coins.
• A tag on the coin change machine said 「業務両替禁止」 (no change for business purposes). It means that you must not change money for any purpose other than playing at the store.
• Next to the coin change machine was a 「マルチ電子マネーチャージ機」 (multi e-money charging machine). The sign above the machine showed logos of transport IC cards such as Suica and PASMO, and of WAON, nanaco, Rakuten Edy and others, and said 「ここで電子マネーにチャージできます！」 (You can charge your e-money here!). The machine also said 「お釣りは出ません」 (no change given).

Foreign Currency Exchange Machines

This image is an illustration drawn by AI. It is based on the composition of a photo, taken by the operator at GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, of a foreign currency exchange machine and a crane game machine.

• On GiGO's store pages, some stores have "外貨両替機" (foreign currency exchange machine) written in the "Store features" field. A foreign currency exchange machine is a machine that changes money from outside Japan into Japanese yen.
• Among the stores in the table in "Areas" in this article, the stores whose store pages say "外貨両替機" are GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, GiGO Shinjuku Kabukicho, GiGO Akihabara Building 3, GiGO Shibuya, GiGO Sohonten, GiGO Osaka Dotonbori Honten and GiGO Kyoto Shinkyogoku (checked on October 30, 2026).
• At the store we photographed, the foreign currency exchange machine was near the entrance. The machine had text meaning "foreign currency exchange" written in Japanese, Chinese and Korean.
• GiGO's official website does not say which currencies can be exchanged or what the rates are.
• Ways to get cash in Japan are explained in Do You Need Cash in Japan? | Where Cards Work, ATMs That Accept Overseas Cards, and Currency Exchange.

E-Money and QR Code Payments

• The "電子決済" (electronic payment) field on the store page for GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi lists the following payment methods (checked on October 30, 2026): transport IC cards, WAON, nanaco, Rakuten Edy, PASELI, iD, QUICPay, Alipay, WeChat Pay, d Barai, PayPay, Merpay, J-Coin Pay, Rakuten Pay, au PAY and GiGO Link.
• This list does not include the names of any credit cards.
• Some stores' pages do not have the "電子決済" field. Among the stores in this article's table, the store page for GiGO Kyoto Shinkyogoku does not have the "電子決済" field. Check the store page of the store you are going to.
• Transport IC cards can also be used to ride trains at stations. Where in Japan you can use them is explained in Where in Japan can you use Suica and ICOCA? | IC card areas and what to know when riding between areas.

Conditions

Hours When People Under 18 Can Enter

• Under the law (the Act on Control and Improvement of Amusement Business, etc.), game centers must not let people under 18 in as customers from 22:00 until 6:00 the next day. During these hours, they cannot enter even with a parent or guardian.
• Under the same law, each prefecture can, by ordinance, ban people under 18 from entering, or require them to be with a parent or guardian, at times before 22:00 as well. For this reason, the rules for times before 22:00 differ from prefecture to prefecture.
• GiGO Shinjuku Kabukicho is open until 1:00 the next day, and GiGO Osaka Dotonbori Honten is open until 1:00 the next day. However, at both stores, people under 18 cannot enter from 22:00.

The Sign at the Entrance of the Shinjuku Nishiguchi Store

At the entrance of GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi (Tokyo), there was a sign showing the opening hours and the hours of entry by age (when we photographed it on October 27, 2026). The sign said the following in Japanese and English.

• The opening hours are "10:00 AM to 11:15 PM" on weekdays as well as on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.
• 「法令・条例に基づき」 (in accordance with laws and ordinances), people under 16 who are not with a parent or guardian can enter only "until 6 PM".
• People under 16 who are with a parent or guardian can enter "until 10 PM".
• People under 18 cannot enter "from 10 PM" onward (including exactly 10 PM).
• Smoking is not allowed inside the store. Security cameras are installed.

At stores in other prefectures, the rules may be different. Check the sign at the store entrance.

Areas

Stores That Are Easy for Travelers to Visit

These are some examples of stores, checked with GiGO's official store search on October 30, 2026. Floor numbers are the same as shown in the buildings, and the ground floor is 1F.

• According to the company's business overview, GiGO Sohonten, which opened in September 2023, is "the flagship store of GiGO worldwide". GiGO Osaka Dotonbori Honten, which opened in August 2024, is the first flagship store in the Kansai region.
• In Akihabara, the official store search lists GiGO Akihabara Building 2, Building 3 and Building 5. GiGO Akihabara Building 2 closes at 23:30, and GiGO Akihabara Building 5 closes at 23:30.
• In Ikebukuro, besides GiGO Sohonten, GiGO Ikebukuro Building 1, Building 2 and Building 3 are listed. GiGO Ikebukuro Building 3 is a 1-minute walk from the East Exit of JR Ikebukuro Station and closes at 23:00.
• The sections of Yodobashi Camera's Shinjuku West Main Store, which is next to GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi, are explained in How to Shop at Yodobashi Camera | Sections by Pavilion at the Shinjuku West Main Store (Hobby, Toys, Games, Cameras, Watches, Travel), the Akiba, Umeda, Kyoto and Hakata Stores, Points and Tax-Free Information, and walking around the area near the West Exit of Shinjuku Station is explained in Walking from the West Exit of Shinjuku Station to Nishi-Shinjuku | Free Observatories at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (Hours, Closed Days, Entrance) and Sights in the Skyscraper District.
• New stores may be added, and existing stores may close down. Opening hours may also change. Before you go, check with the store search on the GiGO shop information site (www.gigo.co.jp). The site can also be displayed in English, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional) and Korean. However, store names are shown in Japanese.

Good to know

Taking Photos Inside the Stores

The notice "About customers taking photos inside our stores" from the company that runs GiGO says the following.

• The company does not restrict customers from taking photos inside the stores for personal purposes. You can take both photos and videos. If you are taking them for personal purposes, you do not need to speak to the staff and ask for permission before you take them.
• You must not post photos or videos showing other customers or staff on the internet or social media.
• When you play while filming, if other customers are waiting, switch with them after about "one game". For prize games, "one game" lasts until you win a prize.
• You must not set up lighting equipment or large-scale equipment to take photos or videos.
• You must not film the backs of the machines or areas that customers are not allowed to enter.
• Filming that has a commercial element, such as for a YouTube program, requires an application in advance.
• Some stores inside commercial facilities may refuse filming.

About the Images

• The photo of the outside of the store was taken by the operator on October 27, 2026, from the street in front of GiGO Shinjuku Nishiguchi. People in the photo have been blurred.
• The operator also took photos inside the store as personal photography while playing there as a customer. Publishing them in an article is not within the scope of personal photography, so photos taken inside the store are not included. Instead, this article includes illustrations drawn by AI, based on the composition of those photos, without drawing any text, logos, people or characters. The illustrations differ in some ways from how the actual store looks.
• The machines, signs and prizes inside the stores may change.