L Hokuto no Ken released and Smart Pachinko introduced nationwide

Sammy's L Hokuto no Ken, a pachislot machine released in April 2023, became a major hit and confirmed the popularity of Smart Pachislot, the medal-less machine format known in Japan as "sumasuro"¹. Smart Pachinko, the equivalent medal-less format for pachinko, was introduced nationwide from April 2023¹.

The format's formal name is Smart Pachislot, though the abbreviation "sumasuro" is widely used¹. The regulatory change that opened the way was announced on October 1, 2021, when applications to submit medal-less machines for testing began the same day¹.

The defining feature is that medals are not needed to play: medal counts and credits are managed by a dedicated card reader unit together with the machine¹. Each machine has its own individual ID and an internet connection is required for authentication¹. Play data is sent as needed to the Game Machine Information Center run by the Japan Electronic Game Machine Industry Cooperative Association, which monitors whether gambling stimulation is becoming excessive and works on measures against so-called goto fraud¹.

Under current internal rules, Smart Pachislot machines are treated the same as models from machine type 6.5 onward, but the upper limit on the number of games in a "favorable section" has been abolished¹. The maximum payout within a section remains 2,400 medals¹. A "complete function" equivalent to a hard stop triggers at a maximum payout of 19,000 medals, after which play on that machine is not possible until the hall switches the power off and changes the setting again¹. Medal storage on the machine body is capped at 16,383 medals, with anything above that requiring transfer to an IC card¹.

The machines have no internal hopper, no medal slot or coin selector, and a lower tray treated as a small-item holder, with a changed design¹. Because the upper limit on favorable-section games was abolished, machines with payout triggers such as upper AT after the favorable section is cut have increased, and medals are absorbed faster than with older type 5, 6.5 and 6.6 machines, with greater one-shot potential and wider swings in payout¹.

Some criticism holds that high cabinet prices and the mandatory dedicated unit squeeze pachinko hall management, and a number of halls have indeed closed or gone out of business after Smart Pachislot was introduced¹. A global semiconductor shortage has also limited the number of Smart Pachislot units supplied, with some arguing this only benefits large chains with financial strength¹.

What it means for players

Smart Pachislot and Smart Pachinko change the mechanics of play rather than the underlying games. Players do not handle medals or balls: credits are loaded into a dedicated unit with cash or IC cards and transferred to the machine, and at the end of play credits are counted back to the unit and written to an IC card¹. Because each machine carries its own ID and needs an internet connection, unit faults or communication failures can prevent play from starting, a type of disruption that did not exist with medal machines¹. Payout swings are wider than on older machine types, so both large gains and large losses are more common¹. The 19,000-medal complete function ends play on a machine until staff reset it¹. Hall closures linked to the cost of the new units may reduce the number of venues where these machines are available¹.

What happens next

No dated next steps are given in the source. The article describes the regulatory position as of 2025, when Smart Pachislot machines are treated under internal rules the same as type 6.5 and later machines, with the favorable-section game limit abolished¹.

For background on how these games fit into the wider market, see Asian Gambling Games: Mahjong, Pachinko, Fan-Tan, Teen Patti, Rummy, Sabong, Keno and Where Each Is Legal and Can I Gamble in Japan?.