Whac-A-Mole
Whac-A-Mole is an arcade redemption game. A typical Whac-A-Mole machine consists of a large, waist-level cabinet with five holes in
its top and a large, soft, black mallet. Each hole contains a single plastic mole and the machinery necessary to move it up and down.
Once the game starts, the moles will begin to pop up from their holes at random. The object of the game is to force the individual
moles back into their holes by hitting them directly on the head with the mallet, thereby adding to the player's score. The more
quickly this is done the higher the final score will be.
Whac-A-Mole was invented in 1971 by Aaron Fechter of Creative Engineering, Inc. Fechter designed the first Whac-a-Mole and was
persuaded to sell it outright to a carnival operator who, in turn, sold it to Bob's Space Racers. Fechter was a young inventor
who didn't realize the value of his invention and therefore did not protect it with a patent. Bob's Space Racers even took molds
off the pieces Fechter sculpted of the first Whac-A-Mole creatures. When Bob Cassata, founder of Bob's Space Racers, bought the game,
he invited Fechter to his facility and quizzed him about how the machine worked. Fechter refused to give up the electronic secrets
that gave the game its timing sequence, but that was fairly easy for Cassata to work around, although with some loss of effectiveness.
Fechter went on to start the entertainment pizza chain Showbiz Pizza Place with Kansas businessman Bob Brock. Their new company
bought more Whac-a-Moles than any other single customer.
The mallet is approximately the size of a small bowling ball. The cabinet has a three-digit readout of the current player's score and, on later models, a best score of the day readout. The mallet is usually attached to the game by a rope in order to prevent patrons from walking away with it.
If the player does not strike a mole within a certain time or with enough force, it will eventually sink back into its hole with no score. Although gameplay starts out slow enough for most people to hit all of the moles that rise, it gradually increases in speed, with each mole spending less time above the hole and with more moles outside of their holes at the same time. After a designated time limit, the game ends, regardless of the skill of the player. The final score is based upon the number of moles that the player struck.
In addition to the single-player game described above, there is a multi-player game, most often found at amusement parks. In this version, there is a large bank of individual Whac-A-Mole games linked together, and the goal is to be the first player to reach a designated score, rather than hit the most moles within a certain time. In most versions, striking a mole is worth ten points, and the winner is the first player to reach a score of 150 (i.e. 15 moles). The winner receives a prize, typically a small stuffed animal, which can be traded up for a larger stuffed animal should the player win again.
Whac-A-Mole was invented in 1971 by Aaron Fechter of Creative Engineering, Inc. Fechter designed the first Whac-a-Mole and was
persuaded to sell it outright to a carnival operator who, in turn, sold it to Bob's Space Racers. Fechter was a young inventor
who didn't realize the value of his invention and therefore did not protect it with a patent. Bob's Space Racers even took molds
off the pieces Fechter sculpted of the first Whac-A-Mole creatures. When Bob Cassata, founder of Bob's Space Racers, bought the game,
he invited Fechter to his facility and quizzed him about how the machine worked. Fechter refused to give up the electronic secrets
that gave the game its timing sequence, but that was fairly easy for Cassata to work around, although with some loss of effectiveness.
Fechter went on to start the entertainment pizza chain Showbiz Pizza Place with Kansas businessman Bob Brock. Their new company
bought more Whac-a-Moles than any other single customer.
The mallet is approximately the size of a small bowling ball. The cabinet has a three-digit readout of the current player's score and, on later models, a best score of the day readout. The mallet is usually attached to the game by a rope in order to prevent patrons from walking away with it.
If the player does not strike a mole within a certain time or with enough force, it will eventually sink back into its hole with no score. Although gameplay starts out slow enough for most people to hit all of the moles that rise, it gradually increases in speed, with each mole spending less time above the hole and with more moles outside of their holes at the same time. After a designated time limit, the game ends, regardless of the skill of the player. The final score is based upon the number of moles that the player struck.
In addition to the single-player game described above, there is a multi-player game, most often found at amusement parks. In this version, there is a large bank of individual Whac-A-Mole games linked together, and the goal is to be the first player to reach a designated score, rather than hit the most moles within a certain time. In most versions, striking a mole is worth ten points, and the winner is the first player to reach a score of 150 (i.e. 15 moles). The winner receives a prize, typically a small stuffed animal, which can be traded up for a larger stuffed animal should the player win again.