PUBLISHED ONJuly 04, 2024 9:09 AMByLim KeweiWhen durian claw machines appeared at night markets last year, many people flocked there to try their hand at grabbing the fruit. A YouTube video of content creators attempting to snag the durians also went viral.
Now that the durian season is in full swing this year, the claw machines have made a comeback at a few locations across Singapore.
Run by local arcade operator Play United, the machines were installed last week at its outlet in Hougang Mall, as well as two night markets near Yishun MRT station and Fajar LRT station in Bukit Panjang.
For every two tokens, which cost $2, players get one shot at catching the thorny fruit. For $10 and $50, you get 15 tokens and 100 tokens respectively. They can be used at all the claw machines operated by Play United.
Some players have already landed themselves bountiful loots.
A content creator called Valentino said in his video that he and his friend managed to grab nine durians at the Yishun pasar malam.
The clip, which was posted to his Instagram and TikTok accounts on Sunday (June 30), has since gone viral, garnering 2.4 million views and 500,000 views on the respective platforms.
[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@valentino_suhail46/video/7386036742056332565?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=738127435788311093[/embed]
Replying to comments under his TikTok video, Valentino said he and his friend spent about 100 tokens (50 plays). A durian seller at the pasar malam was shocked to see them carrying so many fruit, he added.
He also wrote that the durians tasted good, "especially the big ones", while the small ones were "sweet and soft".
When AsiaOne visited the Yishun pasar malam on Wednesday evening, an employee of Play United said she had seen one man snag more than 20 durians.
We spotted five small durians in two of the four durian claw machines there. The other two machines were empty.
Some passers-by looked surprised when they saw the durians in the machines.One woman wondered aloud: "Are these durians real?"
A man managed to snag a fruit after three tries, drawing a small crowd of curious onlookers as he played. He then attempted five more times to catch another durian before giving up and moving on to other claw machines.
The Play United employee, who gave her name only as Sammy, said the durians come from a plantation in Tangkak, Johor.
"It's hard to say how many durians we stock the machines with as we don't count individually or weigh the crates, but we typically receive about five crates every day," she added.
A fresh supply reaches the pasar malam at about 7pm daily.
When AsiaOne was there, however, we were told that the machines would not be topped up that evening due to low supply.
Sammy said the durians are of different grades and varieties.
The smaller ones are placed in the two beginner-level pink claw machines as they are easier to grab. The bigger durians, which weigh 1kg to 2kg, go into the black claw machines, which have a higher difficulty level.
Sammy noted that there are more elderly players at the Yishun pasar malam, which started on June 26 and runs till July 7, compared to Hougang and Bukit Panjang.
"There are also repeat customers who will show up at about 7pm and walk around the area, waiting for the durians to be replenished," she said.
After the market ends its run, the durian claw machines will likely be moved to another unconfirmed location, Sammy said.
Last year, it was reported that a man, surnamed Ning, had broached the idea of durian claw machines to Play United.
After the machine was installed at a Toa Payoh pasar malam, the claw machine enthusiast spent up to three hours playing every day. He once caught five durians in just 15 minutes.
AsiaOne has reached out to Play United for more information.
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lim.kewei@asiaone.com
