Carnival Game Scams

Basketball Hoop Scam

• If you ever wondered why you can score on the basketball court, but continue to miss the hoops of basketball-toss carnival games, it's likely you were scammed. Sometimes the hoop is either bent or slightly too small for the ball to fit through, but this cannot be seen from the perspective of the player. Dishonest carnies position the hoops and inflate the balls to just the right shapes and sizes to prevent you from winning.

Balloon Dart Scam

• One of the most common carnival game scans is the balloon dart toss game. In this scam, the dart-tips are filed to be dull and balloons are under-inflated and loosely connected to the playing board. This makes them more pliable. When the player tosses the dart, the flexibility of the rubber causes the blunt dart to bounce off without puncturing the balloon.

Bottle Toss Scam

• This game appears to be one of simplest to beat and, when played fairly, it is. Though tossing a ball at a pyramid of upright standing milk bottles is typically effortless, when the lower row of jugs contains weights or are constructed to be "bottom-heavy," it becomes virtually impossible to knock them over.

Strength Test Scam

• One of the most traditionally known carnival games in history is the "test your strength" carnival game. In this game, the contestant swings a heavy mallet over a metal plate to make a weight shoot up and ring a bell. Unfortunately, unethical carnies electronically rig this game and control who wins or loses by simply stepping on and off a cable.