Why else do you think I always cart around my own pair of sticks when I go to the arcade? Some things aren't just for show, you know.
Vandalism is probably the single most annoying thing to happen not just to Taiko no Tatsujin's arcade cabinet, but all public amenities in general. Want to use a public phone? Too bad, the handle's been cut by someone and all the spare change stolen. Need the toilet in the mall? Tough luck, water's spewing everywhere and the flush doesn't work (most disgusting thing in ever).
I have no idea of the circumstances in other countries where Taiko is kept almost sacrosanct by its fans (Japanese players even drape cloth over the face of the drum so they won't dent it with their sticks), but where I come from, Taiko arcades are not usually present in mainstream arcades and are relegated to the kids corners where some parents place their kids there to play and go shopping on their own. I blame the graphics and people's shallow stereotypical minds (they have no idea how tough this game is for kids to play, especially in a non-Japanese country). Because outside of the few hardcore fans, the assumed target audience for Taiko here are 5-year-olds who aren't even tall enough to see the screen, the one getting all the abuse is the arcade machine itself.
Taiko in kids corner means it's going to be the makeshift childcare booth for five minutes until the kids lose interest or until they realize they're banging the drum aimlessly without putting in money. Most of their playing involves banging the drum as hard and often as they can until the song ends without even looking at the notes and they don't know how to hit kat (meaning the only songs they ever play while I wait behind them are both Anpanman songs, which to be completely honest are making my ears bleed now). This is partly the language barrier problem though I don't condone hitting the durm aimlessly like that without learning from big brother. The sticks and drum will suffer.
Well, sometimes it isn't all bad as sometimes children lose interest after one song and leave the second one free for all. My usual reflex when I see that happen would be to call them back, but if the little ones run off or their parents say I can have it....I can't turn down a free play now, can I? Anyway, back on topic.
Though they aren't doing it on purpose, many times the sticks in the arcade are rendered unusable or annoying to use, one way or the other. What's the most important aspect of any game? Well, being able to friggin play it (quote: AVGN, SFW version) and what do you need to friggin play it? You need the friggin sticks! Imagine the rage when you travel like twenty miles to a good arcade to try and have some fun, only to find that the sticks cannot be used although the rest of the Taiko machine is still in one piece. Well, unless you think looking at the demo scroll past the screen is fun.
Five types of vandalism I've seen committed on the poor heavy logs of the arcade Taiko, although I'm not saying all of these are the fault of kids. Hey, they're still kids, no matter which way you see it.
1. The MIA
Or, the simplest thing to happen to any arcade game that involves detachable accessories and controllers, like them lightguns. Simply put, the stick (or two) is missing in action. Common sense will then tell you it's impossible to play anything like that. Sure, what about the sticks meant for player 2? Oops, all four sticks are bound by strings. Short, restrictive strings. Pull them over to player 1's side and it'll most probably stay taut while you struggle your worst trying to reach the rim of the furthest side.
The strings of the missing stick will have either been cut off or knots undone and the stick itself taken away by somebody, for god knows what reason. What the hell is one wooden stick useful for? To bludgeon people? MIA sticks are the most common problem I've ever had to face while going to the arcade. Things have improved and the sticks are promptly replaced and bound up again after about a week of absence, but my wasted trip to the mall, who's going to replace that?
2. The Mystic Knot
Impressive how people manage to pull this off. From a straight piece of string into a curly piece of string, into one giant convoluted mess binding both sticks together so that you can't separate them more than three centimetres apart from each other. And trying to undo this amazing knot is probably ten times harder than the effort of tying it all up. God, how do people play arcade games? If you feel like this is freaking injustice to you, well there's always the option to cut the string at the base and play with tether-less sticks, but I don't exactly encourage it anyway. Don't vandalize anything yourself if you don't like other people doing it.
3. The Fracture
With the rubber casing in place, it's actually still possible to continue playing with whatever remains of the broken stick since the rubber holds both ends together, albeit weakly. Better hope the arcade drum is sensitive to light contact.
4. The Whip
Not so much rendering the sticks unplayable with as it is a huge annoyance- this is the fault of the arcade owners, replacing the strings with their own custom version where a metal piece is strung through the hole in the stick and glued, forming a ring. The trouble begins when whatever cheap glue they used wears off and the metal piece is free to move around. Playing any song, no matter how easy, can and will make that metal piece swing around like Indiana Jones was moving it and hit your hands, again and again. The pain is small and piercing. And really, really bothersome. Quite rare to see one of these around, but I have once. Playing Koibumi was never more painful.
5. The Prickly Pear
If your nearby arcade has a Taiko and it's well-maintained then none of this should be of any concern (except for maybe the part about the missing sticks), but it's always best to be prepared for any unlucky events.
