Every October we give one of our machines a makeover. This year it's a full Halloween claw machine: a pit of orange and black balls, two pumpkins, a skeleton hanging off the back wall and a new resident on the screen inside the cabinet.
It's a real, physical machine. You control the claw from your phone or laptop over a live video feed, the same as every other Claw Catcher machine, just a lot spookier.
Meet Pumpkin Snatcher
Pumpkin Snatcher lives on the display at the back of the machine. You'll see him behind the claw on the live stream while you play. He reacts to every game as it happens:
- While you play, he leans in and follows every move of the claw.
- Land a catch and his eyes catch fire. He did not see that coming.
- Miss and he rubs his hands together and cackles.
He's the reason the machine looks the way it does. Everything in the cabinet was picked to match him.
Orange counts, black doesn't
The machine is full of orange and black balls, but only one colour matters. Orange balls count towards your score, your leaderboard rank and your Halloween avatars. Black balls look the part and count for nothing.
So pick your target carefully. A black ball sitting right under the claw is a decoy.
Six Halloween avatars to unlock
Until 2 November there are six limited Halloween avatars to unlock. Catches on any machine count, so you don't have to wait for the Halloween one to be free. Weeks run Monday to Sunday.
| Avatar | How to unlock it |
|---|---|
| Pumpkin Alien | Land 1 catch in a week |
| Ghost Alien | Play 3 days in a row |
| Bat Alien | 3 catches in a week |
| Witch Alien | 7 catches in a week |
| Vampire Alien | 12 catches in a week |
| Pumpkin Snatcher | 20 catches in a week |
Pumpkin Snatcher himself is the hardest to get. Anything you unlock is yours to keep after Halloween, so they're a nice way to show you were there.
Free Halloween games you can play from home
Most "Halloween games online" are browser games with a cartoon claw and a random number deciding whether you grab anything. This isn't that. The claw, the balls and the pumpkins are all real, sitting in a machine in Essex. What happens on screen is what happens in the cabinet.
Every account gets free plays every day. They reset at midnight UK time, so there's always time for a round with Pumpkin Snatcher before bed. No card, no download, no tokens.
If you've ever wondered whether this kind of thing is genuine, we wrote up how online claw machines work and whether they're real.
Planning a Halloween or Christmas party?
You can also hire a claw machine for your own event. Your guests play a real machine from their phones, branded with your logo, with nothing to deliver or set up. It works for office parties, shop launches, trade shows and weddings. See how hiring a claw machine works.
The Halloween avatars are only around until 2 November. Play it free now and see if you can make Pumpkin Snatcher's eyes catch fire.
