Webcomic: Rigged Boardwalk Games

 
In North Lower Bayheightsville, the police keep a watchful eye focused on the games alley at the Boardwalk. Here are five commonly-rigged games that have been uncovered here and everywhere else carnies try to separate amused guests with their hard-earned money. 
1. Balloon Dart Throw
Seems simple – the pointy dart will easily pop those balloons, right? Not if the tip of the dart is dull and the balloons are deflated enough to make it almost impossible for them to pop. 
2. Shoot the Star
A favorite for marksman at the Boardwalk who think it’ll be easy to shoot around the paper-mounted star, causing it to fall. However, it’s made nearly impossible when the BBs are smaller than average, and the rifle’s sights are tampered with. Plus, if the air supply is low, sometimes even the most perfectly-targeted shots will simply bounce off the paper. 
3. Basketball Shot
Free-throws are easy, right? Well, in the NBA they don’t have to worry about smaller, oval-shaped rims that are placed so high it’s hard to arc the ball in. Plus, sometimes balls are intentionally overinflated, making them super-bouncy around the rim. 
4. Milk Bottle Pyramid
One of the oldest Boardwalk games, knock over all the bottles and win a prize – easy! Well, it’s made a lot harder when operators fill the bottom pins with lead and the softballs with cork. Try to notice if one bottle sits a little farther out than the rest. It’ll absorb the force of the light softball easily, preventing the other two bottles from falling. 
5. Bushel Basket Toss
Toss two softballs into a large tub – how can this be rigged? First, farming backers are replaced with plastic buckets, making the balls bounce a lot more. Then, when the carny shows you how easy the game is, there’s usually a ball already in the tub, which helps limit his tosses from bouncing out. Of course, once you hand over your money, he removes the balls and guess what happens? Your first toss bounces out.