News writer; Opinion columnist
While California may be known as the home of some of the biggest lottery winners in history, you don’t have to take home a billion-dollar prize to feel like a big winner in the Golden State.
With dozens of different scratch-off tickets to play, the California Lottery is constantly introducing new games to give players a chance to have fun while collecting prizes at all levels.
With April’s new games, players can tap into their sense of 80s arcade nostalgia or try to power up their luck for a significant reward.
Even if you don’t win on your first try, the California Lottery has opened a second-chance drawing for these games that runs until April 30.
Second Chance
All Ms. Pac-man scratchers are eligible for a bonus drawing. Not only can players take home cash prizes, but they also can score some pretty sweet Pac-man merch.
The grand prize winner will take home $40,000, a Pac-Man arcade machine, two Pac-Man-themed bar stools and a Pac-Man rug. Four second-place winners will collect $5,000, a countertop arcade game, a Yeti tumbler, and a portable speaker. Finally, 35 third-place winners will receive $100, as well as all of the prizes the second-place winners receive.
To enter the drawing, players need to log into their California Lottery 2nd Chance account and submit a 2nd Chance code from a non-winning Ms Pac-man scratcher. You can also scan the barcode on your ticket to enter. Players receive one entry for every dollar spent on tickets (a $5 ticket receives five entries) and can enter a maximum of 500 submissions for the drawing.
Munch munch munch
There’s more than one way to be a gamer, and Ms. Pac-Man lets players combine the fun of winning a video game with the joy of winning money. This five-dollar game taps into players' nostalgia for one of the most popular video games of all time and offers a top prize of $250,000.
In the 80s version of Pac-Man, players hunted for pieces of fruit to win extra points. In the lottery version, players need to hunt for matches between their eighteen numbers and the game's five winning numbers. However, uncovering a star under one of your numbers means that you win that prize automatically. Find a 2X, 5X, or 10X symbol under any of your numbers, and you can multiply the value of that prize by the corresponding number.
While you can’t earn an extra life, you can win another prize in the game’s bonus zone. Matching three symbols in the bonus area wins you an additional prize.
Munch munch
If you love classic 80s video games and playing the lottery but feel like $5 is too much to spend on a ticket, there is an even easier-to-play $2 version of the Ms. Pac-Man game.
This edition of the game lets you skip the number matching and get straight to the prize-winning. Each ticket has ten spots to uncover for a prize. Uncovering a ghost symbol means that you win that prize automatically. Finding a 2X or 5X symbol means that you both win that prize and can multiply the amount by the corresponding number.
Finally, uncovering a red-bowed Ms. Pac-man symbol means that you win every prize on the board.
The game’s top prize is $30,000, and there are still 34 jackpots waiting to be collected.
Perfect 10
If you’re looking for a high-voltage game with a seven-figure jackpot, Power 10’s should be high on your buy list.
Power 10’s costs $10 to play and offers a top prize of one million dollars. Players must match one of their twenty numbers to the game's six winning numbers to win the corresponding prize. However, if you uncover a lighting symbol, you win that prize automatically, and finding a $$ symbol anywhere on your ticket means that you will win all twenty prizes in your game.
The game also features a bonus power-up multiplier that can boost your winnings on the entire ticket by two, five, or ten times.
While there’s no bonus game on the ticket, players who don’t win can submit their ticket to a second chance drawing. To enter, players only have to scan their ticket’s barcode on the California Lottery app. Second chance drawings are held weekly and feature a top prize of $25,000.
Players receive one entry for every dollar spent on their ticket, so one Power 10’s ticket would give players ten chances to win the drawing.
Keep it simple
California is home to some of the biggest lottery winners in the history of the game. Multiple players have taken home billion-dollar prizes, and Edwin Castro became the first person in Powerball history to win two billion dollars in just one drawing.
But if that level of winning intimidates you or if you’re worried about the taxes you’ll pay, then you might be more comfortable with the game Win $100 or $200. While some games have complicated rules or prize structures, Win $100 or $200 is so simple that the game’s name tells you everything you need to know.
This ticket costs $20 to play, and it only features $100 or $200 prizes. That means you can’t win a free ticket or discover a multiplier that can boost your winnings. While this game is on the pricier side and doesn’t feature a major jackpot, it does offer several opportunities to win.
For the main game, players have twenty-five numbers that they must match to the game’s eight winning numbers to claim their prize. Finding a $100 or $200 symbol means that you win that amount instantly. Uncovering a WIN symbol in any of the game’s four bonus spots means that you win that prize instantly.
Ultimately, however, you like to play, spend or win, the California Lottery has a game for you to enjoy.
