alibi game
n.— «Carnys call these “alibi games,” because the operator uses a long litany of excuses to keep the mark from giving up in disgust, and encouraging him to dig more money out of his wallet and try “just one more time” to win a stuffed animal that his girlfriend doesn’t even really want.» —“Rigged carny game” by Mark Frauenfelder Boing Boing Aug. 27, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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