I know you've done some videos on games, betting, and the like so I thought Mahjong might make for an interesting video.

Apparently the many mahjong 'schools' are betting parlors, but calling it a school gets around gambling laws. But it runs the gamut from high-stakes betting to regional/national championships (for adults and students) to old folks playing in parks; much like chess, but with much more math.

Originally a Chinese game the Japanese became very fond of the game and made it there own. Like so many niche activities it's had a manga, anime series, magazines, events, phone dangles, etc.

Plus there are these really neat automatic tables for sorting and setting up the game.

It seems that due to such anime as "The Legend of Koizumi"("Mudazumo Naki Kaikaku" ) and "Saki", there has been a new interest in riichi mahjong outside of Japan. I'd also be interested in hearing about mahjong in Japan!