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I've been collecting pinball machines for nearly 20 years now and the recent resurgence in popularity has really breathed new life into the industry. It was a

I've been collecting pinball machines for nearly 20 years now and the recent resurgence in popularity has really breathed new life into the industry. It was a dark time for pinball after WMS closed their pinball division in 1999, leaving second place Stern alone in the market, at a time when their quality was nowhere near what WMS was doing at the time. Now there's a new breed of collectors who exclusively buy brand new Sterns and add all kinds of modifications to "bling" them out, and the cost of the nearly-20-year-old WMS games has skyrocketed. Pinball has never been stronger.

dasil003 11y ago
The only thing is that you have to seek out good machines these days, and there are relatively few in public unless you know where to look. I got into pinball in junior high right when TAF came out. At that time I could randomly walk into any movie theater, bar, or video arcade and find new pinball machines. These days when you find a random pinball machine, it's either a new Stern (rare) or it's run down to the point that you can't even play it seriously. I wish I had space to start a collection, but even if I did I would the casual competitiveness of the golden age. No one gives a shit about your high score on your home machine, but the time I got Lost in the Zone twice and scored 6B on the TZ in a bar in London (The Pipeline FWIW), that turned a few heads.