Elmerstinkkeman's ratings

For 1961 this is a very cool game. Art is fabulous. Somewhat designed to eat your nickel but that was the case back then. Two inch flippers demand proper timing. Lots of pop action. Easy rules to understand but goals are tough to accomplish. Overall fun game.

I love this game. I had one then sold it but missed it so I bought another. Ripping spinners or collecting a maxed out bonus for 10000 points a shot is always rewarding.

Pinball is functional art and this game is a beauty. The play is better than you'd think looking at the openness of the pf. Getting all five balls on the correct side of the centre housing is challenging and harder than you'd think. Overall it's a bang for your buck pin as they're usually not too pricey.

Fast and fun. Keeps you on your toes. Left orbit lit for 10x value is a very rewarding shot. It's an add a ball game so hearing that knock and getting your ball count up over five is always fun. Why couldn't Gottlieb have used whatever Zaccaria used on its playfields?! They're usually in near perfect condition! Overall a fun player and a little different than the usual fare.

Beautiful game. Great art. Looks and feels like an em. It's the missing link, like the dragon.

This is a fast and fun game. Good shots to make. Easy multi ball. Great back box animation. Great application of theme. One of Data East's best efforts.

This game is fun. Cool shots. 80s cheese. Don't let the art scare you away. I kinda like the wacky translite. It was the first game to have one. Plays fast but forgiving. I like having games from all eras and this is a good mid 80s example.

This game is underrated. At a glance the pf looks pretty bare except for a roto target. Big deal. But once you get to know this game I realized it's a thinking man's game. The roto target is better than most as it's not about points, it's about collecting the numbers 1-7, while only two show at any given time. So you have to constantly be paying attention as to which numbers you need, which are showing, and should you go for a number or engage another roto spin. And it has an egg! In an em! If you hit the number 4 last it gives you four credits and four knocks! Very cool. There aren't a whole lot of switches so I set up every switch to be hair triggered. Jacked up the back legs, high tapped the transformer, tight rubbers, clean pf and a new ball and it's lightning fast and fun. Poorly set up I can see how this game would be a bore but dialed in it's another great Gottlieb wedgehead. Great art work. Stylin cabinet. Don't write this one off as I did before someone dropped one off for a resto. Fun game.

Very addictive game. Better rule set on three ball which gets you higher scores than on five, most of the time. It's a shot makers game with a few tough ones and a real/ reward with the centre standup. Overall a great game.

Action packed. Lots to shoot for. Fast and fun. Out lanes are killer! Beautiful artwork.

It took me awhile to fully appreciate this game but now that I have spent a lot of time with it I call it a thinker's game. You need to decide whether to advance the 10x multiplier, chase numbers, or go for drops. You often don't want the drops until you've both hit the corresponding number and aligned the 10x value, for a 5000 point hit. Unlike a lot of ems banging around randomly won't score what a well thought through game will score. Fun game.

All pinball is fun, it's a question of to what degree. I have a large collection and everyone who sees it is drawn to this game both for the now back in vogue disco theme, and the crazy banana flippers. The game play isn't amazing but it's fast and fun.

Others have explained the unique nature of the moving stand-ups and the interesting rule set. I'll add that set up right, and with strong coils on the flippers, this game plays fast and fun. It's simple but has a big 'just one more' factor. Fun game.

I have a large collection including top DMDs but I think as a collector this game is the pride of my collection. Extremely rare, great looking, and interesting and challenging game play. Want an Addams Family or a Game of Thrones? Then just go buy one. But try finding one of these. Total keeper. A real gem.

To me pinball is functional art and this game belongs in an art museum. Just a thing of beauty. The game play is a bit random and there are no real rules, but who cares? You want deep rules buy Game of Thones. It's a beautiful and simple, fun game.

We have 18 games including top DMD games but Target Pool might actually get the most play out of all of them. It has a place of honor in the dining room where it gets played multiple times per day. I don't know what it is, but we love this game. I've high-tapped it, taken out the tilt, installed new flipper coils, set the back up nice and high, and it plays fast and fun. Two inch flippers have a smaller sweet spot so some skill is required to fully enjoy this game, but once you dial this one in it's a keeper.

I am lucky enough to own a Cross Town that was Home Use Only since 1969. As the story goes, it was taken out of a laundromat in Toronto by the then head of The Morality Squad. (The pricks that went around busting gays, pot smokers, and telling women their skirts were too short. Canada's version of the Taliban, way back when) He took it home and it never left. When he died his daughter had it for 23 years, and I got it directly off of her. He kept it covered with a sheet when not in use, and would give the kids three dimes each to play it while he hovered over them, making sure they never abused it. The end result is a 53 year old game in remarkable original condition. As a player it's tough, with the wide flipper gap, but between the condition and the ever entertaining back box animation for me it's a fun player. I love the manual plunge, with hardware built for a tank and capable of a million plus plunges. Stern take note!

Spirit of 76 is one of the best symmetrical EMs out there. The rule set is both challenging and rewarding, with the rotating value of the centre saucer, once you've hit all the drops. Like so many EMs, the rule set is easy to understand but tough to complete. Always a fun game. No wonder they made so many of them as both this, and the two player Pioneer.

Honey is a bit of a sleeper. At a glance you don't assume it's too engaging but it turns out to be a fun and challenging pin. It can be picked up for relatively cheap so it provides good bang for your buck.

I don't know why people are hard on this game. Pinball is many things and this is a super cool combination of roulette wheel and pinball. Rubbing your hands yelling 'Come on triple bonus!' as that wheel spins is as a fun as Vegas. I have a very large collection and enjoy having games of different eras and styles, and this game is a total keeper and gets lots of play. It has a special place of honour in the home, not the games room, next to a Centigrade 37. Unique ruleset, the rare 'between the flippers' pop, and action packed random fun. I more or less took the tilt off it but it still requires a special skill set to master getting the ball out of what looks like a sure drain and back into play. I've had 1080's around that pop and epic saves. Shake away! If it breaks I'll fix it, though it never has. Built like a tank. Crazy fun. Totally under-rated.

If you believe there can be beauty in simplicity then this game is gorgeous. The back glass is whacky and probably drug induced, nicely capturing the period, and the pf, though sparce, gives the game an airy challenge. You need to be accurate to score well. Random hits won't get you anywhere. A fun oddball to have.

I've enjoyed this Stern more than most of the new ones. Huge bang for your buck. Fast and fun.