Williams Whirlwind, JJP Pirates, Gottlieb 4 Square, Meteor, Medieval Madness, The Walking Dead.

LTG : )

long player dmd, short player dmd, em, system 11, early ss

I was thinking of working towards a “best of” small collection. Best System 11. Best DMD, best rules, best art, best EM, best modern, whatever categories you like.

id pick 5 games you like
very few people would enjoy plying both 60s EM and JJP latest offerings

I’d honestly think one EM-1970s, one SS-1980s, one Bally/Williams-1990s, one stern-2000s, and one modern-2010s..
this always appealed to me..

I'd second this with a small change.
I've only ever played a few EM games that I'd seriously consider owning, and an early SS kinda fills that gap as well.
In the interest of consolidating your spare parts hoard (b/c you'll have to fix them at some point), I'd say:

Long playing DMD, or giant multi-mode game (LOTR, Hobbit, whatever)
Short Brutal DMD (BSD)
System 11 (WW, Pinbot, or Taxi)
Early SS (Centaur, Fathom)
Wildcard! Get something different from all the rest. (TNA)

some EM's that have lasting power IMO are
Top Score / 300
Surfer / Surf Champ
El Dorado

Eight Ball Deluxe
Whirlwind
Whitewater
Twilight Zone
JJP POTC

TZ

Medieval madness
Jjp potc-
Whirlwind
Centaur
target alpha

Would be my top 5

New, old, fast, slow, flow.

Every answer should hit all of those points. With only 5 games, you need to hit all the correct points. The games themselves almost don’t matter, but the style does. If you have a long player, you need a short player to counteract that. If you have a deep game, you need a kiddie pool to splash around in. If you have flow, you need stop and go.

Why? Moods. Some nights you want a quest. And others, you want a machine to slap you in the face with a wet hand to check if you have what it takes to keep up. Hit as many of these as you can, and you won’t be bored.

STTNG is my favorite of the bunch.

If I was limited to 5:

TWD prem
ACDC prem
Funhouse
Big Game
Grand Prix

OP your post reminds me I have the EXACT lineup I want

I hope you can accomplish a lineup that does the same for you

(of course I’d like to expand my collection but not replace any part of it)

5?

Make it 6

1. Pre-war or 1940s flipperless
2. 60's or 70's EM
3. Early solid state (segment or alphanumeric displays)
4. 90's DMD pin
5. Modern Stern/JJP/Spooky

Hrm, tough one but I'll try:

Best EM - no idea, not enough experience with EMs personally
Best System 11 - Whirlwind
Best 90s DMD - Probably Medieval Madness but there are several great pins here, TZ, TAFM, MB, etc.
Best 2000s DMD - LOTR
Best Modern - Metallica?
Best JJP - Probably POTC

2 fast & Brutal (SW PRO, ACDC PRO)
1 epic (IMDN)
2 unique (DP + ACNC/WOZ/JJPOTC)

Hey wait, this is starting to look like my lineup

I’m trying to have representation of each era in my collection.
Bally Rocket (flipperless)
Shangri-La (EM with flippers)
Mata Hari (Solid State with Chimes)
Gold Wings (Solid State music and multi ball)
Transformers LE (DMD)

Not the best line up but I’ll trade the pin for the era until I get it right

I have one of Stern's latest offerings right next to a great 60s EM. The main row in my gameroom is currently: LCD Stern, 60s EM, 70s EM, ColorDMD Stern, 70's GTLB SS, 70's Bally SS, 80s Williams and 80s Gottlieb.

20190508_225409 (resized).jpg

TWD LE
IJ
Batman 66
Tron LE
TZ

1 early 80’s bally (EBD)
1 90’s williams/bally (BSD, AFM, MM)
1 early 2000’s stern (LOTR, X-Men, Tron)
1 New Stern (BM66, Metallica, Maiden)
1 Jersey Jack ( WOZ, Wonka)

I do not like owning EM’s, I like playing them but not fixing them.
This would be my 5 styles list.

Are you confident you will have guests that will use them? Like, are they pinheads already? Worth considering - I have lots of guests and you might be surprised at how many people could care less. In which case, don’t consider guests in your expensive investment and get what you like. You may be the only one that plays them 99%

Jack

My wife and I were just talking about this. Here's my list;
ST:TNG, Bally Fireball (EM), Gtb Black Hole, Wms Aztec and Bally Broadway (bingo)
I'd add one more mechanical pin; World Series

Obviously prefer a diverse collection too.
Steve

Difficult question! There are so many great combinations. Ask me again tomorrow and I'll provide you with a different answer. Todays is:
1971 Bally Four Million BC
1981 Gottlieb Black Hole
1988 Williams Banzai Run
1994 Bally/WMS The Shadow
2017 JJP Dialed In

I've taken into account: specialities (zipper Flippers, widebody, extra playfields), brand variety, eras and of course the general quality of games.

I'm really digging the variety in this collection. Beautiful!

One LCD game.
One early Solid state.
One 90's DMD pin.
One Stern DMD pin.
One system 11.

IMDN
LOTR
AFM
EBD
Grand Prix

Fathom
Whirlwind
TZ
TRON
JJP POTC

EBD
Sorcerer
Afm
Acdc Le
Woz

Easy one first:
JJP Pirates. Has a chance to be the GOAT. Super fun game. LE, SE. I am a documented fan of the SE. Money saved pays for the EM.

If you want an EM. I would go with a 1960’s Gottlieb. The sounds are worth it. I have a nice Diamond Jack and the non pinhead heads who visit , gravitate to it.

Early SS. Flash Gordon. Fast brutal game but when it gets going magic.

Best Stern:
TWD ( over LOTR, TSPP, ). I would go premium here. My favorite rules game. Another brutal game but again , get it going and it is magic.

Best B/W: For me TZ. Stop and go , yes. But, shots, rules and innovations in this game , best of the era.

I know only 5 but for system 11. The predominate fav is WW. I prefer the earlier sibling. ES. Similar rules to WW but I prefer the shots in ES better.

5 is hard for me. I try to keep good titles from 70's,80's,90's, and a couple newer Sterns around. The 80's and early 90's is when I grew up playing so I have certainly gravitated towards that time (84-92).

For me, I would grab a Metallica and then an earlier 2000's Stern [OR] a system 11, then an early 80's Bally, then a 90's DMD like Judge Dredd or Demo Man, and then a Gottlieb EM form the 70's.

My line up:
Aztec
BOPP
Caribbean Cruise
Congo
Sopranos

Is that varied enough?

That's about right... But BOPP does not have a ton of replay value in my opinion.

For all age groups?
1. A Bryan Eddy classic with cool playfield toys that is simple to learn but hard to master (Medieval Madness or Attack From Mars)
2. A Nostalgic 90s pin most everyone 30+ will remember (Addams Family, Twilight Zone or Indiana Jones)
3. A pin to appeal to children with cool toys or art, a gimmick or trigger button (Stern Star Wars, DE Jurassic Park, SlugFest (with baseball cards), Revenge from Mars
4. A super deep pin (Any Jersey Jack, LOTR, or The Simpsons Pinball Party)
5. A fun 80s machine with a topper or gimmick (Pinbot, Big Guns, Fire, BK2K, F-14, Earthshaker, Whirlwind).
I am notorious for churning through pins but if I had to appeal to everyone I’d say:

Medieval Madness, Twilight Zone, Jurassic Park, Pirates, and Pinbot.

5 is a good number, I would love to have 5 in my gameroom.

I would do :
- 1 deep, stop and go game : WOZ or TSPP
- 1 no brainer fun shooter : MM or AFM
- 1 Steve Ritchie : STTNG
- 1 Pat Lawlor : DI (by far!)
- 1 Classic licensed SS : TAF (by far too !)

For brand variety what about...

Sega Baywatch
Gottlieb Barb Wire
Stern Playboy
Bally WHOdunnit?
Capcom Big Bang Bar

...as if anyone would admit to owning that group.