I got back into the hobby via visual pinball. I think it is currently the best (physics) option right now. And it's free and has a very rich online community like pinside. Check out vpforums.com and vpinball.com. Future Pinball is fun, too with lots of original material (easier to program as I've done some game mods myself) but physics aren't as good. Lots of info on how to make your own cab, too. I bought my cab from VPCabs with all the bells and whistles (has solenoids, shaker, leds, etc). But now that I know more would have just built my own for 1/3 of the cost. Some games are emulated quite well and is a very cheap way to test out a game before you buy (like I did with AMH and Tomcat). On pinside your gonna always hear vp sucks, but it doesn't. Is it the real thing? No. Is it darn close? Depends on the game and the setup. But, it never breaks and no switches need adjusting. I can play AFM, Monster bash. MM, Twilight zone, Indiana Jones, Shadow, etc whenever I want without breaking the bank. Just my two cents
I've never cared for the FX2 gameplay and haven't tried pinball arcade.