There's no getting around it, I'm completely spoiled when it comes to EMs. I can walk to the local arcade (https://pinside.com/pinball/map/where-to-play/3932-village-arcade-saint-peters-pa) and do almost every weekend. Two credits per quarter so it's not hard to make $5 last all afternoon. Favorites are Liberty Bell, Triple Strike, Fast Draw, Surf Champ, and -- no, I'm not kidding -- Bally El Toro.

I wasn't in the hobby at all when we moved here.

I have an appreciation for ALL pinball machines. I believe all true pinballers play/own EMs.

I think there are two main things that hold people back from EM machines.

1. Nick hit it on the head...some people haven't really played finely tuned, fully working EMs. They are challenging, quirky, and satisfy that "one more play" feel...which is literally what they were made to do.

2. People think many EMs are the same. I will admit that there are some that have similarities, but there are also numerous unique and refreshing electromechanical games as well.

When Nick (@flipit) does an EM, it plays better than new. I played his Williams "Beat the Clock" once, and literally got a rush when I had it all going on. That's the only time that has happened to me on an EM game.

Wish he was open more than just the weekend.

When a new player comes over, we head over to the lone EM (Space Odyssey) after a while, because it's such a great equalizer. I will destroy any new player on a SS, but on the EM, I could very easily have a bad luck game, and my friend might win a game, and that's a good thing when the arcade manager finally gets trashed by a newbie.

-mof

I'm not sure what qualifies one as an "EM Pinball Enthusiast," but currently my collection consists of about 1/3 EMs

I love EM's so you can take what I say with a grain of salt, but one difference that I notice between EM's and newer games in particular is that the latest greatest SS games, though they have incredibly deep rulesets, have a definite path (often multiple paths) of progress towards a goal of achieving everything that can be achieved on the machine. A few of my friends that like the newer games are much better players than I am, and some are good enough that sometimes they get to the end of what you can accomplish, and they become bored with the machine. They talk about "beating" it.

I don't think this is true of early SS games - I don't think anybody really "beats" Firepower or Stars or Flash Gordon or Paragon. But something's changed about the complicated newer games.

I never hear anyone say they've "beaten" an EM. When our league plays, there are guys who can have a 40-minute game on Lord of the Rings - I have to go out and get a slice of pizza while they play. Nobody has a 40-minute game on Fast Draw or Slick Chick. Because everyone can easily understand the rules of an EM (heck, they're usually printed on the playfield), I have a much better chance of beating these very good players on an EM than I do on Godzilla. There's something about the simplicity of the goals on an EM that some people find boring, but I find endlessly challenging. It seems "purer" to me somehow because the goals are so simple. It's a great example of "simple" and "easy" not being the same thing.

For the record, I'm up to 7 machines - 2 Gottlieb System 1's and the rest EM's. Now if I can find a Strange World, I'm set!

One thing that you can say about EMs. You can have a room full of them, and the sounds all play in harmony. Try that with a room full of DMDs!

Soccer / Super Soccer by Gottlieb is an excellent choice for the spinner afficionado

One annual game room party the rooms were packed including the back
room consisting of mostly 60s Wedge Heads (bells). I can vouch to this..

I just pulled my Strange World from route and put in Volley.
It was an absolute ass-kicker!

It amazes me that some of the fastest early SS games came out just a few years after the end of the EM era. So they went from slower games like C37 to Meteor in what...3 years?

Volley's a blast too! But if you ever wanna sell that Strange World, let me know.

I guess some of that extra speed came from switching to DC flippers and pops, and just evolution....people seemed to want it faster and faster. I still enjoy a relaxing game of "Silver"...pinball doesn't have to feel frantic to be fun. At least to me.

Plus, since I'm whining - I HATE not being able to see the ball, so all those ramps and upper playfields, lower playfields, yadda, yadda....I just wanna aim for something and watch the pretty silver ball roll around. I remember trying to play Judge Dredd and thinking, "Where the hell is the ball?" most of the time.

OK, now I sound like an old man...

I don't mean to come off as complaining too much - I do enjoy the new games....just prefer the EM's.

I only have one machine and it's an EM so I'm TECHNICALLY all EM, but I also have a Foo Fighters NIB on order, soooo....

I won't lie, my EM was given to me, and if it wasn't, I probably wouldn't have bought it. It just felt like something so different than the 90s pinball games that got me into pinball in the first place, but I was desperate to own ANY pinball machine, and it was free.

However, owning it and playing it a lot made me see what made these older games great. It's simpler, it's more brutal, but, in an odd way, it's more peaceful. Something about how it feels more floaty, even when the tilt is jacked all the way up, as well as it not throwing all those flashing lights and a million things at you.

So yeah, I play a lot on location, and I love modern pins. But my EM isn't going anywhere and I find myself just as often dropping quarters into the empty Centigrade 37 in the back corner of my arcade as I do waiting for Godzilla to open up.

They probably always could make EMs play faster, but solid state technology allowed faster games.
The biggest problem with EM technology was the ability to keep an accurate tally of the points scored. This limited their play speed capability more than anything else.
That's the reason why most EM games have score features marked "when lit". They momentarily go dark as the score motor is cycling, because the game can't add all the points you're scoring. Solid state technology solved this problem.

this is especially frustrating when you need 1000 pts to hear the knocker and you hit a 500 pt target and the ball drains out the thousand pt lane and doesn't register.

I'm not an EM "enthusiast" but have come to appreciate them more over time. I have come to appreciate "breath" in the pinball hobby over the years. I understand lots of people love new Stern Pins (they're great!) but seeing a lineup of just Stern Pins in someone's basement gets to me. Having a DMD, EM, early solid state of system 11 in there can really mix things up. As stated elsewhere, EMs generally play alot shorter games, and if you have 5 minutes to sneak in a game you can do that on an EM, but not on many modern Sterns.

I see the same pattern in alot of people that fall off the deepend into this hobby. It goes in phases.

1. A pinball machine at home? People do that?
2. Wow new pinball machines are expensive.
3. Lets start out with a DMD machine to learn on. I played this one as a kid.
4. F-it... I really like this DMD game, I'm buying a NIB Stern.
5. Wow... have you guys seen these 80s pins?
6. Now that I've played a few... these EMs are neat. They are only how much?

That is my exact path to the EMs I've owned.

The other folks are people who just grew up with them (none have been made since I was born). These hold 0 nostalgia for me.

Now... the first time I played an EM it was a Hot Tip and I thought it was the dumbest thing. Why would anyone play this when there is a Hobbit right over there? As I've "Grown" in the hobby I've come to appreciate them. I've had an El Dorado, found a rough Time Zone that was beyond me (super cheap at estate sale... OP has it now) and just picked up my second EM, a Vulcan. I had looked at a restored on at someone's house with a nice clear coated playfield but figured at $2200 I'd be stuck with it forever if I got it. I'm in mine $708 with new leg levelers. Cheapest (working) pin I've ever gotten. I'm having fun fixing it up. To me, an EM isn't a toy. It's a puzzle you get to play with when you are done. There are a few EMs out there I think are really neat. I'm a fan of Sure Shot, Abra Cadabra, Jungle Queen, Fireball, Ship Ahoy, Hot Tip, Vulcan, and Argosy. I have found I really enjoy the late 70s EMs the most. I'm not willing to give up a space in my lineup for an EM, but am planning to more or less get one as a garage project every summer. Pick up an EM at Allentown, fix it up, enjoy it, then sell it at York. Seems pretty much like "free" pinball to me. I have not gotten into the older EMs yet, but I could see rotating one through some day.

Also... the sound is great.

Someone can clarify if I'm wrong, but William's was amongst the first EM's with 24VDC on the playfield.? But you have to give credit to Bally's 50VAC pops, they are pretty insane for the era.

There are a few transition games that were made in SS and EM versions. But as jrpinball stated, the mechanical score motor cannot keep pace and the score is not always accurate. If you ever see a Cleopatra, Hot Tip or Mata Hari in the EM version, buy it! You have all of the speed of an SS on an EM.

EM's rock.

When all you other EM lovers are bored sometime, check out on IPDB - the incredible playfields of the international EM's (Sonic/Segasa Spain, Zaccaria Italy, Sega Japan etc).
Sometimes the scoring is crazy imbalanced, but the playfields are really innovative.
Sonic's Bird Man is one of my all time favorites.

I love the games where we had both versions. Have a Sinbad EM and it's one of my favorites of all time.

Replace that older flipper design with one of the mid to late 70's assemblies on the Time Zone and it will really liven up the lower playfield. Can also hit the upper playfield much easier too! Takes the game up a notch but it's not over the top either. Improves the gameplay.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/replacing-bally-time-zone-stock-linear-flippers#post-7168247

If you look at that post, I did not install 90° light sockets yet, waiting until this one gets torn down for clearcoat. Should be a real screamer after that

This thread needs a good argument so let's see if we can generate a little passion.

I don't like the 2 inch flipper games and way prefer the 3 inch flipper bats. (except on Zipper flippers)

Convince me how I'm wrong, with or without name calling.

You're missing out on a ton of great games. It's a matter of preference though. I like both but generally feel like the 50s/60s games were more inspired with better art and gameplay.

3" flippers are where I start to check out on EMs with a few exceptions. Unless someone has them set up really tough/well I find 3" flipper EMs tend to get boring fast. Just a little too easy to control the ball. I know they are very popular but the 70s Gottliebs are some of my least favorite games. Give me a 1960s Ted Zale or Norm Clark design all day.

Also: the metal 2" flippers are the coolest looking bats ever made.

I've had a few in the past, and currently own one (Magic Town). Something just "right" about having one around.

My favorite though was my EM big ball bowler. Got me giddy every time I'd start it up!

Yeah, I was just joking around about that and the name calling.
I've been on Pinside too long. ha ha

I bought my first EM 18 months ago. Bally's 1964 "Harvest" which i learnt on and managed over a few very frustrating months and 100's of youtube videos. to get to full working order. Since then I have a Zaccaria "Ten Stars" ( currently not working and driving me nuts) a CCM "Casino" which came covered in mould and in bits ( restored and all working now).

Fast forward to today, well yesterday when Gottliebs "Cross Town" joined the party. Looking forward to working on it.

so thats 4 and it started with 1...... so....

I think i may have an EM "Problem" but i am loving it.....

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I thought of this post last night after getting my ass kicked on one my EM's.

With a modern game, You pretty much control the ball.

With an EM, the ball pretty much controls you.

Much like yourself, I tend to start at one end and go down the line and try to get a good score on each.

Six pins is the perfect numer for me.

I like beer with pinball.

With EM's, the beer never gets too warm and I never get too thirsty, unlike DMD's

EM game times are perfect.

DanMarino - you and I know each other from Flight 2000.

I spent about 6 years trying to decide which I liked better, EM or SS. It turns out, I mostly like games from the 70s, regardless of EM or SS.

I enjoy working on EMs more, but both kinds are fun to play.

This reminds me of my newfound dilemma. 12 machines would be my perfect number and my game room accommodates 13 pins but after buying and restoring my 13th and prized pig ‘Lucky Hand’, I kept searching FB Marketplace and of course kept buying. My last 2 additions I really like, 1976 Sonic Faces and a 1976 Gottlieb Card Whiz but I need to trim my lot down by 3.

What once was a really cool game room is cluttered and has no flow but the problem is that I have a hard time selling any machines. It’s not as fun down there anymore so something has to change.

My next move is going to be selling 3 of my games. I do have 2 early SSs Mata Hari and Eight Ball that have sentimental value so I think I’m going to sell three EMs soon. Looking like they will be my 1962 Williams 3 Coins, 1976 Bally Aladdins Castle and either my 76 Gottlieb Sure Shot or my 75 Bally Wizard.

Lesson learned. More is not always the answer.

You guys play your games? I am more of a collector and fixer. I rarely play my games. Between arcade games and pinball, I am near 20. I will be more likely to work on my next project over playing what I already have working.

Played Wizard! a few times tonight, does anyone notice the error on this Wade Krause playfield?
1772EB84-EAEE-4EAE-9EFD-F4A992EB3813 (resized).jpeg

On my Wade Krause Wizard! Mine is blue…..

Thought some were green and some were blue from the factory as well?

It was a prototype, the reflection marks on the yellow are missing.

I enjoy restoring pins, but for the purpose of getting to play them when they’re done. That’s what drives me to keep moving on with the restoration work. I’m now taking at least six months per pin before adding one to the lineup (even if they’re working when I get them), but the end result of playing such a nice machine makes it worth the wait to me.

I really need to invite myself over one day.

Let’s do it! Just shoot me a PM!

You've extended this invitation previously and I will send you a PM this summer!

I've fallen into the same vein as you, once you've played a level table it's an absurdly good experience. Very interested to see your work and any experience you'd be willing to share.

Thank you!

I prefer EM’s the only SS I own is Bally 8ball. If there is an EM that is the first game I play.

IMG_0849 (resized).jpeg