For a while, I was actually trying to build a collection of one game from each decade, with as much gameplay diversity as possible and showing off the advancements in technology over time. Basically a mini pinball museum in my house. The problem is that a.) I don't want to get rid of either of my 80's games to make room and b.) I'm not really a fan of 1950's-style games. The ones in brackets are titles that I don't currently own.

1930's: Signal Senior - Literally just pins and balls. So simple and so satisfying and the gate system is an ingenious gimmick.

1940's: Bally Rocket - Bulb scoring is so charming and the kickout hole sequence (later seen on Kings & Queens and Paradise) is a lot of fun.

1950's: [Diamond Lil] - A great representative of an early flipper game, with the challenging reverse-flipper arrangement.

1960's: Hot Line - Fast and furious action with tiny 2" flippers as your only weapon. I love the colorful 60's artwork. Also (arguably) pinball's first dot matrix display.

1970's: Jet Spin - The apex of late-EM engineering, with a vari-target, a roto-target and some challenging shots in between. Love the asymmetry.

1980's: Spectrum - the most original concept in pinball ever created and Margaret Hudson's masterpiece.

1990's: Tales of the Arabian Nights - Fun toys, crazy ramps, magnets and a compelling story. Clearly the standout game of the 90's.

2000's: [Spider-Man] - A "standard fan" layout, a deep and challenging rule set and multi-balls galore epitomize the 2000's style of pinball.

2010's: [Deadpool Pro] - LCD displays are the big innovation of the 2010's but this one stands out with a bonkers layout (including one of the single best shots in all of pinball), unbeatable music and a wicked sense of humor.

2020's: [Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles] - So many ways to play! Head-to-head, teams, cooperative and Half Shell challenge. A bright, fun update of a retro theme. To be honest, it's early in the decade, so TMNT is kind of a default choice. I'm sure greatness awaits in the coming years.

Fun question. I've personally tried to maintain a collection along these lines, it gets challenging after a while because decades would get locked down by all time favorites.

50's - Gypsy Queen. Classic Wayne Neuens with Roy Parker artwork. You can debate whether other games are better, but Gypsy Queen is an excellent example of why Gottlieb was on top for so long.

60's - Flipper Fair. I hate clowns but the layout is supurb. I really like how the Gottlieb Add-a-balls of this era have really short ball times to balance the fact that you can earn balls. Nothing beats the thrill of lining up the Add-a-ball on the center target and nailing it repeatedly. Layout was reused on Crosstown, but flipper fair is the OG.

70's - Mata Hari. I've owned three copies of this game. 80's and 70's are the hardest to pick one game from for me, but none of them get played as much as my MH.

80's - F-14 Tomcat. This is the game that really made me fall in love with pinball. For sentimental reasons it gets the nod over Flash Gordon, Centaur and a host of other games I love.

90's - Stargate. This is my favorite 90's game. Fight me.

2000's - Spiderman. This decade is weird. There really isn't that much to choose from, so probably the first decade to cut if I had to lose a game.

2010's - Iron Maiden. Do I have to justify this one? If you like the band there are very few games that even compete with it.

2020's - TMNT. Honestly haven't played many of the games that came out since the pandemic started. I've owned TMNT and liked it a lot. I expect to replace it with Godzilla or Ultraman when I find one to play because Kaiju.

Crazy... I was just talking to my wife about doing this when we were sitting at the concessions area at expo. Told her I would build out like top 5 per decade and we would work on one from each list over time.

The two biggest problems with the game is that the sound design is garbage and that the machine is so finicky that you pretty much have to play the game in a private collection to really appreciate it.

Personally I find "shoot the pyramid" endearing in a campy sort of way, but I'm under no illusion that it is good. I apparently care about sound design less than the average pinsider.

The wild ruleset which layers a mode tree onto the stargate shots plus the quartz economy makes every WPC game feel flat in comparison.

so hard to pick just one

60's hot line or Dodge City
70's flip flop
80's High Speed
90's AFM or Shadow
00 LOTR
10 MET Premium or DI
20 JP Premium

Just to clarify how I arrived at TMNT for the 2020’s

- Hot Wheels feels weird.
- Guns N Roses and Rick & Morty are cloying and obnoxious.
- Mandalorian is a repetitive wood chopper and the upper playfield isn’t well-integrated.
- Godzilla and Avengers are too complicated to be any fun.
- TMNT’s shots are too narrow for a game where accuracy is so vital, but the theme and game options are more fun than any of the other options.

I have faith that in the next 8 years, someone will make a game with a unique playfield layout that’s enjoyable to play and isn’t designed solely for use in tournaments.

You may need some more games on Godzilla- it isn’t nearly as confusing as AIQ

Oh. I actively do this as I curate my collection.

60's Central Park. Such a great game. Haven't gotten one yet.
70's Bally Strikes and Spares - Best beer and a friend game. May not have many friends, but I do have plenty of beer.
80's Space Shuttle - Steal those MBs.
90's Indiana Jones - No the best game of the 90's, but thematic perfection.
00's Spiderman (photo finish with TSPP) - Not a fan favorite, but my favorite fan layout.
10's Deadpool (photo finish with JP Premium) - Weird ass layout and quirky theme beats Keith's superior design.
20's Too Early To Tell. - Probably TMNT or Godzilla but I haven't owned either yet.

sure is, Seems like it just came out. I got mine in November of 2019 and just sold it.

I’ve had about an hour on a pro. The layout is amazing (as with all Elwin’s games) but finishing even one Kaiju battle is impossible and every shot seems to start some kind of multi ball. I get that deep rulesets are popular, but there’s too much going on to keep track of. I’m sure it’s ideal for a high-pressure tournament, but if that’s not your thing, it’s just not any fun.

30s and 50s represented here

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For me:
1960's : Gottlieb King of Diamonds. Was at my 1st job in the snack bar and played it a ton.
1970's This needs broken into EM & SS.
EM: Gottlieb High Hand- tons of drop targets. A perfect Gottlieb card theme game.
SS: Bally Eight Ball- When you set the all time sales record at the time, 20.2K something was right. Plus it's fun simple game. Profits set up
future great games to come. Gave us Playboy 18K, KISS 17K, Star Trek 16.8K.
2nd place: Stern Meteor. Huge sales numbers set the plate for future great games.
1980's Pick any class of 1981 Bally games. It didn't get better then these.
1990's TIE AF or TZ. The best of the 90's

After that I don't care.

Fair enough, but for me, I see Godzilla having a pretty easy basic rule set. Line up your multiball with either Mechagodzilla or the building... hit the scoop to battle a monster... finalize your multiball. At that level it is about as basic as Monster's Bash (bash Frank to set up the multiball then try to start as many monster modes as possible before you send the ball up Frank's ramp).

I agree with you on AIQ - i have had the game a year and I still struggle to understand the strategies involved with placing and using gems.

I havent played enough games from the 60s and prior to decide on any titles.

1970's - El Dorado: I love drop targets and this would be my go to drop target game of the group. I love the 'western' theme too. (I could easily go with a late 70s Bally because I love them, but gotta go with 70's Gottlieb EM here.)

1980's - Centaur. This was TOUGH choosing just 1 game from the 80s. My favorite decade for pinball. Centaur wins because it checks all the boxes for me. Extra value Queens Chamber shot (captive ball inline drops) is one of my all time favorite shots.

1990's - Bram Stoker's Dracula. Easy choice. Never gets old. Not too easy, not too hard once your get in a groove and get the ball under control.

2000's - Ripley's Believe It Or Not - I like this game a lot and the theme is more interesting to me than anything else from this decade.

2010s - Deadpool. I really like this layout. It is so fun to shoot. This decade is loaded with great games: AC/DC, Walking Dead, Iron Maiden, Metallica, but Deadpool I think is my favorite player from these years. However, i'd prefer another theme over comic...

2020's (so far) - Rick and Morty. Interesting layout, cool ball lock, challenging shots and very good theme.

50's - Ace High: not a lot of time on games of this era but liked the bullseye targets (outer ring and inside target score differently) and more complex rule set of Ace High.

60's - Flipper Cowboy: Great backglass animation. Fun gameplay and multiple ways to earn extra balls. Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang goes the knocker when you start a game and the cowboy shoots the target. Also a Bang when you earn an extra ball.

70's - Wizard: Rip the spinner when lit, hit the targets to flip the flags and earn double bonus, lite spinner etc.. Really fun to play and great artwork.

80's - Black Knight: so many to choose from this era but BK is hard to top when I'm in the zone and playing both playfields at the same time, hitting magnasave, collecting the mytery award and ripping the spinner when lit. Collecting an extra ball is so satisfying with the whistle sound effect and ringing bell.

90's - Twilight Zone: so many great interactive toys and fun shots.

2000's - Lord of the Rings: probably my favorite software/sound package.

2010's - Alien: overall good shooter, interesting shot map, great sound and good rules. WOZ is a close second.

2020's - TBD: not enough time on any games yet.

30s - Prospector: I love the art and it has a good mix of pins and springs to keep things random.

40s - Humpty Dumpty: First pin with flippers!

50s - Jalopy: I love the interactive backglass and old cartoon art style.

60s - Pirate Gold: Plays surprisingly fast for an old game and there is plenty to shoot at.

70s EM - Little Joe: I like the twist on the general gambling theme you see in a lot of games in this era (dice instead of cards).

70s SS - Gorgar: First talking pin AND it has killer art (no pun intended).

80s - Bad Cats: I love the call outs and the general humor of the theme. Its like an early cat meme from before the internet.

90s - Indiana Jones, The Pinball Adventure: I grew up watching those movies and day dreaming about being just like him, so it's a good hit of nostalgia for me. Black Rose as a close contender because it was the first pinball I remember playing and not walking away from after two games.

2000s - The Simpsons Pinball Party: I love the theme and the call outs. Sadly not as much competition as the 80s and 90s.

2010s - Dead Pool: Chaos in pinball form with a popping art package.

2020s - Legend of Valhalla: I like the theme and what I've heard of the soundtrack is epic! Can't wait to try it. On that note though, pinball seems to be riding into a resurgence in this decade so hopefully there will be plenty to overshadow it.

The collection above presents plenty of different themes, skill levels, and historical tidbits to keep any visitors amused until you need to shoo them away.

50s Balls A Poppin
60s Cowpoke
70s Fireball/Paragon
80s High Speed
90s Addams Family
00s TSPP
10s Deadpool
20s Godzilla

Honorable Mentions
50s Sittin Pretty
60s King of Diamonds
70s Jungle Queen, Interflip Dragon, Eight Ball
80s Barracora, Taxi, Eight Ball Deluxe
90s Medieval Madness
00s LOTR
10s Iron Maiden
20s GNRLE

20s: Rick and Morty
10s: Jurassic Park Premium (honorable mention to Deadpool)
00s: Lord of the Rings
90s: Star Trek: The Next Generation (honorable mention to medieval madness)
80s: Whirlwind
70s: Paragon
60s and before... fun to play at a show but really have no interest.

70s Centigrade 37
80s Eight Ball Deluxe
90s Medieval Madness
20s Spider-Man
10s Star Trek LE
20s too soon

60s Dodge City or Teacher's Pet
70s EM Volley, SS Paragon
80s TX-Sector
90s White Water
00s Spiderman
10s Jurassic Park Premium or LE
20s Led Zeppelin LE (haven't played Godzilla yet)

I'm kind of bordering on being an "ol fart" now and I love both the pins of my (wasted) youth and modern ones. And I really like collections with pins from different eras. So, what would I chose. Today I go for:

50s: Only know them from books, but Gtb Grand Slam looks pretty amazing
60s: Gtb Melody (My first ever pin. Love that game)
70s: Surf Champ EM / Harlem Globe Trotters EE Sorry, I just can't limit it to one.
80s: The Black Hole, US Version. First time I played that game and had multi-ball on both levels in different directions my mind was blown. Why can't they do that again?
90s: TAF: Love the playfield and cooky humour.
00s: Spiderman: The first Stern Pin where I thought "hang about... they've caught up with B/W.
10s: Metalica
Now: Godzilla Premium: Never played it, but as far as I can judge, it's a perfect modern pin.

Fun topic.

Is the goal to pick the best game of the decade, or the game that best represents the decade?

For example in the 90s people above picked WH2O and Shadow. Both are great games and either might be my favorite of the decade... but neither represent the dominant style of pinball in the 90s. WH2O and TS are both weirdos for their era.

Tell me you haven’t played a premium without saying you haven’t played a premium. Finishing a battle is not THAT hard. Understanding which shots go to which monster? Sure if you can’t follow blinking lights, I can see where that’s an issue, but your multiball quote doesn’t hold any water. Bridge attack is ridiculously hard to start, and the shot into the building is so tight, and rejects are more than norm than a MB. Might want to re-play a Premium and then give an updated opinion

Played it at Expo. Whether not set up correctly, or hellafied flipper fade from being banged on for days on end, both of the machines I played were weak. Did not like at all

60s- Sweet Hearts. This is my baptism into pinball. Been in my family since the late 60s. Was lucky enough to inherit it. So many family memories on this one.
70s- Genie Gottlieb widebody sweetness.
80s- So may great Williams from this era, but Funhouse! always comes out on top. Something about Rudy taunting me...
90s much closer race, but would have to give the win to Adams Family. great integration and call outs, and the Mamushka!!!
2000s- Lord of the rings. Its Tolkein!
2010s-Oktoberfest! dream theme, fun, campy so deep and so much fun. Prost!
2020s Havent played hardly any yet, but very excited for both Godzilla and Legends of Valhalla.

My experience has been the same as BlackTiePinhead for every AP game I’ve played. I really like their layouts and rules, but the flippers have been a constant complaint.

You seem to have very strong feelings about Godzilla. I’m glad you like it so much and I appreciate that you want me to like it too, but I’ve given it a try and it’s just not for me.

Here’s my list:
70s: Stars - I love the weird period where games went solid state, but still used chimes and Stars is just a great game. Honorable mention to Joker Poker.
80s: Taxi - This is a nostalgia pick. I played a ton of Taxi growing up. It’s also got a great layout and theme integration for the time period.
90s: Whirlwind: I love some Whirlwind, but honestly for me the 90s doesn’t hold up as well as it does for other folks. Whirlwind is my favorite from the era with Funhouse as an honorable mention.
00s: Simpsons Pinball Party: Great theme integration and great code. The only thing that made me sell this one is that the ball times at standard settings were sooooo long. Like 60 minute games.
10s: Jurassic Park Premium: This is the pinnacle of pinball for me. Great code. Great layout. Great theme integration.
20s: Rick and Morty: This is a close second to Jurassic Park. My game was one of the last off the line and it flows so well and shoots like butter. The theme integration and code are great.

1950s: Serenade
1960s: Target Pool
1970s: Jet Spin
1980s: F-14 Tomcat
1990s: Whirlwind
2000s: Lord of the Rings
2010+: Wizard of Oz

60s: King of Diamonds
70s: Stars
80s: Warlok / Eightball Deluxe (tie)
90s: Twilight Zone
00s: Lord of the Rings
10s: Iron Maiden
20s: TMNT

So tough to choose;
1930's: Mills Official, a very early basic mechanical pin that is challenging
1940's; Wms TORCHY, a pre-flipper that has two large electromagnets in the PF
1950's; Wms Turf Champ, PF animation and one of a multitude of great pins from this period
1960's; Spanish Eyes, not the best player but killer artwork, again, so many great pins these years
1970's; Fireball (original), multiball and zipper flippers...what more do you want?!
1980's; Black Hole, an amazing pin that never gets old, early speech, two level PF
1990's: ST:TNG, one of the best pns ever IMO
thats where I stopped due to lack of space and cost.

1960's Paradise Gottlieb
1970's Paragon Bally
1980's Black Hole Gottlieb
1990's Attack from Mars Bally/Williams
2000's Spiderman Stern
2010's Total Nuclear Annihilation Spooky
2020's Elvira House of Horrors Stern

Paragon would definitely be a good 70s choice.

I'd like to play more machines from the 60s. Perhaps change my 70s choice to a solid state.

Maybe ill take a drive over to Banning and... oh nevermind.

Just spotted this somewhat vintage thread.
I only have 3 decades of machines, and each decade is tough to say.
1950s - Playing solo, probably 1958 Williams Gusher. Playing with
someone, 1956 Williams Fun House has Gusher beat.
1960s - Diamond Jack, Majorettes, and a couple others are a close runner
up. Playing with someone, Lariat, Pleasure Isle, and there's others that
are very close runner ups.
1970s - Probably Lucky Hand. Playing with someone, Bristol Hills, but there's
EM Black Jack and others also..