Stress relief to play, but, between having to fix the games, planning my next fix, wondering what's going to break next, and wondering why some things aren't quite working right, I'd say the hobby overall is causing more stress than it relieves. Still fun though.

Definitely stress relief for me. I really enjoy the hobby and playing pinball, I just don't take it that serious. I enjoy working on them and keeping them spotless clean as much as I enjoy playing them, it's part of the fun. Don't get stressed, after all, it's just pinball.

Usually stress relieving

Stressful!

Especially lately. I've got close to Valinor a couple times in the last few weeks. STRESSFUL!

But still a feeling of accomplishment, just getting somewhat close.

Bottom line: I can play for fun, or I can play competitively with my mind made up that I want to get to a wizard mode like Valinor, BFTK, or Portal, and failure to get there is stressful.

Of course my best games are always when I just play for fun! Then they get stressful towards the end. lol

paying for and picking up a pin that you got for a great deal - stressful.

It really depends for me. I've had Whirlwind piss me off to the point that I had to turn it off and walk away before I broke something. TSPP can also make me angry. I often have games on AFM where it was a blast and I felt great afterwards, very stress relieving. Same for TAF.

Both

If I'm having a good game, it's stress relieving.
Usually though, it's stress-inducing.

Stress relieving playing, stressful buying.

When things are going well it is a zen like trance. I am a leaf on the wind. Watch me soar. When every single bounce leads to a drain I can be a foul mouthed temple of rage. I guess it evens out in the end.

Let's see here:
- 2 young kids
- 1 wife
- 1 business to run
- 1 basketball team to coach, 2 baseball teams to coach each year
- etc....... (I could go on and on)

Pinball machines:
- Only thing that keeps me sane! Definitely a stress release for me. Love working on them, keeping them in tip top shape and playing them. It's all good

"It's only Pinball" Rudys voice on TZ.No stress/all fun

Ya gotta BREATH when ya play! Does no one on here do yoga?

Stressful.

LTG : )

For me the only stressful part is wondering which parts I should acquire now just in case I might need them some day when they are no longer available.

Depends on the day.

Stress relief. If it wasn't I'd sell the pins and buy a fishing pole or something.

Fishing now thats stress.Load the boat,tow the boat,fiqure the tides,launch,avoid the drunks,deploy the surethings,explain why it takes time,preach patience,sigh,load the boat,tow the boat,clean the boat,explain why you love fishing...play pinball

Pinball whats not to love. I scream and yell at the top of my lungs and then laugh like a little kid.

Stress relieving! Stressfull when I can't find a good fixerupper to purchase at a good price.

EVERYTHING is stressful to me lol. Anyways, it's a fun, and mostly relaxing hobby, but everytime I fire one up, I hear the clock "ticking" away. It's reminding me that at some point, this bastard is gonna break on me. But, there is probably nothing more satisfying to me than troubleshooting and fixing these games. It amazes me at times that I can actually fix these lol...

Selling or buying pins is stressful I feel.

Playing and fixing them, very stress relieving. Especially if you fix something or get to a mini wiz mode or wizard mode even.

It's like a round of golf in a shorter time span. Can start of GREAT, then you lose 2 balls due to dumb luck or decisions. Maybe that's why I love / hate it? Stressful or fun depends on the end result.

Both, but more than not I get relief.

totally agree, for the most part stress relieving, but when you are close to your high score, or have to hit the sol hole to rule the universe , blood pressure is probably rising rather than dropping. Often play a few game after working late, and need to relax before trying to fall asleep.

There are a few Pinsiders that are always angry about something. Stern, Jack, prices, quality, etc. Sad really; it's pinball - it's supposed to be fun.

Pinball is perfect for me because between work and family life I just don't have enough time in the day to relieve my stress via console games like when I was younger. Pinball is great you don't need to invest a lot of time because you either have a great game which can last up to 10-15 minutes or a bad one in under 5 minutes and still feel satisfied.

Stressful. Then again, so is everything else. 8-0

I'm going with ... BOTH

Bump/Resurrect

Stress relief for me, for sure....

Playing is neutral,... but if a NIB game doesn't work as it should I get stressed.

If I buy a shithole and resurrect it overtime it's an absolute stress relief.

Therefore I plan to stop expensive NIB purchases. All this ruckus about loosing value if I'd ever sell it kinda gets to me.

What is this stress you speak of? Stress on the fingertips maybe.

100% stress releiving. Nothing beats the steel ball on wood after a day of starting at the computer screen.

Both, but hopefully more stress relief than stress causing.

Sad thing is when I think of pinball I think of working on them, perfecting them, detailing them and lightly modding them. I like turning them into improved works of art. I don't think of playing them that much, although I do. It is a stress reliever for me to work on them but also stressful as I'm an inpatient person and want to finish them and obsess about what I'm going to do next or how to fix an issue. Yeah, I'm the guy you want to buy your pins from, because I have OCD about them being perfect. I often have to tell myself to calm down, relax, you'll get to it when you have time. I feel anxious yet ambitious about finishing a game. It's hard to explain but I'm crazy. I'll stay up until 2 am working on a game and wake up at 5 am before my kids wake up just so I can finish it.

Both for me. I don't think I would play it if it was always stressful. It's fun to take a bit and play some games and relax, but it's stressful when you have to shoot a shot and have 5 seconds left to do it.

ULTIMATE stress reliever. I have an extremely stressful job. I’ve found nothing that matches pinball in stress relief.

Even when I work extra late I still try to play pinball every day. Good way to get my mind off work and settle down before bed.

Even if I just go down and work on games instead of playing, great stress relief for me.

Once in a while I'll give one of my pins a loud "oh f--- you!" when a shot goes bad or I drain with an extra ball shot lit. Then I realize how stupid that sounds, and laugh my ass off. Stress and de-stress at the same time.

Same goes for working on them. It's very relaxing: cleaning, polishing, tinkering, soldering. But too many times have I brought home a new game, taken off parts to clean them up, only to scratch or snap in half a part that existed perfectly fine for thirty-odd years until I got my paws on it. Now that's stressful.

Stressful. Something is always broken and my OCD won't allow me to sleep. I stare at the ceiling thinking about the best way to fix it, the parts I need to buy, etc.. Then something else breaks... rinse, repeat.

The actual playing of the pins is definitely a stress release, so long as you don’t get too crazy if you’re not playing well.

But as others have mentioned the maintenance costs/time can actually add stress to this hobby. The more games you add, the more chances you’ll have of games breaking down.

Playing with friends or tinkering with an EM or EE is fun. I quit competing in formal tournaments because that really started to stress me out.