Perhaps the other patrons thought you were going to come back and finish the game. Could folks be that honest in Iowa? Its a nicer thought than the alternative.

Try Jordan Creek Mall's movie complex in West Des Moines. They have many newer Stern games in great condition; and people are playing them!
Terry.

I was suprised how much fun I had playing Nascar when I found one.

If I saw a gorilla playing pinball and he left the game, I'd be afraid to finish his game for fear of getting my arm ripped off and beaten about the head with it!

I have never played someone's personal table. Only tables in "the wild" and I've never found a completely working table in my life.

Sidenote. My personal favorite is when you play a game in one place that has, say weak flippers but working locks, and then play it somewhere else with strong flippers but broken locks etc. Happens a lot.

End note; if I saw you playing and walk away leaving credits in the machine, I would be mad but wait. If you didn't come back for a half an hour, I would take your credits, keeping quarters in case you came back, but playing dumb to the fact that I knew it was you playing.

I wonder if they want to sell it!

I take credits from kids at the local movie theatre all the time.

They put in money, are too dumb to see the flashing start button, and walk away after slapping every other button on the machine, pulling the plunger 15-20 times. I have seen driving-age teenagers do this ALL THE TIME. They also completely ignore the knocker on a match and walk off.

Whatever. Too bad for them, and lucky for the movie theatre, because last time I played, it broke a slingshot rubber and got the ball all snagged up. I notified the mgr and had them put an out of order sign on it until the local tech can get it fixed.

If I see kids who don't know how to play, I usually walk up and tell them to hit the start button and give them a one minute lesson on how to play. The only way pinball machines will stay in the wild is if kids play them.

I see this happen all the time I go to nickelrama. Just about 3 games with credits still on them, or active games going with nobody around playing them. Crazy to see because this NEVER happened when I was young and in an arcade. I used to LOVE it when I was a little kid watching some adult play a video game and they had to go back to work or whatever and would let me take over their game.

When I find a pin in the wild I'd say about 30% of the time it has credits on it.

Especially the new 75 cent stern machines. I see a ton with 2/3 credits in it.

Nah, finally got her shopped out and she's gonna stay awhile