So last night I had a few people over to play in my mini arcade. We got into a heated discussion about video game pinball, virtual pinball and traditional pinball.

Before I give my stance (which was torn apart last night by my friends) I want everyone to know I LOVE pinball. The type of pins I enjoy the most are 60's and 70's EM games however, I own several different types.

So last night in the middle of talking about our favorite games I told my buddies I was saving for a Virtual Pinball Machine, after my friend spit his drink from his mouth he told me he will never sell me another game because I will defile my arcade room with this electronic monster. I tried to explain that my boy's (8 and 10) would enjoy the variety it offers (You can load up to 250 games), and allow our family to play games like MM, FH, CC and CV without breaking the bank.

I was ridiculed for about an hour about how I disgraced the pinball gods, a REAL pinball game in 100% random, how pinball is dying with the younger generation and machines like this are the cause and how a LCD screen is NOT a pinball machine no matter what cabinet you put it into.

My question, is a virtual machine really that bad? I was looking for a cost effective way for my kids to play more great games with a traditional look and feel. There are few arcades where I live that carry pins, and buying DMD pins is expensive (I just bought one).

All in all I think a virtual machine is a good idea, the play is fun not like a traditional pin but still fun, the game selection you can upload is awesome and it fits well in our arcade theme.

Am I way out in left field here? Do other agree?

Gorilla-

LOL, Don't hold back, give it to me straight

I have a local dealer that is selling them with a design of your choice on the cabinet. They will preload 25 games and have options for game storage of up to 250+. The cost is $4199.99, which is less than a new Stern from Best Buy. I think the price is fair since I don't carry the expertise of building one myself.

Two words: That's AWESOME!

LOL That is too funny

I just played it for the first time last weekend on the Xbox360. It was okay....I have played Tales of the Arabian Nights about 250 times and found it to be pretty accurate but Taxi was way, way, way too easy.

Just a funny note...Pinbot drained as much on the left side as it normally does!!!!

I noticed that as well. While pins go up in price you can pick up a popular arcade game for $300-500.

My whole point with this was I would be able to play games like MM, TOTAN, TAF and TZ without paying big bucks or getting rid of my old favorites due to room in the basement (Or try to tell my wife that a pin would look great in the sitting room or bedroom).