In the various threads I've started lately regarding different play field options of pre DMD Solid State machines, I've noticed an interesting trend. It seems that many pins of the early 80's (80-82) are often mentioned and also pins of the late 80's (87-89). But there are hardly any pins of the mid 80's that seem to be favored by us Pinsiders.

Sure enough if you take a look at the top 20 of the 1980's listed here on Pinside, nine of them were made in 80-82, nine of them were made in 87-89, and only two were from 83-86. Those 2 pins are High Speed and Centaur II.

So what happened in the mid 80's that caused such a decline in pinball design?? What made the early and late nineties better for pinball innovation compared to the mid 80's? Some discussion on this may be fun and enlightening!! Please share your thoughts!